The 2010 Sylvania 300 was a
stock car racing competition that took place on September 19, 2010. Held at
New Hampshire Motor Speedway
New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a oval speedway located in Loudon, New Hampshire, which has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1990, as well as the longest-running motorcycle race in North America, the Loudon Classic. Nicknamed "The Magic Mil ...
in
Loudon,
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...
, the 300-lap race was the twenty-seventh in the
2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series was the 62nd season of professional stock car racing in the United States, the 39th modern-era cup series, and the first Cup season of the 2010s, the 21st century's second decade. Beginning at Daytona Internat ...
, as well as the first in the ten-race
Chase for the Sprint Cup
The NASCAR playoffs is a championship playoff system used in NASCAR's three national series. The system was founded as 'The Chase for the Championship' on January 21, 2004, and was used exclusively in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2004 to 2015. Si ...
, which ended the season.
Clint Bowyer
Clinton Edward Bowyer (born May 30, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and commentator for ''NASCAR on Fox''.
He competed in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2005 to 2020, driving for Richard Childress Racing for eight yea ...
of the
Richard Childress Racing team won the race;
Denny Hamlin
James Dennis Alan Hamlin (born November 18, 1980) is an American professional stock car racing driver and NASCAR team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. He co-owns and ope ...
finished second and
Jamie McMurray
James Christopher McMurray (born June 3, 1976), nicknamed Jamie Mac, is an American former professional stock car racing driver and currently an analyst for '' Fox NASCAR''. He raced in the NASCAR Cup Series on a full-time basis from 2003 to 2018 ...
came in third.
Brad Keselowski
Bradley Aaron Keselowski (; born February 12, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and entrepreneur. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 6 Ford Mustang for RFK Racing, a team he also ...
won the
pole position, although he was almost immediately passed by
Tony Stewart
Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
at the start of the race. Many Chase for the Sprint Cup participants, including
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. A seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, he competes part-time in the series driving for Petty GMS Motorsports. Johnson's seven Cup championships, ...
,
Kurt Busch, and Hamlin, were in the top ten for most of the race, although some encountered problems in the closing laps. Stewart was leading the race with two laps remaining but ran out of fuel, giving the lead, and the win, to Bowyer. There were twenty-one lead changes among eight different drivers, as well as eight
cautions during the race.
The race was Bowyer's first win in the 2010 season, and the third of his career. The result advanced Bowyer to second in the
Drivers' Championship, thirty-five points behind Hamlin and ten ahead of
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing.
Harvick is the 2014 Cup Series champion, ...
, although he fell to twelfth in the standings after receiving a post-race penalty.
Chevrolet maintained its lead in the
Manufacturers' Championship, thirty-two points ahead of
Toyota
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
and seventy-four ahead of
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
, with nine races remaining in the season. Attendance was 95,000, while 3.68 million watched it on television.
Report
Background
New Hampshire Motor Speedway
New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a oval speedway located in Loudon, New Hampshire, which has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1990, as well as the longest-running motorcycle race in North America, the Loudon Classic. Nicknamed "The Magic Mil ...
is one of ten
intermediate tracks that hold
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...
races.
The standard track at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a four-turn
oval track
Oval track racing is a form of closed-circuit motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track. An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the direction of traff ...
, long.
Its
banking
A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets.
Becau ...
in the turns varies from two to seven degrees, while the
front stretch, the finish line, and the back stretch are all banked at one degree.
Before the race,
Denny Hamlin
James Dennis Alan Hamlin (born November 18, 1980) is an American professional stock car racing driver and NASCAR team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. He co-owns and ope ...
led the
Drivers' Championship with 5,060 points, followed by
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. A seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, he competes part-time in the series driving for Petty GMS Motorsports. Johnson's seven Cup championships, ...
with 5,050.
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing.
Harvick is the 2014 Cup Series champion, ...
and
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and part-time ...
were tied for third place with 5,030 points, and Kyle's older brother
Kurt Busch had 5,020 points.
Tony Stewart
Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...
, with 5,010 points, was tied with
Greg Biffle, and
Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...
