Brian Vickers’s best result at Richmond for five years in the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 on September 12 was enough to pip Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch to the final NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase play-off.
Vickers sealed seventh place in the Red Bull Toyota, meaning that he edged out Kyle Busch, who finished fifth in his Toyota, by just 8pts. Kenseth had occupied the 12th and final place in the shake-up before the race, but a battle with dyfunctional front tyres meant only 25th place, not enough to prevent his exclusion from the 10-race Chase for the first time since the introduction of the play-off system in 2004.
With Kenseth’s Ford seemingly out of the picture, Busch and Vickers continually lost and retook the initiative from one another as the race ebbed and flowed, and pitstops came into play, with Vickers finally doing enough to qualify.
“We picked a really good night to figure this place out,” said Vickers with a degree of understatement. “This was probably the best car I’ve ever had [at Richmond].”
By virtue of his win at the Carfax 400 in Brooklyn, Michigan, back in August, the Red Bull man will be seeded eighth for the Chase as the series heads to the first race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 20.
Denny Hamlin won at the Richmond International Raceway, his home track, for the first time, though his participation in the Chase had been secured with sixth place in the last race in Atlanta.
“Finally, our FedEx Toyota showed that we’re a championship contender,” the delighted Hamlin commented.
2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase contenders
1. Mark Martin – 5,040pts (four wins)
2. Tony Stewart – 5,030pts (three wins)
3. Jimmie Johnson – 5,030pts (three wins)
4. Denny Hamlin – 5,020pts (two wins)
5. Kasey Kahne ¬– 5,020pts (two wins)
6. Jeff Gordon – 5,010pts (one win)
7. Kurt Busch – 5,010pts (one win)
8. Brian Vickers – 5,010pts (one win)
9. Carl Edwards – 5,000pts
10. Ryan Newman – 5,000pts
11. Juan Montoya – 5,000pts
12. Greg Biffle – 5,000pts
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