While it may be the year 2011, Sunday's 5-Hour ENERGY 500 at the Pocono Raceway had shades of 1996 all over it, especially with its race winner and a recent rule change.
Sunday's race marked the official return of shifting gears at the 2.5-mile superspeedway after a six-year absence at the track due to a previous NASCAR mandate.
One racer who was pleased with the rule change was Jeff Gordon, who captured his fifth victory at Pocono, which marked his 84th career Sprint Cup series win.
It was a historical victory for Gordon, as he now sits in a tie with Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip in the third spot on the all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup wins list.
Gordon struggled mightily after winning at Phoenix earlier this season, hardly looking like a title contender in March and April, logging in only one top-ten finish in an 11-race stretch.
His No. 24 DuPont/Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet team was off in the intermediates, unable to keep up with the fast Roush-Fenway Fords as they struggled to find speed and the handle with their cars.
However, on this occasion at Pocono, Gordon and crew chief Alan Gustafson rediscovered the winning combination on the Sprint Cup circuit, finding their stride and confidence which have resulted in faster, stronger cars in the past two races.
"Oh my goodness, a lot of hard work has gone into this," Gordon said in Victory Lane. "We were embarrassed by the way we were rotten.
"When I came on board with Alan and this group, I knew they were amazing and special."
Noting his struggles prior to Charlotte Speedweeks, the 39-year-old racer kept believing in his team, riding the ship through some stormy races before striking gold at Pocono on Sunday.
Surely enough, Gordon's win on Sunday certainly lessened the pressure to crack the top-10 in the points chase, much less, distance himself between drivers positioned 11th through 20th in the standings.
"I feel a lot better about it, that's for darn sure," Gordon said.
That kind of confidence was prevalent, as he jumped up two positions in the points standings (13th to 11th) as well as completing the fastest Pocono race for the Cup series at 145.384 mph.
Finishing behind Gordon were Kurt and Kyle Busch, who certainly had to work hard to nab a podium finish around "The Tricky Triangle."
Kurt Busch tried his hardest to close the gap between himself and Gordon, but he simply didn't have the car to catch the No. 24 Chevy.
"I'm giving it all I've got and I just can't close the gap," Kurt Busch said following the race per AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston's article.
Still, after a frustrating spring swing, the driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge had to be pleased with his team's turnaround in race performance and finishes.
Meanwhile, Kyle Busch had an interesting journey to the front, as he urged his No. 18 M&M's Toyota Camry from the 34th starting position to a third-place result.
Through excellent pit work and strategy as well as a determined drive by the 26-year-old racer, the aggressive Joe Gibbs Racing talent salvaged a tough weekend.
"It's harder and harder to win in this day and age," Kyle Busch said. "We see it every year."
Despite his hard charge to a third-place finish, Kyle Busch's No. 18 Toyota failed post-race inspection, which may warrant a points penalty and fine to be announced later this week.
As for Kyle Busch's teammate in Denny Hamlin, what was a smooth Sunday drive at Pocono turned into a nightmare.
After leading a race-high 79 laps, the driver of the No. 11 FedEx Toyota ran into trouble during the closing stages of the 500-miler when his car broke a valve stem.
Ultimately, Hamlin placed 19th, which was hardly indicative of the strong car that his team unloaded off their hauler during the race weekend.
Rounding out the top-10 finishers were Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Juan Pablo Montoya, Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman, and Martin Truex Jr.
Johnson's strong fourth-place finish was aided by early race problems for Cup points leader Carl Edwards, who limped his No. 99 Kellogg's Ford Fusion home to 37th.
All those factors considered, Johnson cut a tremendous portion of Edwards' healthy points lead, trailing the Roush-Fenway Racing talent by six points heading into next Sunday's race at the Michigan International Speedway.
Here's a look at the top 10 NASCAR Sprint Cup series points standings, with team, manufacturer, and wins listed in parentheses:
- Carl Edwards (Roush-Fenway/Ford/1 win)
- Jimmie Johnson (Hendrick/Chevy/1 win)
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Hendrick/Chevy)
- Kevin Harvick (Childress/Chevy/3 wins)
- Kyle Busch (Gibbs/Toyoa/2 wins)
- Kurt Busch (Penske/Dodge)
- Matt Kenseth (Roush-Fenway/Ford/2 wins)
- Clint Bowyer (Childress/Chevy)
- Tony Stewart (Stewart-Haas/Chevy)
- Ryan Newman (Stewart-Haas/Chevy)
Heading into next Sunday's Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 at Michigan, here's a look at the current wild-card seeds for the Chase:
11. Jeff Gordon (Hendrick/Chevy/2 wins) 12. Denny Hamlin (Gibbs/Toyota)
TNT will carry the 15th race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, kicking off their coverage at 12 PM ET while NASCAR.com will carry RaceBuddy for its second of six races, live next Sunday.
Adam Alexander, Wally Dallenbach, and Kyle Petty will call the action from the booth, while Marty Snider, Chris Neville, Ralph Sheheen, and Matt Yocum will cover the race off pit road.
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