,
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards II (born August 15, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, driving the No. 19 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. Prior to that, he drove the No. ...
,
Jeff Burton
Jeffrey Tyler Burton (born June 29, 1967), nicknamed The Mayor, is an American former professional stock car racing driver and current racing commentator. He scored 21 career victories in the NASCAR Cup Series, including two Coca-Cola 600s in ...
,
Matt Kenseth
Matthew Roy Kenseth (born March 10, 1972) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He drives the No. 8 car in the Superstar Racing Experience. (SRX)
Kenseth started racing on several short tracks in Wisconsin and won track cha ...
and
Clint Bowyer
Clinton Edward Bowyer (born May 30, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and commentator for ''NASCAR on Fox''.
He competed in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2005 to 2020, driving for Richard Childress Racing for eight yea ...
rounded out the top twelve with 5,000 points each.
In the
Manufacturers' Championship,
Chevrolet was leading with 188 points, twenty-nine points ahead of their rival
Toyota
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
.
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
, with 120 points, was fifteen points ahead of
Dodge in the battle for third place.
Mark Martin
Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959) is a retired American stock car racing driver. He has the second most wins all time in what is now the Xfinity Series with 49. He scored 40 Cup Series wins. He finished second in the NASCAR Cup Series s ...
was the race's defending champion.
A number of drivers competing in the
2010 Chase for the Sprint Cup entered the race optimistic about their chances of winning the championship.
Biffle argued that he, Burton, or Stewart were "capable of winning it".
Johnson, who already had eighteen previous wins in the Chase, observed that "those 10 races in the Chase is its own world. The people act and react differently under pressure, and for the last four years we have done a great job in that environment."
Hamlin commented, "Reliability is the only thing we need to work on. It's taken us out of the last three Chases, not being reliable. You have to have it to be the champion."
Ray Evernham also opined on Hamlin, "I think Denny knows that he has the talent to win the championship. I think that he's got focus right now and a good, veteran crew chief in Mike Ford. If Toyota gives him the speed, he could be a threat."
Practice and qualifying
Three practice sessions were held before the Sunday race—one on Friday, and two on Saturday. The first session lasted 90 minutes, and the second 50 minutes. The final session lasted 60 minutes.
During the first practice session, Stewart was fastest, placing ahead of Edwards in second and
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose (born 1 September 1976) is an Australian former racing driver and current Garry Rogers Motorsport competition director. He won the Australian V8 Supercar series' championship in 2003 and 2004.
In 2006, Ambrose relocated to the Un ...
in third.
A. J. Allmendinger
Anthony James "A. J." Allmendinger (born December 16, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing.
Allmendinger's professi ...
was scored fourth, and Kyle Busch placed fifth.
David Ragan
David Lee Ragan (born December 24, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 15 Ford Mustang for Rick Ware Racing, and is also an analyst for NASCAR on Fox on ...
, Johnson,
Brad Keselowski
Bradley Aaron Keselowski (; born February 12, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and entrepreneur. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 6 Ford Mustang for RFK Racing, a team he also ...
, Biffle, and Hamlin rounded out the top ten fastest drivers in the session.
![88-brad-keselowski](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/88-brad-keselowski.jpg)
Forty-five drivers attempted to qualify; due to NASCAR's
qualifying procedure, only forty-three could race. Keselowski clinched his first
pole position in the
Sprint Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...
, with a time of 28.515.
He was joined on the front row of the
grid
Grid, The Grid, or GRID may refer to:
Common usage
* Cattle grid or stock grid, a type of obstacle is used to prevent livestock from crossing the road
* Grid reference, used to define a location on a map
Arts, entertainment, and media
* News ...
by Bowyer.
Stewart qualified third,
Jamie McMurray
James Christopher McMurray (born June 3, 1976), nicknamed Jamie Mac, is an American former professional stock car racing driver and currently an analyst for '' Fox NASCAR''. He raced in the NASCAR Cup Series on a full-time basis from 2003 to 2018 ...
took fourth, and
Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (; born September 20, 1975) is a Colombian racing driver.
He won the International F3000 championship in 1998, the CART FedEx Championship Series in 1999 in his debut year in the series, and the IMSA WeatherTech ...
started fifth.
