FOX in the Fast Lane: Menard Wins at the Brickyard
NASCAR’s had a trend this year of first-time winners in showcase races: Trevor Bayne won the Daytona 500, Regan Smith at Darlington and David Ragan earlier this month in Daytona. And it’s a trend that continued Sunday, with an upset victory for Paul Menard at the Brickyard.
FOX News Radio’s Chris Hoenig recaps this week’s race in “FOX in the Fast Lane”…
John Menard, Jr. has spent millions of dollars trying to get a driver to the checkered at Indy…and now it’s his son, Paul, who accomplishes the feat, winning the Brickyard 400…
“I’ve been coming here since I was a little kid, and my dad’s been trying to win this race for 35 years…so this is for my dad.”
…Paul Menard on ESPN after the race. The win is the younger Menard’s first ever Sprint Cup victory and vaults him into a wildcard position in the Chase. It wasn’t an easy win – the 27 couldn’t run flat out until the final three laps as he tried to conserve fuel. At that point, Jeff Gordon was closing fast in a fully-fueled 24…but not fast enough. The 2nd-place finish keeps Gordon in 7th in the standings, with Carl Edwards still in 1st.
Tony Stewart had a strong race, finishing 6th and jumping to 9th overall. Stewart and Dale Earnhart, Jr. have a 20-point cushion on the wildcards. They’re the only winless drivers in the Top 10 heading into next week’s race at Pocono.
