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GEICO 400 Recap

What a weekend for Brad Keselowski. Not only did he become a first time winner as an owner in the Camping World Truck Series, but he also beat Jimmie Johnson in the GEICO 400 to take the points lead with nine races left.  

Keselowski gives his team a beer bath in Victory Lane.
(Credit Photo: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
How The Race Was Won: The Sunday race came down to just two drivers. Jimmie Johnson dominated the second half and had to get through just one more green flag pit stop to knock Chicagoland Speedway off of his bucket list. But it all changed when Brad Keselowski came back out on the track after his pit stop on lap 230 and pretty much cut the five time champ off out of turn two and down the backstretch. The move stopped Johnson's momentum and he was passed a few laps later by Keselowski who went on to lead the final 25 circuits.

What's the blend rule: After Brad Keselowski merged ahead of Jimmie Johnson with 35 laps to go, Chad Knaus was seen arguing with a NASCAR Official over the blend rules. Usually drivers don't  blend back into traffic until they reach the backstretch or when they are cleared by their spotter. Brad, on the other hand, came up the race track right out of turn two and pulled his car to the middle of the track, right ahead of Johnson. "He came up real early. I was on the bottom lane and he pulled right in front of me," Johnson said after race. Keselowski refused to call it gentleman's agreement and felt like he was in the right since there isn't a clear rule. "You can make rules that count it down to the inches and just make it a pain in the [neck] for everybody that participates in the sport, or you can just have a rule like we do, and I felt like I was inside those guidelines," said Keselowski.

Out off gas but not out of The Chase: Denny Hamlin was frustrated after running out of gas on the final lap that sent the top seed in The Chase to a 16th place finish and 15 points behind Keselowski. He actually fired the first shot for this weekend's race via twitter. "This is 1 week of 10. We will win next week," Hamlin wrote. Will it put too much pressure on his team this week?

Chase Points after 1 of 10
  1. Brad Keselowski                  2056  Pts.
  2. Jimmie Johnson                         -3
  3. Tony Stewart                             -8
  4. Denny Hamlin                         -15
  5. Kasey Kahne                           -15
  6. Clint Bowyer                           -15
  7. Dale Earnhardt Jr.                    -17
  8. Greg Biffle                               -19
  9. Martin Truex Jr.                       -21
  10. Kevin Harvick                         -24
  11. Matt Kenseth                           -26
  12. Jeff Gordon                             -47                                                                                    


TheNASCARTER's Take: Wow, what a race and what a great way to start NASCAR's version of the playoffs. I'm sure some were groaning when the final green flag pit stops started, thinking Jimmie would run away with it but the blend by Brad created drama and controversy. Just what NASCAR needs in The Chase.

Up Next: Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

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