Johnson, one of the drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, qualified twenty-fifth, while Harvick was scored in twenty-seventh.
The two drivers who failed to qualify for the race were
Jeff Green and
Johnny Sauter
Jonathan Joseph "Johnny" Sauter (born May 1, 1978) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 47 Toyota Tundra for G2G Racing, the No. 13 Tundra for T ...
.
Once qualifying concluded Keselowski said, "I felt I got a shot at the pole before I qualified but you never really know. When I ran the lap I knew I gave up a little bit of time right in the middle of both corners but I had a plan going into it and stuck to it and it worked. I’m really proud of that lap."
On Saturday morning, Stewart was fastest in the second practice session, ahead of
Sam Hornish Jr.
Samuel Jon Hornish Jr. (born July 2, 1979) is an American semi-retired professional auto racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 22 Ford Mustang for Team Penske in 2017.
He began his top-tier raci ...
in second, and McMurray in third.
Ryan Newman was fourth quickest, and Bowyer took fifth. Kurt Busch, who ended up receiving a penalty for using extra tires,
managed sixth.
Mark Martin
Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959) is a retired American stock car racing driver. He has the second most wins all time in what is now the Xfinity Series with 49. He scored 40 Cup Series wins. He finished second in the NASCAR Cup Series s ...
, Johnson,
Kasey Kahne
Kasey Kenneth Kahne (; born April 10, 1980) is an American dirt track racing driver and former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2018, driving the No. 95 Dumont Jets/ Procore Technolo ...
, and Montoya followed in the top ten.
Of the other drivers in the Chase, Hamlin was scored sixteenth fastest, while Harvick was scored in twenty-fourth.
McMurray paced the final practice session, with Jeff Gordon and Johnson following in second and third respectively.
Stewart was fourth fastest, ahead of Montoya and Bowyer.
Hamlin was scored seventh, Kahne eighth,
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (born October 10, 1974) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, team owner, author, and an analyst for '' NASCAR on NBC''. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving ...
ninth, and
David Reutimann
Emil David Reutimann (born March 2, 1970) is an American professional stock car racing crew chief and former driver. A native of Zephyrhills, Florida, he has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and Camping World ...
tenth.
Other Chase drivers included Kyle Busch in twenty-first and Kenseth in thirtieth.
Race
The race, the twenty-seventh of a total of thirty-six in the
2010 season, began at 1:00 p.m.
EDT and was televised live in the United States on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
.
Around the start of the race, weather conditions were partly cloudy with an air temperature around .
Jonathan DeFelice
Jonathan DeFelice is an American Catholic priest and the former President of Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire. Serving the college for 24 years, Father DeFelice was the longest serving college president in the state of New Hampsh ...
, president of
St. Anselm College in
Goffstown,
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...
, began pre-race ceremonies with the
invocation
An invocation (from the Latin verb ''invocare'' "to call on, invoke, to give") may take the form of:
*Supplication, prayer or spell.
*A form of possession.
*Command or conjuration.
* Self-identification with certain spirits.
These forms ...
. Anthony Gargiula performed the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...
, and Mark Corcoran, VP of Industrial and Commercial Sales for
Sylvania, gave the command for drivers to start their engines.
During the
pace laps, two drivers had to move to the rear of the grid due to unapproved changes:
David Gilliland
David Leonard Gilliland (born April 1, 1976) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. Since 2017, he has operated David Gilliland Racing, a team that races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, ARCA Menards Series, ...
because of an engine change, and
Andy Lally
Andrew J. Lally (born February 11, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. He competes full-time in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, driving the Audi R8 for Magnus Racing and previously part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, dr ...
because of a transmission change.
Keselowski retained his pole position lead into the first corner, with Bowyer behind him. One lap later, Stewart passed Keselowski to become the new race leader; Montoya passed Keselowski for the second position on the next lap. By lap eight, Stewart had a lead of over one second. After starting the race in twelfth, Kurt Busch moved up to ninth position by lap nine.
Paul Menard
John Paul Christian Menard (born August 21, 1980) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver who last competed part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 66 Toyota Tundra for ThorSport Racing.
