The 2009 Aaron's 499 was the ninth race of the
2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. With a distance of , it was held on April 26, 2009 at the
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway (Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1969 to 1989) is a tri-oval superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Built in 1969, the track has hosted a variety of racing events, primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The track is ...
in
Talladega, Alabama
Talladega (, also ) is the county seat of Talladega County, Alabama, United States. It was incorporated in 1835. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 15,861. Talladega is approximately east of one of the state's la ...
.
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...
broadcast the race starting at 1 PM
EDT, with
MRN and
Sirius XM Radio
Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merger ...
carrying the radio broadcast over the air and on satellite respectively. The race had nine cautions, 25 different leaders, and 57 lead changes, the most lead changes of the season up until that point.
Brad Keselowski, driving for
Phoenix Racing, won the race in his fifth career start (third start in 2009) and led his first career Sprint Cup lap, Lap 188 (in fact the only lap he led the entire race), while
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (born October 10, 1974) is an American professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and broadcaster. A third-generation driver, he is the son of the late 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt and relative ...
finished second and
Ryan Newman finished third. It would prove to be the only Cup Series victory for Phoenix Racing. This was the first time since
Casey Mears
Casey James Mears (born March 12, 1978) is an American professional off-road racing, off-road and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang, Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Garage 66. He ...
's win at the
2007 Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte that a driver had won his first career win in a major, and the first win in the Aaron's 499 by a first-time driver since
Phil Parsons
Phillip Gregory Parsons (born June 21, 1957) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and analyst for FOX NASCAR since 2003. After years racing in NASCAR Winston Cup, he returned to the Busch Series where he enj ...
in 1988. It was also the first time a driver's first ever lap led was to win the race. Keselowski dedicated his win to the late
Neil Bonnett
Lawrence Neil Bonnett (July 30, 1946 – February 11, 1994) was an American NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. Bonnett was a member of the Alabama Gang, and started his career with the help of Bobby a ...
.
Background
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway (Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1969 to 1989) is a tri-oval superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Built in 1969, the track has hosted a variety of racing events, primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The track is ...
is one of six
superspeedway
Oval track racing is a form of 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 traffic is almost uni ...
s to 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. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
races; the others are
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States, about north of Orlando, Florida, Orlando. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race ...
,
Auto Club Speedway
Auto Club Speedway (known as California Speedway before and after the 2008–2023 corporate sponsorship by the Automobile Club of Southern California) was a , D-shaped oval superspeedway in unincorporated San Bernardino County, California, ne ...
,
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, and and formerly the home of the U ...
,
Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway (formerly known as the Pocono International Raceway in early years) is a tri-oval track in Blakeslee, Pennsylvania. The track has held a variety of events since its opening in 1969, including NASCAR, IndyCar Series, and IMSA GT ...
and
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (formerly named as the Michigan Speedway from 1997 to 2000) is a D-shaped oval superspeedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. It has hosted various major auto racing series throughout its existence, including NASCAR, Cham ...
.
The standard track at the speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is long.
The track's turns are banked at thirty-three degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 16.5 degrees. The back stretch has a two-degree banking.
Talladega Superspeedway can seat up to 143,231 people.
Before the race,
Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American stock car racing executive and former professional stock car racing driver who currently serves as the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, d ...
led the
Drivers' Championship with 1242 points, and
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE for Legacy Motor Club. Johnson has won seven Cup ch ...
stood in second with 1157.
Kurt Busch
Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American auto racing driver. He is best known for competing in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2000–2022, last driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. Busch is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series ch ...
was third in the Drivers' Championship with 1144 points, six ahead of
Tony Stewart
Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed "Smoke", is an American semi-retired professional auto racing driver, and former NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing. He currently competes in the NHRA Top Fuel class. He is a four-t ...
and 56 ahead of
Denny Hamlin in fourth and fifth. In sixth,
Clint Bowyer with 1052 points was 26 points ahead of
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation)#ZL1, Chevrolet ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and par ...
in seventh, as
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards Jr. (born August 15, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and a current analyst for ''NASCAR on Prime Video''.
