The weekend that was Talladega, known for it’s “big one,” was not only enjoyable to watch but also full of victories, could-have-been wins and chances blown away.

Talladega was the first impound race of the season. That meant, after the final practice session Friday, they’d have to qualify Saturday. If they didn’t have it figured out yet, they’d have to wait until the race. Usually, when the race isn’t an impound race (i.e. Daytona, Talladega, or Richmond) the teams set their cars up for qualifying during the first practice session and with the next practice session(s) they set it up for the race.

With impound races, most of the teams, who were already in on owner points, set their cars up for the race and weren’t betting on the best starting position. And those teams that were on the “outside looking in” focused mainly on getting their cars in and not on race setup. The top five cars and drivers for the starting lineup gave evidence of that.

Teammates Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch sat second and fifth respectively amid Joe Nemechek’s No. 78 Chevrolet, Ken Schrader’s No. 70 Chevrolet and AJ Allmendinger, returning to the No. 84 Toyota, who sat first, third and fourth respectively for the Sprint Cup race Sunday.

As the Nationwide race began Saturday, and even before, the favorite to win was the pole winner, Stewart, in his No. 20 Old Spice Toyota. It was a task he proved he could handle.

With six laps to go and Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 5 DELPHI Chevrolet on his back bumper, Stewart kept his steady pace as the leader. A caution flag for debris was thrown two laps later. The leaders did not come to pit and, when the green flag flew, there were officially three laps left.

Earnhardt Jr. stayed put, just as, I am sure, Stewart wanted, but not for long. Junior quickly pulled from behind and, with a pack of cars behind him, attempted to take the lead from Stewart, but to no avail.
Stewart would cross the finish line as the victor. He had come in second many times, most often to Earnhardt Jr., but Stewart finally got his first Talladega victory, in any series.

Two wrecks shared headlines with Stewart’s win Saturday.

The first happened on lap 11, when Dario Franchitti’s No. 40 Dodge cut a tire and went into the outside wall in the path of Larry Gunselman’s No. 91 Ford. Gunselman slammed into Franchitti’s driver’s side, smashing it in. Franchitti was able to able to get out of his car, but was immediately rushed to the infield care center.
Franchitti was diagnosed with a fractured left ankle; David Stremme, former driver of the No. 40 Dodge, took his place in Sunday’s race.

The second wreck happened on lap 71, when Kevin Lepage’s No. 61 Ford, pulled onto the track from pit row into the path of the lead pack of cars. It was evident that either the spotter or Lepage wasn’t communicating very well. His mistake caused a huge pileup, collecting 14 drivers, many of whom were in the Top 10 at the time and/or in the Top 10 Nationwide standings.

When Sunday rolled around, I, like many others, was betting on Stewart to win, although, I wasn’t betting too much, simply because Talladega is too unpredictable.

Stewart quickly jumped to the lead. He maintained the lead after the first caution in which Matt Kenseth’s No. 17 Ford cut a tire and went the wall. He didn’t keep it very long before Jamie McMurray’s No. 26 Ford, being pushed by Stewart’s teammate, Denny Hamlin in the No. 11 Toyota, took the lead away from him.
The lead would not stay McMurray’s; Hamlin quickly jumped out from behind him and took it away. For the entire race, no one leader would maintain the lead for more than 16 laps.

It did, however, look as if Stewart still had a chance to win as the the laps were winding down, but his hopes would die as he cut a tire and hit the wall, bringing out the third caution flag. Stewart’s hopes for a weekend sweep and a first cup victory at Talladega was fading though he returned to the track.

What little hope there was left for him or Earnhardt Jr. came to a halt when Earnhardt Jr. got loose on lap 173 and slammed into Bobby Labonte’s No. 43 Dodge, causing the first multi-car accident. Stewart’s car was among the several cars damaged, but his along with Martin Truex Jr.’s had the most damage. His chances for the victory ended.

The saying, “cautions breed cautions,” can never be said enough. A race that had very few cautions in the beginning quickly spawned two more, including another multi-car accident.

As Kyle Busch led the cars through turn two for his final time, Jamie McMurray shot up the track and like the day before in the Nationwide race, a major pileup happened. Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, Nemechek, Regan Smith and Stremme were among the drivers involved. The caution flag flew, freezing the field and by default Kyle Busch won.

Busch appeared to have been the leader in the long run anyway. For his fortune, he left Talladega a winner with a car in one piece.

My driver, once again, didn’t have the best weekend. He was one of the drivers who got caught up in one of the multi-car accidents. In fact, he fell out of the Top 12 in the points standing.

I will not fret because, as the standings are, he has the ability to make it back into the Top 12. I will not promise myself he will, nor will I pessimistically tell myself he won’t. I am simply going to wait and see, quite possibly with my fingers crossed.

Don’t miss:
From Richmond

• Sprint Cup qualifying, Friday at 5:30 p.m. on SPEED
• Lipton Tea 250 (Nationwide race), Friday night at 7 on ESPN2
• Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400 (Sprint Cup race), Saturday night at 7 on FOX