M ...
, who started in eighth, fell to eleventh position by lap twelve. After losing two positions early, Bowyer moved back up into third position by passing Keselowski. By the nineteenth lap, Johnson had moved up eight positions to seventeenth, and Harvick had moved up seven positions to twentieth.
Earnhardt, who began the race in thirty-second, had moved up ten positions to twenty-second by lap 22. Two laps later, Bowyer passed Montoya for second position.
Scott Speed spun sideways and collided with
the wall
''The Wall'' is the eleventh studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest/EMI and Columbia/ CBS Records. It is a rock opera that explores Pink, a jaded rock star whose eventual self-imp ...
four laps later, causing the first caution of the race. On lap 28,
Robby Gordon
Robert Wesley Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American auto racing driver. He has raced in NASCAR, CART, the IndyCar Series, the Trans-Am Series, IMSA, IROC and the Dakar Rally. He is active in top-tier off road motorsports such as BITD, N ...
moved into the lead for one lap, delaying his
pit stop
In motorsports, a pit stop is a pause for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. These stops occur in an area called the pits, most commonly accessed via a pit lan ...
until lap 29. Once the race resumed, Bowyer regained the lead followed by McMurray in second. McMurray led the next lap, but Bowyer reclaimed the lead on lap 32. Three laps later, Kyle Busch, in seventh place, collided with the wall, but escaped with minor damage. A collision involving Ambrose and Menard occurred on lap 39 and prompted the second caution.
Most drivers stayed on the track during the caution, allowing Bowyer to remain the leader on the restart. On lap 48,
Michael McDowell drove to the garage because of engine problems. Five laps later, Bowyer led the race, with McMurray 1.3 seconds behind him.
Landon Cassill
Landon Douglas Cassill (born July 7, 1989) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing.
Early career
Cassill was born in Cedar R ...
went to the garage due to failing brakes on lap 56. Johnson moved into sixth, as Edwards passed McMurray five laps later for second. By lap 64, Bowyer's lead was over 3.5 seconds.
![US Army 51026 Edging past Kyle Busch](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/US_Army_51026_Edging_past_Kyle_Busch.jpg)
Four laps later, Johnson passed Keselowski to claim fifth position. On the 81st lap, Earnhardt Jr. moved into seventh after passing
David Reutimann
Emil David Reutimann (born March 2, 1970) is an American professional stock car racing crew chief and former driver. A native of Zephyrhills, Florida, he has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and Camping World ...
and Stewart. Two laps later, Kurt Busch and Jeff Burton passed Reutimann for ninth and tenth respectively. During lap 90, Earnhardt passed Keselowski for sixth, as Johnson claimed fourth from McMurray. After 93 laps, Bowyer's lead was over five seconds. Two laps later, green flag pit stops began, as Montoya was the first to pit. On lap 98, Edwards became the new leader after Bowyer came into the pits. One lap later, Kurt Busch became the new leader, followed by Jeff Gordon and Robby Gordon. On lap 102, Bowyer reclaimed the lead as the previous leaders made their stops.
Bobby Labonte
Robert Allen Labonte (born May 8, 1964) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and current analyst for ''NASCAR on Fox''. He also currently competes full-time in the Superstar Racing Experience, driving the No. 18 car. L ...
and
Casey Mears
Casey James Mears (born March 12, 1978) is an American professional off-road and stock car racing driver. He has raced in IndyCar, NASCAR's three national series including 15 seasons in the Cup Series, SCORE International, and the Stadium Super ...
were unable to continue the race after their pit stops.
On lap 113, Burton moved up to sixth, while Jeff Gordon passed Earnhardt for eleventh. Allmendinger fell to twenty-fifth after pit stops due to having run out of fuel on his way onto pit road. Three laps later, both Jeff Gordon and Earnhardt had passed Reutimann for tenth and eleventh respectively. By lap 120, Bowyer had a lead of about four seconds over Edwards. Four laps later, Harvick passed Montoya for fourteenth. On lap 132, Keselowski fell to ninth after being passed by Kurt Busch and Hamlin. On lap 147, Bowyer's lead of over seven seconds was reduced to nothing when the
pace car moved on track. During the caution, which was caused by debris, most of the leaders made pit stops.