He last competed in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, driving the No ...
with 1023 points was 31 points ahead of
David Reutimann, and 48 points in front of
Kasey Kahne.
Entry list
Qualifying
Race recap
To begin pre-race events, Jeff Sauls, Chaplain Emergency Crews and Alabama Raceway Ministry, delivered the invocation at 1:00 P.M
Central Standard Time
The North American Central Time Zone (CT) is a time zone in parts of Canada, the United States, Mexico, Central America, and a few Caribbean Islands, Caribbean islands.
In parts of that zone (20 states in the US, three provinces or territorie ...
(2:00 pm
Eastern Standard time
The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, and the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico.
* Eastern Standard Time (EST) is five hours behind ...
).
Then
Katie Stam,
Miss America 2009, performed the national anthem. At 1:08 pm,
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...
head football coach,
Nick Saban
Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. ( ; born October 31, 1951) is an American sportscaster and former Professional gridiron football, professional and college football coach. He serves as an analyst for ESPN's ''College GameDay (football TV program), Colleg ...
, delivered the starting command.
During the pace laps,
Scott Speed
Scott Andrew Speed (born January 24, 1983) is an American race car driver who has competed in numerous disciplines, including open-wheel racing, open-wheel, stock car racing, stock car, and rallycross racing.
In , Speed became the first American ...
made an emergency last-minute pit stop, causing him to start the race 1 lap down, since the Talladega races are impound races. Before the green flag, six drivers (including all four
Richard Petty Motorsports cars) had to move to the back of the field due to engine changes:
Brad Keselowski,
Kasey Kahne,
David Stremme,
Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
,
Reed Sorenson
Bradley Reed Sorenson (born February 5, 1986) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and Spotter (auto racing), spotter. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation ...
, and
A. J. Allmendinger.
Robby Gordon
Robert Wesley Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American semi-retired auto racing driver. He has raced in NASCAR, Championship Auto Racing Teams, CART, the IndyCar Series, the Trans-Am Series, International Motor Sports Association, IMSA, Inter ...
was also forced to start at the rear as his car height was too low and failed post-qualifying inspection.
At the drop of the green flag at 1:20 pm, polesitter
Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (; born 20 September 1975) is a Colombian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to , IndyCar between 1999 and 2022, and the NASCAR Cup Series between 2006 and 2024. Montoya won seven Formula One Grand ...
claimed the lead and stayed in that position for four laps. On lap 5,
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (born October 10, 1974) is an American professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and broadcaster. A third-generation driver, he is the son of the late 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt and relative ...
passed him for the lead with drafting help from
Denny Hamlin. Earnhardt Jr. led for one lap before being repassed by Montoya.
On lap 7,
David Ragan, who had won the
Nationwide Series race the day before, took the lead on the back straightaway with the help from
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 (seventh generation), Ford Mustang Dark Horse for NASCAR operations of Tea ...
, who had assisted Ragan in that win. Moments later, the first caution flag was waved for a
large crash in turn 3.
Matt Kenseth, while in the middle groove, moved up in front of
Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American stock car racing executive and former professional stock car racing driver who currently serves as the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, d ...
(driving a retro Pepsi Challenge paint scheme used by
Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Lee Waltrip (born February 5, 1947) is an American motorsports Color analyst, analyst, author as well as a former national television broadcaster and stock car driver. He raced from 1972 to 2000 in the NASCAR Cup Series (known as the NAS ...
in 1983) and made contact, causing Gordon to wobble and get loose on the high side. Gordon then made contact with
David Gilliland
David Leonard Gilliland (born April 1, 1976) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and team owner. Since 2017, he has operated Tricon Garage, a team that races in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The team has also com ...
, getting him loose, then came down and collected 14 more cars, including Allmendinger, Kahne, Sadler,
Casey Mears
Casey James Mears (born March 12, 1978) is an American professional off-road racing, off-road and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang, Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Garage 66. He ...
,
Kurt Busch
Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American auto racing driver. He is best known for competing in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2000–2022, last driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. Busch is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series ch ...
,
Mark Martin
Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959), nicknamed "the Kid", is an American former stock car racing driver. He most notably drove the No. 6 Ford Motor Company, Ford for Roush Racing for the majority of his career. From 1989 to 2009, Martin wo ...
,
Max Papis
Massimiliano "Max" Papis (born 3 October 1969) is an Italian professional motorsport driver who has competed in several top-level motorsports events such as Le Mans 24 Hours, Formula One and Champ Car. He has three Champ Car victories. He is the ...
,
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'' and CW. He raced in the NASCAR Cup Series on a full-time basis from 2003 ...
,
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for '' NASCAR on Fox''.
He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewa ...
,
Clint Bowyer,
Scott Riggs, and
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 part-time in the SMART Modified Tour, driving the No. 18L for Hermie Sa ...
. Martin, who had won the Phoenix race the previous week, took a very hard hit, as his car went over the hood of Riggs', smashed into the wall driver's side first, and got fishtailed by Kahne as his came to a rest in the infield grass. Bowyer and Gilliland also went head-on into the outside wall.
Under this caution, Speed got the free pass. Most of the drivers pitted under the caution on lap 9. As the caution period continued,
John Andretti,
Greg Biffle
Gregory Jack Biffle (born December 23, 1969), nicknamed "the Biff", is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver.
After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-1990s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former race ...
, and
Ryan Newman each led a lap before making their pit stops.
When the race restarted on lap 13, Logano claimed the lead. One lap later,
Martin Truex Jr. took it away from Logano with help from Earnhardt Jr. Truex Jr. continued to lead until lap 18, when Montoya passed him for it. One lap later, Busch, upon returned after the huge wreck on lap 6, took the lead from Montoya and led a lap before being passed by Hamlin. On lap 22,
Jeff Burton took the lead and led for a lap before being passed by Hamlin. Burton repassed him for the lead on lap 24. On lap 27, Busch reclaimed the lead when Burton was shuffled out of line. As this took place, Burton reported having no voltage in his car.
One lap later, the second caution was thrown for debris on the track. Burton was penalized for pitting early to replace his car battery.
On the lap 34 restart,
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation)#ZL1, Chevrolet ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and par ...
claimed the lead. He led for the next seven laps. On lap 38, Truex Jr. briefly took the lead on the back straightaway before Busch repassed him with a shove from
Michael Waltrip
Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, racing team owner, amateur ballroom dancing competitor and published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASC ...
. In the middle of the next lap, Truex Jr. passed Ky. Busch, but lost the lead coming into the tri-oval. On lap 40, Ky. Busch, assisted by David Ragan, was travelling alongside
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE for Legacy Motor Club. Johnson has won seven Cup ch ...
, who was being pushed by
David Stremme. On lap 41, Ky. Busch, pushed by Speed, raced side-by-side with Johnson, who was being pushed by Earnhardt Jr. On lap 42, the third caution flag waved when
Michael Waltrip
Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, racing team owner, amateur ballroom dancing competitor and published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASC ...
cut down in front of
Marcos Ambrose in the tri-oval and spun out. Waltrip saved his car and barely avoided hitting the inside retaining wall. The free pass went to Allmendinger, 22 laps down after being involved in the first crash.
During the pit stops, Scott Speed stayed out for a lap to claim the lead from Kyle Busch, but returned it to him when he pitted on lap 45. The race restarted on lap 46 with Busch leading. Busch led for two laps before being passed by Earnhardt Jr. on lap 48. Earnhardt Jr. and Martin Truex Jr. had such a run that they were able to get a few seconds ahead of the main pack. Eanrhardt Jr. led until he was passed by Matt Kenseth on the inside on lap 50. Kenseth led for three laps before Earnhardt Jr. repassed him. Earnhardt Jr. continued to lead for the next seven laps. On lap 60, the fourth caution waved when Kurt Busch spun out in the tri-oval after being touched in the left-rear by
David Stremme.
Busch's spin happened in exactly the same spot that Waltrip's spin happened in to bring out the previous caution. He also saved his car. During this caution,
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for '' NASCAR on Fox''.
He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewa ...
,
Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American stock car racing executive and former professional stock car racing driver who currently serves as the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, d ...
, and
Kasey Kahne all returned to the track multiple laps down after repairs from the lap 7 crash. Under the caution, Jeff Burton received the free pass. Waltrip led for a lap during the caution before pitting and giving the lead to Martin Truex Jr. At the restart on lap 64, Truex Jr. led the field to the green flag.
The Top 4 drivers — Truex Jr.; Sadler; Earnhardt Jr.; and Kyle Busch —were able to get a strong start and pull away from the lead pack. Truex Jr. led until he was passed on the inside by Hamlin on lap 75. Two laps later, Montoya took the lead. He led for one lap before being passed by Earnhardt Jr., who had a shove from David Stremme.
Two laps later, Jimmie Johnson claimed the lead with a shove from Earnhardt Jr. Johnson led for one lap before being passed by Hamlin. On lap 82, Earnhardt Jr. and his
JR Motorsports driver
Brad Keselowski got together on the back straightaway and went below the yellow line. Though Earnhardt Jr. was able to blend back into the field, Keselowski ended up losing the draft and fell all the way to the back of the lead pack.
On lap 83,
Sam Hornish Jr. took the lead.
Two laps later, debris on the backstretch brought out the fifth caution.
Most of the drivers pitted under the caution, while Jeff Burton received the free pass.
Joe Nemechek
Joseph Frank Nemechek III (born September 26, 1963) is an American professional stock car racing driver who last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 24 Toyota Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. Nemechek has made the second mos ...
led one lap before pitting, while
Paul Menard
John Paul Christian Menard (born August 21, 1980) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver who currently competes full-time in the Trans-Am Series, driving the No. 3 Ford Mustang for 3GT Racing. Menard is the 2024 Trans-Am ...
stayed out and led the field to the restart on lap 88. Menard was passed one lap later by Denny Hamlin, who had help from Joey Logano. Hamlin led for two laps before Jimmie Johnson passed him on lap 92. Johnson led for a lap before Hamlin repassed him. On lap 100, the field began to run side by side, led by Hamlin on the outside as
Casey Mears
Casey James Mears (born March 12, 1978) is an American professional off-road racing, off-road and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang, Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Garage 66. He ...
led a line on the inside.
On Lap 111, Earnhardt Jr. and a lap-down
Jeff Burton hooked up and got such a run they were able to get a five-second lead over the main pack for a few laps. Burton was attempting to get back on the lead lap the hard way. On lap 112, Menard pitted, followed a lap later by
Reed Sorenson
Bradley Reed Sorenson (born February 5, 1986) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and Spotter (auto racing), spotter. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation ...
.
On lap 114, Earnhardt Jr.'s runaway lead vanished as Martin Truex Jr. claimed the lead, and Earnhardt Jr. fell back to 11th place. Truex Jr. led until lap 116, when he was passed by
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 (seventh generation), Ford Mustang Dark Horse for NASCAR operations of Tea ...
, who was repassed by Truex Jr. a lap later. On lap 119, Burton got back on the tail end of the lead lap. On lap 121,
Brian Vickers
Brian Lee Vickers (born October 24, 1983) is an American former professional stock car and sports car racing driver. He last drove the No. 14 Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing as an interim driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for the i ...
passed Truex Jr. for the lead. Vickers led two laps before Truex Jr. repassed him with a push from
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation)#ZL1, Chevrolet ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and par ...
. One lap later, the sixth caution came out for debris. On lap 125, under caution,
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards Jr. (born August 15, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and a current analyst for ''NASCAR on Prime Video''.
He last competed in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, driving the No ...
claimed the lead as the leaders pitted.
Jeremy Mayfield also stayed out.
Both Edwards and Mayfield pitted one lap later and gave the lead to Kyle Busch, who had won the race off pit road.
Kyle Busch led the field to the green flag on lap 127.
