| | Associated Press
CONCORD, N.C. -- NASCAR officials upheld Matt Kenseth's
victory in the All Pro Bumper to Bumper 300 after finding nothing
illegal with his engine.
The engine of Kenseth's Chevrolet was impounded following
Saturday's Busch race because it failed to meet several
specifications during the post race inspection.
After testing the engine again on Sunday morning, NASCAR ruled
it was legal.
"It's not uncommon for us to keep a motor and try again so that
we can be absolutely certain," said Mike Helton, NASCAR's senior
vice president and chief operating officer.
"In the case of the No. 17 car yesterday, it was very close to
not being the right dimensions," he said. "But we checked it
again this morning and it passed inspection."
Kenseth won the race, his second consecutive Busch series
victory, when leader Joe Nemechek ran out of gas with two laps to
go.
On Sunday, Kenseth finished ninth in the UAW-GM Quality 500.
"I was real happy with the outcome of the Winston Cup part of
the weekend," he said. "We haven't run as good lately as we did
earlier in the year. It was a good weekend. It was a little
stressful for us earlier today until we got that Busch situation
settled."
NASCAR also called Busch runner-up Mark Martin back to the track so they could test the engine from his Ford. There was no indication
his engine was illegal, so the test could just be a precautionary
measure.
Kenseth and Martin are Winston Cup teammates, but drive for
different owners on the Busch Grand National series.
Nemechek led 71 laps, but knew he was going to come up at least
one lap short of the finish line on fuel. Needing a caution so he
could pit for a quick splash of gas, Nemechek never got one and
gave the lead up to Kenseth when his engine ran dry on lap 198.
"That last run, I was just cruising and trying to save gas the
whole way," Nemechek said. "But I saw the fuel pressure balance
and could tell I was going to come up short. It's just a shame to
lose one that way, your heart goes from here down to the bottom of
the seat."
Kenseth, who started from the pole, slid past him to drive his
Chevrolet to his second consecutive Busch Grand National series
victory. He also won in Dover, Del., two weeks ago.
Nemechek finished fifth, the last car on the lead lap.
"I just kind of hate it for Nemechek," Martin said. "He was
really strong on that last set of tires and we couldn't do anything
with him. It's a shame."
There didn't seem to be any effects from the last-minute tire
change NASCAR imposed on the Busch cars.
Because of a tire shortage by Goodyear, NASCAR on Friday
switched the model of right-side tires the Busch cars used so that
the Winston Cup cars could have the unused ones for their race.
"It didn't really affect us at all," said Blaney. "We just
luckily fell into it where our car was good and we didn't have to
make many changes."
The race was slowed by caution only three times for a total of
16 laps, the worst of which came on lap three in a 12-car pileup.
Lyndon Amick spun out in turn four and cut across the track into
the grass, causing a chain reaction of accidents behind him.
Todd Bodine was one of the cars involved, and members of his
crew got into a shoving match with members of Amick's crew in the
pits.
"My guys are pretty frustrated with him and what has happened"
Bodine said. "They are intense. They had a car here today that
could win the race and they knew it and now we are left with a
torn-up car and it's his fault."
The race had one scary moment when Jimmie Johnson overshot his
pit during a stop. Though he didn't know it, his gas man had
already put the gas can into his tank when Johnson backed up,
causing the can to break off and erupt into flames.
Crewman Brian Smith was treated for minor burns to his arms and
face. Another crewman, Dave Rang, had to be transported to
University Hospital for treatment for inhalation of chemicals from
the fire extinguisher.
Three others were treated at the track for smoke inhalation. All
were in good condition after the race.
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ALSO SEE
Notes: Kenseth's Busch win upheld
All Pro Bumper to Bumper 300 results
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Despite having a strong car, Matt Kenseth was still surprised to end up in victory lane.
wav: 179 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
2nd place finisher Mark Martin felt his tire setup was good, but just not good enough.
wav: 138 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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