Bowyer maintained his lead on the restart. On lap 153, Kyle Busch moved into tenth position by passing Jeff Gordon. Seven laps later, Burton claimed fourth. On the 162nd lap, Ryan Newman moved up to eleventh, as Keselowski fell to twelfth. Two laps later, Jeff Gordon passed Kyle Busch to move into ninth, while Stewart passed Burton for fourth. On lap 177, Montoya passed Kyle Busch for tenth position. Afterward, Kyle Busch fell to twelfth after being passed by Newman. By lap 192, Bowyer had a 3.5 second lead over McMurray. One lap later, Montoya passed Kurt Busch for ninth. On lap 199, Harvick moved into fifteenth position. Two laps later, Hamlin passed Jeff Burton to claim fifth.
![Clint Bowyer at the 2010 Samsung Mobile 500](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Clint_Bowyer_at_the_2010_Samsung_Mobile_500.jpg)
On lap 206, Martin's car suffered a flat tire and the fourth caution was given as a result. Bowyer led on the restart, although he was passed by Stewart within one lap. On lap 213, Hamlin spun sideways, prompting the fifth caution. Despite remaining undamaged, Hamlin fell from fourth to twenty-second position. Stewart led on the restart, as Jeff Gordon claimed second from Bowyer. By lap 221, a sixth caution came out as Kurt Busch, Johnson, and Kyle Busch all spun sideways. After the accident, Johnson fell to twenty-fourth; Stewart maintained his lead on the restart. Five laps later, Matt Kenseth spun out, causing the seventh caution. Stewart led the drivers back to the green flag, but was overtaken by McMurray one lap later.
On lap 241, the pace car came out for the eighth and final caution, after
Joey Logano
Joseph Thomas Logano (born May 24, 1990), is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 22 Ford Mustang for Team Penske, and part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Ser ...
collided with the outside wall. McMurray led on the restart, but Stewart reclaimed the lead on lap 247. Seven laps later, Johnson was forced to pit due to a loose wheel. By lap 257, Stewart had a lead of over one second. Five laps later, Hamlin claimed sixth from Harvick. During the 263rd lap, Bowyer passed McMurray for second. Four laps later, Newman passed Kyle Busch for tenth position. After 269 laps, Stewart's lead over Bowyer was 1.6 seconds. Six laps later, Hamlin moved into fifth position after passing Earnhardt. During lap 290, Hamlin passed McMurray for third. With two laps remaining, Stewart and Burton both ran out of fuel, handing the lead back to Bowyer. Bowyer maintained the lead to win his first race of the 2010 season. Hamlin finished second, ahead of McMurray in third, Earnhardt in fourth, and Harvick in fifth.
Post-race comments
Bowyer appeared in
Victory Lane
The following is a glossary of terminology used in motorsport, along with explanations of their meanings.
0–9
;1–2 finish: When two vehicles from the same team finish first and second in a race. Can be extended to 1–2–3 or 1–2–3– ...
to celebrate his first win of the season in front of 95,000 people who attended the race.
Bowyer also earned $248,250 in race winnings.
Stewart took his last-minute loss of the race with good humor, saying, "We went down swinging. I think I ran me out of fuel."
In the subsequent post-race press conference, Hamlin said, "First thing I asked is how many cars on the lead lap, because I wanted to see how bad our day was going to be. I set a goal (of) top 15, and then it was top eight and then top six and, 'Holy cow, we can win this thing.' We just made a heck of a charge at the end."
Bowyer was delighted with his victory: "
rew chiefShane
Shane may refer to:
People
* Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress
* Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946)
* iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer
* Shane (name)
Shane is mainly a masculine g ...
ilsonbuilt a brand new race car and we came here and we were fast right off the truck, and everybody had a lot of confidence, a pep in their step. And we showed it from the time we unloaded to qualifying, practice, we were one of the fastest cars here. That’s what it takes to run at this level, to be a part of that Chase, if we can go and continue to have as much fun as we did this weekend. I know it’s the key, I know it is to my success."