The field shuffled around during the next seven laps, with Busch and Hamlin swapping the lead several times in the middle of the track on lap 132. On lap 134,
Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...
claimed the lead with help from Brad Keselowski. Sadler led for three laps before Kurt Busch passed him with help from Earnhardt Jr. On lap 140, Hamlin pushed
David Reutimann to the lead, but went around Reutimann at the finish line to lead the lap. One lap later,
Casey Mears
Casey James Mears (born March 12, 1978) is an American professional off-road racing, off-road and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang, Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Garage 66. He ...
claimed the lead. He led until lap 143 when Jeff Burton passed him with assistance from Earnhardt Jr., who took the lead from Burton on the next lap on the middle groove.
Kurt Busch passed Earnhardt Jr. on lap 145, and led one lap before Earnhardt Jr. repassed him.
On lap 146, the seventh caution came out for debris. Under the yellow flag, Jeremy Mayfield stayed out to collect five bonus points for leading a lap as most of the drivers took their final pit stops of the day.
Kurt Busch led the field to the green flag on lap 150. He led for four laps before his brother passed him with help from Earnhardt Jr. Busch led for fifteen laps before
Matt Kenseth passed him on lap 169. Kenseth led for a lap before Busch repassed him. On lap 171, the eighth caution came out when Busch and Truex crashed in turn 3. It began when Jeff Burton made contact with Busch's rear bumper, causing him to wobble, and eventually spin out after contact from Montoya, while behind them, Truex got turned loose by Ragan.
Matt Kenseth claimed the lead and led the field to the green flag on lap 175. One lap later, Hamlin got loose but saved his car, and teamed up with
Ryan Newman to make a run past the leaders, allowing Newman to take the lead from Kenseth two laps later.
On lap 180, the ninth caution flag was waved for a large crash on the backstretch. It started when Montoya, running in the middle of the lead pack, was touched by Hamlin, causing Montoya to spin into Bobby Labonte and collected seven more cars, including
Martin Truex Jr.,
Robby Gordon
Robert Wesley Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American semi-retired auto racing driver. He has raced in NASCAR, Championship Auto Racing Teams, CART, the IndyCar Series, the Trans-Am Series, International Motor Sports Association, IMSA, Inter ...
,
David Stremme,
Jeremy Mayfield,
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE for Legacy Motor Club. Johnson has won seven Cup ch ...
,
Michael Waltrip
Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, racing team owner, amateur ballroom dancing competitor and published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASC ...
, and
Sam Hornish Jr. Gordon took the worst of it, as his car was sent head on into inside wall, caving in the entire front portion of his car.
Newman continued to lead at the restart on lap 184, drafting with Earnhardt Jr.
Carl Edwards passed Newman for the lead to take the white flag on lap 187, pushed by Brad Keselowski. Edwards and Keselowski were ahead of Newman, who was being pushed by Earnhardt Jr. heading down the back straightaway. Coming into the tri-oval, Edwards attempted to block Keselowski, and Keselowski made contact with Edwards' left rear quarter panel. Edwards spun backwards and went airborne. Earnhardt Jr. slipped past Edwards on the inside, and Edwards' airborne car was struck head-on by Newman. This second hit propelled Edwards higher and sent him flying straight into the
catch fence
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– ...
. Eight fans were injured by flying debris; the most serious one being a woman whose jaw was broken, and was airlifted to a nearby hospital.
As Keselowski crossed the finish line and won the race with Earnhardt Jr. right behind him, Edwards landed hard on his wheels and screeched to a halt in the middle of the track away from the finish line. No other cars except Newman had been in the vicinity of Edwards' car, and all of the cars behind him made it past without incident, although
Greg Biffle
Gregory Jack Biffle (born December 23, 1969), nicknamed "the Biff", is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver.
After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-1990s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former race ...
came very close to hitting Edwards. After a few moments, Edwards climbed out of his car and jogged to the finish line to a standing ovation from the crowd, which
Mike Joy described as having "shades of
Ricky Bobby". Although Edwards did cross the start-finish line but on foot, it still did not count as a successful finish since his car did not cross the finish line and he was handed a DNF in 24th position. When Edwards was interviewed on ''
Larry King Live
''Larry King Live'' is an American television talk show broadcast by CNN from June 3, 1985 to December 16, 2010. Hosted by Larry King, it was the network's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly.
Ma ...
'', he responded, "I'm kind of a
Will Ferrell
John William Ferrell (; born July 16, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is known for his leading man roles in comedy films and for his work as a television producer. Ferrell received various accolades, including ...
fan. He did that at the end of ''Talladega Nights''."
Race results
Aftermath of the last lap crash
In the wake of the crash, the catch fence was raised by 10 feet and was strengthened for the fall race in order to prevent such an incident from occurring again. In addition, NASCAR implemented a rule for the fall race at Talladega in which drivers were not allowed to bump draft in the corners as an attempt to reduce multicar crashes that often took place at that part of the track. Finally, in 2010, the wing on the
Car of Tomorrow was replaced by a spoiler due to its role in Edwards' crash, as well as other wrecks in which the wing provided enough aerodynamic lift to render the roof flaps useless.
NASCAR on Fox
''NASCAR on Fox'', also known as ''Fox NASCAR'', is the branding used for broadcasts of NASCAR races produced by Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports and have aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox television network in the United States si ...
analyst
Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Lee Waltrip (born February 5, 1947) is an American motorsports Color analyst, analyst, author as well as a former national television broadcaster and stock car driver. He raced from 1972 to 2000 in the NASCAR Cup Series (known as the NAS ...
compared Edwards' crash to a one in
1987
Events January
* January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency.
* January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade.
* January 3 – Afghan leader ...
, when
Bobby Allison
Robert Arthur Allison (December 3, 1937 – November 9, 2024) was an American professional stock car racing driver and owner. Allison was the founder of the Alabama Gang, a group of drivers based in Hueytown, Alabama, where there were abundant ...
blew a tire and went into the catchfence near the start/finish line, ripping out several feet of it and injuring several fans. That crash made NASCAR mandate restrictor plates at
Daytona and Talladega to slow down the cars from such extremely high speeds. Although Edwards quickly congratulated Keselowski for the win, the two drivers began a rivalry that heated up almost every year. After a few incidents in the NNS with Keselowski in 2009 they were given a warning by NASCAR on their bitter feelings.
Almost a year later, in the closing laps of the
Kobalt Tools 500 at
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, Edwards (a few laps down after an accident with him early in the race) intentionally rushed for Keselowski's bumper and turned him. This was a wreck that resembled what Keselowski did to Edwards at Talladega the previous year. Keselowski climbed out mostly unscathed, and with an injured leg, he limped down the track to the ambulance. Not long after the crash when reviewing radio quotes, NASCAR black-flagged Edwards for the finish after finding out that Edwards did intentionally turn Keselowski. Later that year, Edwards was leading a Nationwide Series race at
Gateway Raceway when Keselowski, who said during a red-flag period that he had the fastest car, bumped him in turn 1 of the final lap to take the lead. In return, Edwards spun Keselowski into the pack in turn 4 of the final lap, causing in a multiple car collision and won the race. Keselowski was rammed hard by charging cars and spun in circles. Keselowski climbed out with minor injuries and a grimace on his face and in victory lane, Edwards confessed publicly that the crash was not an accident. When interviewed, Keselowski furiously said, "I found a way to beat him but he just wrecked me ... it is not cool when I wreck on the straightaway going over 180 miles per hour. I am sure Edwards will think about how great he is or how cool he is in his own little mind but that is not reality." That week, Edwards and Keselowski met with NASCAR, who penalized both drivers' points for the Nationwide Series championship standings, fined them both $25,000, and requested them to calm down the rivalry or face indefinite suspension from the sport.
Their rivalry did not end until the 2012 Nationwide race at Watkins Glen, where the two rivals finished 1-2 and confirmed it in both their interviews.
References
{{NASCAR on FOX
Aaron's 499
Aaron's 499
NASCAR races at Talladega Superspeedway
April 2009 sports events in the United States