Race Capsule

What: Race 12 of 35 on Nationwide circuit
Where: Darlington Raceway, Darlington, SC
When: May 9, 2008
Laps: 147
Track Length: 1.366 miles
Race Length: 201.00 miles

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Diamond Hill Plywood 200
Darlington Raceway
May 09, 2008
Race 12 of 35

CAR DRIVER HOMETOWN MAKE SPONSOR OWNER

0 Danny Efland Irmo, SC Chevrolet Lori Morgan Johnny Davis
1 Mike Bliss Milwaukie, OR Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming James Finch
01 Kertus Davis Gaffney, SC Chevrolet RaceGirl Johnny Davis
2 Clint Bowyer Emporia, KS Chevrolet BB&T Richard Childress
4 Derrike Cope Spanaway, WA Chevrolet Jay Robinson Inc. James Finch
5 Mark Martin Batesville, AR Chevrolet GoDaddy.com Rick Hendrick
05 Brett Rowe Barboursville, WV Chevrolet 31-W Insulation / CertainTeed Wayne Day
6 David Ragan Unadilla, GA Ford Discount Tire Jack Roush
7 Mike Wallace St. Louis, MO Toyota GEICO Bob Germain
9 Chase Miller* Canton, GA Dodge Motorola / Verizon George Gillett, Jr
12 Sam Hornish Jr. Bryan, OH Dodge Penske Truck Rental Roger Penske
17 Matt Kenseth Cambridge, WI Ford CitiFinancial Jack Roush
18 Denny Hamlin Chesterfield, VA Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance Joe Gibbs
20 Tony Stewart Rushville, IN Toyota Old Spice Joe Gibbs
21 Bobby Labonte Corpus Christi, TX Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing Richard Childress
22 TBA1 No Home Town Dodge Fitz Motorsports Armando Fitz
24 Eric McClure Chilhowie, VA Chevrolet Hefty John McGill
25 Bobby Hamilton Jr. Nashville, TN Ford Curly's Ed Rensi
27 Brad Coleman Houston, TX Ford Huggies Pull-Ups / Rite Aid Mike Curb
28 Kenny Wallace St. Louis, MO Chevrolet U.S. Border Patrol Mimi Fitz
29 Jeff Burton South Boston, VA Chevrolet Holiday Inn / Holiday Inn Express Richard Childress
30 Stanton Barrett Bishop, CA Chevrolet NOS Energy Drink Christopher Lencheski
32 Kyle Busch Las Vegas, NV Toyota Beringer Vineyards Todd Braun
33 Kevin Harvick Bakersfield, CA Chevrolet Camping World/ RVs.com DeLana Harvick
37 Burney Lamar W. Sacramento, CA Ford Baker Curb Racing Gary Baker
38 Jason Leffler Long Beach, CA Toyota Great Clips Ralph Braun
40 Bryan Clauson* Noblesville, IN Dodge Fastenal Floyd Ganassi
47 Kelly Bires Mauston, WI Ford Clorox Jodi Geschickter
52 Brad Teague Johnson City, TN Chevrolet Means Racing Jimmy Means
59 Marcos Ambrose Launceston, Tasmania Ford Kingsford Hickory Charcoal Tad Geschickter
60 Carl Edwards Columbia, MO Ford Scotts Water Smart Jack Roush
64 David Stremme South Bend, IN Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities Ed Rensi
66 Steve Wallace Mooresville, NC Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities Rusty Wallace
81 D.J. Kennington St. Thomas, Ontario Dodge MC2 Energy Drink Pat MacDonald
84 Mike Harmon Birmingport, AL Chevrolet Elite2 Racing Mike Harmon
88 Brad Keselowski Rochester Hills, MI Chevrolet U.S. Navy Dale Earnhardt, Jr
89 Morgan Shepherd Conover, NC Dodge Victory In Jesus Cindy Shepherd
90 Johnny Chapman Stony Point, NC Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports Marcia Parsons
91 Terry Cook Sylvania, OH Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports Stacey Humphrey
99 David Reutimann Zephyrhills, FL Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine Michael Waltrip
102 Andy Ponstein Hudsonville, MI Chevrolet Stott Classic Racing.com Corrie Stott
103 Todd Bodine Chemung, NY Toyota Germain Racing Steve Germain
111 Jason Keller Greenville, SC Chevrolet America's Incredible Pizza Company Bryan Mullet
161 Kevin Lepage Shelburne, VT Ford Specialty Racing Charles Shoffner
246 Carl Long Roxboro, NC Dodge Carl Long Racing Danielle Long
331 Kenny Hendrick Chino, CA Chevrolet GrandStay.net Stanton Barrett

* Denotes Rookie

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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PRACTICE SPEEDS
Diamond Hill Plywood 200 | Darlington Raceway
May 09, 2008 | Race 12 of 35 | Practice 1
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RANK CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR SPEED TIME BEHIND
1 88 Brad Keselowski Chevrolet U.S. Navy 172.432 28.519 Leader
2 2 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet BB&T 172.306 28.540 -0.021
3 38 Jason Leffler Toyota Great Clips 172.082 28.577 -0.058
4 6 David Ragan Ford Discount Tire 171.944 28.600 -0.081
5 32 Kyle Busch Toyota Beringer Vineyards 171.836 28.618 -0.099
6 18 Denny Hamlin Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 171.776 28.628 -0.109
7 60 Carl Edwards Ford Scotts Water Smart 171.279 28.711 -0.192
8 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet GoDaddy.com 170.993 28.759 -0.240
9 7 Mike Wallace Toyota GEICO 170.047 28.919 -0.400
10 29 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Holiday Inn / Holiday Inn Express 169.994 28.928 -0.409
11 59 Marcos Ambrose Ford Kingsford Hickory Charcoal 169.830 28.956 -0.437
12 99 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 169.801 28.961 -0.442
13 64 David Stremme Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities 169.736 28.972 -0.453
14 33 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Camping World
/ RVs.com 169.485 29.015 -0.496
15 17 Matt Kenseth Ford CitiFinancial 169.362 29.036 -0.517
16 111 Jason Keller Chevrolet America's Incredible Pizza Company 169.141 29.074 -0.555
17 25 Bobby Hamilton Jr. Ford Curly's 168.787 29.135 -0.616
18 20 Tony Stewart Toyota Old Spice 167.871 29.294 -0.775
19 27 Brad Coleman Ford Huggies Pull-Ups / Rite Aid 167.773 29.311 -0.792
20 1 Mike Bliss Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 167.585 29.344 -0.825
21 103 Todd Bodine Toyota Germain Racing 167.277 29.398 -0.879
22 9 Chase Miller* Dodge Motorola / Verizon 166.789 29.484 -0.965
23 47 Kelly Bires Ford Clorox 166.135 29.600 -1.081
24 89 Morgan Shepherd Dodge Victory In Jesus 166.079 29.610 -1.091
25 66 Steve Wallace Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities 165.816 29.657 -1.138
26 12 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Penske Truck Rental 164.573 29.881 -1.362
27 161 Kevin Lepage Ford Specialty Racing 164.562 29.883 -1.364
28 01 Kertus Davis Chevrolet RaceGirl 163.555 30.067 -1.548
29 4 Derrike Cope Chevrolet Jay Robinson Inc. 163.413 30.093 -1.574
30 331 Kenny Hendrick Chevrolet GrandStay.net 162.915 30.185 -1.666
31 0 Danny Efland Chevrolet Lori Morgan 161.418 30.465 -1.946
32 91 Terry Cook Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports 161.080 30.529 -2.010
33 05 Brett Rowe Chevrolet 31-W Insulation / CertainTeed 160.943 30.555 -2.036
34 37 Burney Lamar Ford Baker Curb Racing 160.575 30.625 -2.106
35 81 D.J. Kennington Dodge MC2 Energy Drink 160.135 30.709 -2.190
36 40 Bryan Clauson* Dodge Fastenal 159.818 30.770 -2.251
37 90 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports 157.494 31.224 -2.705
38 22 Ruben Pardo Dodge Supercuts 153.349 32.068 -3.549
39 28 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet U.S. Border Patrol 152.234 32.303 -3.784
40 52 Brad Teague Chevrolet Means Racing 148.366 33.145 -4.626
41 24 Eric McClure Chevrolet Hefty 136.482 36.031 -7.512
42 30 Stanton Barrett Chevrolet SpeedRacerThe
Movie.com 135.166 36.382 -7.863
43 246 Carl Long Dodge Carl Long Racing 105.255 46.721 -18.202
44 102 Andy Ponstein Chevrolet Stott Classic
Racing.com - - -
45 84 Mike Harmon Chevrolet Elite2 Racing - - -
* Denotes Rookie

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QUALIFYING ORDER
Diamond Hill Plywood 200 | Darlington Raceway
May 09, 2008| Race 12 of 35
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ORDER CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR
1 52 Brad Teague Chevrolet Means Racing
2 32 Kyle Busch Toyota Beringer Vineyards
3 25 Bobby Hamilton Jr. Ford Curly's
4 40 Bryan Clauson* Dodge Fastenal
5 81 D.J. Kennington Dodge MC2 Energy Drink
6 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet GoDaddy.com
7 64 David Stremme Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities
8 161 Kevin Lepage Ford Specialty Racing
9 28 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet U.S. Border Patrol
10 33 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Camping World
/ RVs.com
11 6 David Ragan Ford Discount Tire
12 66 Steve Wallace Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities
13 38 Jason Leffler Toyota Great Clips
14 01 Kertus Davis Chevrolet RaceGirl
15 2 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet BB&T
16 29 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Holiday Inn / Holiday Inn Express
17 99 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine
18 22 Ruben Pardo Dodge Supercuts
19 24 Eric McClure Chevrolet Hefty
20 7 Mike Wallace Toyota GEICO
21 88 Brad Keselowski Chevrolet U.S. Navy
22 27 Brad Coleman Ford Huggies Pull-Ups / Rite Aid
23 47 Kelly Bires Ford Clorox
24 20 Tony Stewart Toyota Old Spice
25 4 Derrike Cope Chevrolet Jay Robinson Inc.
26 59 Marcos Ambrose Ford Kingsford Hickory Charcoal
27 60 Carl Edwards Ford Scotts Water Smart
28 1 Mike Bliss Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming
29 111 Jason Keller Chevrolet America's Incredible Pizza Company
30 9 Chase Miller* Dodge Motorola / Verizon
31 89 Morgan Shepherd Dodge Victory In Jesus
32 12 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Penske Truck Rental
33 90 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports
34 103 Todd Bodine Toyota Germain Racing
35 37 Burney Lamar Ford Baker Curb Racing
36 246 Carl Long Dodge Carl Long Racing
37 30 Stanton Barrett Chevrolet SpeedRacerThe
Movie.com
38 05 Brett Rowe Chevrolet 31-W Insulation / CertainTeed
39 17 Matt Kenseth Ford CitiFinancial
40 331 Kenny Hendrick Chevrolet GrandStay.net
41 84 Mike Harmon Chevrolet Elite2 Racing
42 0 Danny Efland Chevrolet Lori Morgan
43 91 Terry Cook Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports
44 18 Denny Hamlin Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance
45 102 Andy Ponstein Chevrolet Stott Classic
Racing.com
* Denotes Rookie

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2008 Official Race Results
Diamond Hill Plywood 200
May 9, 2008
Race 12 of 35

FIN ST CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR PTS/BNS LAPS STATUS WINNINGS

1 3 20 Tony Stewart Toyota Old Spice 195/10 149 Running 47,420
2 2 2 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet BB&T 175/5 149 Running 31,750
3 21 99 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 165/0 149 Running 23,950
4 15 103 Todd Bodine Toyota Germain Toyota 160/0 149 Running 23,225
5 25 66 Steve Wallace Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities 155/0 149 Running 24,518
6 4 64 David Stremme Chevrolet Atreus Homes & Communities 150/0 149 Running 23,468
7 29 111 Jason Keller Chevrolet America's Incredible Pizza Company 146/0 149 Running 24,703
8 16 9 Chase Miller * Dodge Motorola / Verizon 142/0 149 Running 23,713
9 19 38 Jason Leffler Toyota Great Clips 138/0 149 Running 22,443
10 20 59 Marcos Ambrose Ford Kingsford Hickory Charcoal 139/5 149 Running 26,018
11 12 12 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Penske Truck Rental 130/0 149 Running 16,075
12 22 27 Brad Coleman Ford Huggies Pull-Ups / Rite Aid 127/0 148 Running 21,968
13 17 33 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Camping World/ RVs.com 124/0 148 Running 16,250
14 7 1 Mike Bliss Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 121/0 148 Running 21,868
15 13 88 Brad Keselowski Chevrolet U.S. Navy 118/0 147 Running 22,168
16 28 89 Morgan Shepherd Dodge Victory In Jesus 115/0 147 Running 21,693
17 27 28 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet U.S. Border Patrol 112/0 147 Running 22,343
18 11 40 Bryan Clauson * Dodge Fastenal 109/0 146 Running 21,593
19 23 30 Stanton Barrett Chevrolet SpeedRacerTheMovie.com 106/0 146 Running 15,075
20 33 - D J Kennington Unknown No Sponsor 103/0 146 Running 22,468
21 6 29 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Holiday Inn / Holiday Inn Express 105/5 145 Running 14,950
22 39 52 Brad Teague Chevrolet Truck Service 97/0 145 Running 21,368
23 14 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet GoDaddy.com 94/0 144 Accident 15,250
24 10 47 Kelly Bires Ford Clorox 96/5 144 Accident 23,668
25 24 7 Mike Wallace Toyota GEICO 88/0 144 Accident 21,393
26 36 161 Kevin Lepage Ford Specialty Racing 85/0 142 Running 21,168
27 9 6 David Ragan Ford Discount Tire 87/5 137 Accident 14,650
28 8 17 Matt Kenseth Ford CitiFinancial 84/5 126 Accident 14,600
29 37 01 Kertus Davis Chevrolet RaceGirl 76/0 124 Accident 21,033
30 18 25 Bobby Hamilton Jr. Ford Curly's 73/0 102 Engine 21,243
31 5 32 Kyle Busch Toyota Beringer Vineyards 75/5 101 Accident 14,470
32 30 4 Derrike Cope Chevrolet JVC 67/0 84 Accident 20,893
33 42 24 Eric McClure Chevrolet Hefty 64/0 63 Brakes 20,873
34 26 37 Burney Lamar Ford Greg Biffle Foundation 61/0 62 Brakes 20,853
35 38 0 Danny Efland Chevrolet Lori Morgan 58/0 36 Brakes 14,340
36 34 331 Kenny Hendrick Chevrolet GrandStay.net 55/0 30 Handling 14,320
37 43 84 Mike Harmon Chevrolet Lowcountry Coaches / Cracker Barrel 52/0 25 Overheating 14,300
38 32 90 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports 49/0 16 Vibration 20,718
39 41 102 Andy Ponstein Chevrolet Stott ClassicRacing.com 46/0 13 Transmission 14,205
40 35 246 Carl Long Dodge Southeastern Outdoor Products / Red Line Oil 43/0 9 Handling 14,185
41 31 91 Terry Cook Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports 40/0 7 Vibration 20,633
42 40 22 Ruben Pardo Dodge Supercuts 37/0 4 Handling 20,608
43 1 60 Carl Edwards Ford Scotts Water Smart 34/0 3 Accident 18,105
44 - 05 Brett Rowe Chevrolet 31-W Insulation / CertainTeed PE 0 No Value 0
45 - 18 Denny Hamlin Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance PE 0 No Value 0

* Denotes Rookie

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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By PETE IACOBELLI
AP Sports Writer
11 hours, 51 minutes ago

DARLINGTON, S.C. (AP)—All it took was his first Darlington Raceway victory to bring out Tony Stewart’s softer side.

Only two months ago, Stewart angrily blasted Goodyear after the Atlanta race, saying the company had given him “the most pathetic racing tire I’ve ever been on in my professional career.”

But it was a joyful, smiling Stewart who praised Goodyear for its research and hard work in delivering tires that helped the Joe Gibbs Racing star to his first win Friday night on NASCAR’s oldest superspeedway.

“I really want to give Goodyear a pat on the back,” he said. The company made two trips since March to test tires on Darlington’s slick, new surface, repaved at a cost of $7 million for the first time since 1995.

The results were absolutely perfect for Stewart.

“I’m the first one to tell them when they screw up and I want to be the first one to tell them when they do a good job, too,” Stewart said.

The two-time Sprint Cup champ had never won here in 19 previous starts, four of them Nationwide events, dating to 1996.

Stewart entered the season wanting to conquer the four tracks he hadn’t— California Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and here.

He’d previously won in California and Talladega. The Darlington victory, though, may have meant the most to Stewart.

“This is one of those tracks where history goes as deep as NASCAR, and it’s a great honor,” he said.

Stewart led 90 of 147 laps for his fourth Nationwide victory this year and JGR’s sixth straight. It was the sixth win for his No. 20 Toyota—JGR teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch have also won in the machine—and the eighth for Gibbs’ racers.

In this one, though, Stewart was about the only one who got away unscathed, with Sprint Cup stars Carl Edwards, Busch, Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin all wrecking.

“We had an awesome race car today,” Stewart said. “I’m telling you, this thing was head-and-shoulders better than it was” in practices.

Stewart made it through eight cautions, two off the Nationwide’s Darlington record, and a green-white-checkered finish.

Only 23 of 43 starters were still running at the end.

After David Ragan’s hard crash on the backstretch, Stewart easily moved forward on the restart three laps from the end. Right behind, though, was chaos as Martin’s second-place machine failed to get up to speed.

The stall collected five other cars and brought out the race’s second stoppage, as it took more than 15 minutes to clean up.

“We didn’t have enough gas there,” said Martin, the series’ career leader with 48 victories. “I apologize to everybody who got in that wreck. It’s a really bad deal when a car up front doesn’t take off.”

None of it affected Stewart. He grabbed the lead for good with 27 laps to go when leader Kenseth pitted with a flat.

Stewart broke away from Clint Bowyer to take the checkered flag.

David Reutimann finished third, followed by Todd Bodine and Steve Wallace.

Kenseth was involved in the one of the night’s ugliest accidents, slamming into the inside retaining wall. But the former Sprint Cup champion climbed out of the broken car and waved to the large crowd he was OK.

The hard crash stopped the race for about seven minutes to clean up fuel, oil and debris.

Kenseth said the crash came from him aggressively trying to get back the lap he lost earlier. “It’s very frustrating. We let one get away,” he said.

Kenseth wasn’t the only Sprint Cup star who had trouble.

Hamlin had won the past two Nationwide races here and was a strong bet to make it three in a row. Besides winning from the pole in 2006 and 2007, Hamlin’s Toyota was the quickest in practice on Darlington’s fast, new blacktop.

Maybe a bit too fast, though, as Hamlin scraped the wall during afternoon qualifying and didn’t make the race.

Then pole-sitter Carl Edwards’ night ended after hitting the wall twice his first three laps.

Perhaps, Edwards overthought the effect of the fresh surface. He swapped starting positions with No. 2 qualifier Bowyer, moving closer to the wall. Edwards figured he’d get loose, he said, and didn’t want to wreck down low amidst grid traffic.

Instead, Edwards slid against the outside wall soon after the start, cutting down a tire that failed completely two laps later.

Edwards blamed himself. “They dropped the green and I was ready to race,” he said. But “I got loose and hit the wall.”

Busch ran among the leaders the first two thirds of the race. But Busch, who has found his share of trouble in NASCAR this season, spun into the wall after colliding with Brad Keselowski.

An angered Busch afterward called the accident the product of “racing idiots” and vowed to act the same way in future situations.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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