Johnson was candid about his performance: "We had a decent car and ran in the top five and top 10 but just didn't end up finishing there."
Harvick was somewhat more upbeat, saying, "We didn't have a great day. We didn't have a great weekend, honestly, and (fifth) says a lot about this team. If we keep doing that on our bad days, we will be in good shape."
The race result left Hamlin leading the Drivers' Championship with 5,230 points.
Bowyer, who finished first, moved to second on 5,195, ten points ahead of Harvick and twenty-seven ahead of Kyle Busch.
In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet maintained the lead with 197 points.
Toyota remained second with 165 points.
Ford followed with 123 points, fourteen points ahead of Dodge in fourth.
3.68 million people watched the race on television.
The race took two hours, fifty-eight minutes and twenty-two seconds to complete, and the margin of victory was 0.477 seconds.
Although Bowyer's car passed initial inspection, NASCAR announced that they had "discovered issues with the car in a more thorough inspection at its research and development center". Three days after the race, two teams were given penalties:
Richard Childress Racing for Bowyer's car, and
Whitney Motorsports for McDowell's car.
Richard Childress Racing's penalty, for unauthorized alterations to the rear bodywork of Bowyer's car,
included a $150,000 fine and a six race
suspension
Suspension or suspended may refer to:
Science and engineering
* Suspension (topology), in mathematics
* Suspension (dynamical systems), in mathematics
* Suspension of a ring, in mathematics
* Suspension (chemistry), small solid particles suspende ...
for Wilson, and the loss of 150 owner and driver points for
Richard Childress and Bowyer respectively.
RCR's car chief, Chad Haney, was placed on probation until December 31, 2010, and suspended from NASCAR until November 3, 2010.
Whitney Motorsports' penalty was for engine exhaust valves that did not meet NASCAR's weight requirements.
The penalties for that included a $50,000 fine and six race suspension for Jeremy Lafaver, while both McDowell and owner Dusty Whitney lost 50 driver and owner points respectively.
Childress and Bowyer were both upset with the penalties and almost immediately announced plans to appeal. Bowyer argued the penalties to be too severe, saying, "I don't think the penalty fits the crime. Sixty-thousandths of an inch, folks. Grab a quarter out of your pocket. Less than the thickness of that quarter right there is worth a 150-point fine?"
He also argued that his car could have been damaged slightly after the race as his car was pushed by a wrecker after it ran out of gas on its way to victory lane.
"Is it possible that a two-ton wrecker could bend the quarter-panel 60-thousandths of an inch? You have to ask yourself that."
The team lost the initial appeal, forcing them to make a final appeal to
NASCAR National Commissioner John Middlebrook.
As a result of the final appeal, Wilson's fine was reduced to $100,000 while he and Haney's suspensions were reduced from six to four races
(they were allowed to work with the team during the appeal process);
however, the points penalty administered to Bowyer and his team was upheld.
Asked if he thought Bowyer could still win the championship after this setback, Stewart argued, "It's possible for sure. The biggest thing is going to be going to the race track and having that stress of not having his crew chief, not having his car chief and those are two key people on a race weekend ... I can promise you that Childress has the resources to cover this ... it's definitely possible, but everyone else is going to have to have trouble."
Bowyer did not lose the victory title for the race itself; NASCAR vice president of competition
Robin Pemberton commented, "We don't consider taking away the win. If you ask some, they would consider a 150-point penalty with only nine races to go in the Chase a pretty hefty penalty."
Results
Qualifying
Race results
Standings after the race
![DennyHamlinAugust2007 crop](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/DennyHamlinAugust2007_crop.jpg)
*
Note: Only the top twelve positions are included for the driver standings. These drivers qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
References
{{Portal bar, Sports, United States
Sylvania 300
The ISM Connect 300 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series stock car race that was , traditionally held in mid-September at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire, the other one being the Ambetter 301 in July.
The New England ...
Sylvania 300
The ISM Connect 300 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series stock car race that was , traditionally held in mid-September at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire, the other one being the Ambetter 301 in July.
The New England ...
NASCAR races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway