1 27 1 Jamie McMurray Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet
2 6 18 Kyle Busch M&M’s Toyota
3 10 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s Chevrolet
4 23 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Ground Toyota
5 22 16 Greg Biffle Scotch Blue Ford
6 17 17 Matt Kenseth Crown Royal Black Ford
7 12 20 Joey Logano Home Depot Toyota
8 24 29 Kevin Harvick Shell / Pennzoil Chevrolet
9 16 00 David Reutimann Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
10 26 6 David Ragan UPS Ford
11 34 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Target Chevrolet
12 2 99 Carl Edwards Aflac Ford
13 32 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet
14 4 5 Mark Martin GoDaddy.com Chevrolet
15 13 56 Martin Truex Jr. NAPA / Susan G. Komen Toyota
16 14 47 Marcos Ambrose Lance / Tom’s Toyota
17 20 33 Clint Bowyer Cheerios / Hamburger Helper Chevrolet
18 7 83 Reed Sorenson Red Bull Toyota
19 21 82 Scott Speed Red Bull Toyota
20 18 31 Jeff Burton Caterpillar Chevrolet
21 29 14 Tony Stewart Old Spice / Office Depot Chevrolet
22 30 10 Bobby Labonte Gander Mountain Outdoors Chevrolet
23 1 24 Jeff Gordon DuPont Chevrolet
24 5 98 Paul Menard Schrock / Menards Ford
25 3 43 A J Allmendinger WIX Filters Ford
26 9 19 Elliott Sadler Stanley Ford
27 31 12 Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge
28 36 38 David Gilliland Taco Bell Ford
29 8 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. AMP Energy / National Guard Chevrolet
30 15 2 Kurt Busch Operation Home Front / Miller Lite Dodge
31 42 34 Travis Kvapil Long John Silver’s Ford
32 41 37 Dave Blaney Andy Griffith Show 50th Anniversary Ford
33 39 7 Robby Gordon ExtenZe Toyota
34 38 71 Andy Lally ModSpace Chevrolet
35 37 21 Bill Elliott JDRF / Motorcraft / Quick Lane Ford
36 11 39 Ryan Newman Haas Automation Chevrolet
37 35 26 Patrick Carpentier Air Guard Ford
38 25 9 Kasey Kahne Budweiser Ford
39 33 46 Michael McDowell Conely for School Board/Whitney’s Collision Chevrolet
40 19 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Mobil 1 Dodge
41 43 64 Jeff Green Little Joe’s Autos Toyota
42 28 09 Landon Cassill Phoenix Construction / Graceway Chevrolet
43 40 36 J J Yeley Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet

Race Recap | Charlotte
10 David Ragan
9 David Reutimann
8 Kevin Harvick
7 Joey Logano
6 Matt Kenseth
5 Greg Biffle
4 Denny Hamlin is now 41 points behind Johnson
3 Jimmie Johnson 4th straight top 3 after spinning his car early on
2 Kyle Busch led the most laps

VICTORY LANE

1 Jamie McMurray picks up his third win of the season, 2nd at this track, 6th career win, the first non-chase driver to win at Charlotte since the Chase began. In fact he’s the only non-chase driver to win another time at Talladega.

OTHER STORIES ON THE DAY

On lap 2 Ryan Newman went for a wild ride spinning on his own. Tony Stewart got damage to the right rear of his 14 machine. Denny Hamlin flat spotted his tires.

Kurt Busch spun in turn 4

Jimmie Johnson spun the 48 in turn two

Jeff Gordon lost all power and went a lap down. Battery/Alternator

Marcos Ambrose spun, Jimmie Johnson lost 4 spots in the pits to Kyle Busch

On lap 88 Jeff Burton went for a wild ride hitting his teammate Clint Bowyer

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(October 15, 2010)

CONCORD, N.C.—New rubber. Old rubber. It didn’t matter to Brad Keselowski, who ran the final 56 laps of Friday night’s Dollar General 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race on his last set of tires.

Track position, however, proved far more important at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where Keselowski picked up his first NASCAR Nationwide Series win at the 1.5-mile track, his fifth victory of the season and the 11th of his career.

Martin Truex Jr. ran second, followed by Justin Allgaier, Joey Logano and polesitter Clint Bowyer, whose winning chances disappeared with a pit-road speeding penalty on his last stop. Kyle Busch, Reed Sorenson, Aric Almirola, Ryan Newman and Kevin Harvick completed the top 10.

Keselowski widened his lead in the NASCAR Nationwide standings to 450 points over 13th-place finisher Carl Edwards.

“I might be biased, but I thought that was the best race I’ve ever seen in my life,” said Keselowski, who has won two of the four races in the new NASCAR Nationwide car this year. “And I was driving the car, so I can imagine what the fans saw—that was awesome.

“The decision to stay out … we had pitted just five laps before the yellow came out (on Lap 154) and felt really good about it. I knew that Paul (Wolfe), my crew chief, had made an adjustment right there at the end, on the last stop, and my car was just flying.

“We quite honestly weren’t very good on test day (Wednesday) and wasn’t very good the first half of the race, and I’ve got to give credit to Paul. That guy’s amazing. He gave me the car I needed to win with at the end. This Challenger flew.”

Keselowski’s ploy to stay out on old tires after the caution on Lap 154 paid immediate dividends. The driver of the No. 22 Dodge opened a lead of almost a second over Truex before Brian Scott’s spin through the frontstretch grass caused the seventh caution of the race on Lap 182.

On Lap 183, Harvick and Edwards pitted for fresh tires—from fifth and sixth, respectively—and restarted 11th and 12th on Lap 187, but the new tires failed to provide the desired advantage. The green-flag run was short-lived, however, as Steve Wallace turned across the nose of Trevor Bayne’s No. 17 Ford on Lap 188 and slammed into the backstretch wall.

Keselowski led the field to a restart with eight laps remaining and pulled away to beat Truex to the finish line by 1.137 seconds.

Notes: Danica Patrick posted a career-best 21st-place finish in her ninth NASCAR Nationwide start. … The Charlotte race was the fourth and final event with the NASCAR Nationwide Series new car this year, before it’s phased in full time in 2011.

1 21 Clint Bowyer Zaxby’s Chevrolet
2 1 Ryan Newman Phoenix Construction Chevrolet
3 22 Brad Keselowski Discount Tire Dodge
4 20 Joey Logano GameStop / Guitar Hero Toyota
5 00 Martin Truex Jr. Out! Pet Care Toyota
6 98 Paul Menard Goof Off/ Menards Ford
7 32 Reed Sorenson Dollar General Toyota
8 26 Parker Kligerman DODGE Dodge
9 12 Justin Allgaier Verizon Wireless Dodge
10 18 Kyle Busch Z-Line Designs Toyota
11 60 Carl Edwards Copart.com Ford
12 16 Colin Braun # Con-way Freight Ford
13 6 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. # CitiFinancial Ford
14 33 Kevin Harvick Rheem Tankless Water Heaters Chevrolet
15 88 Aric Almirola Hellmann’s Chevrolet
16 66 Steve Wallace 5-hour Energy Toyota
17 99 Ryan Truex Out! Pet Care Toyota
18 7 Danica Patrick GoDaddy.com Chevrolet
19 11 David Reutimann Rexall / Dollar General Toyota
20 04 Jeremy Clements Boudreaux’s Butt Paste Chevrolet
21 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel & Casino Toyota
22 09 Brian Scott # Shore Lodge Ford
23 25 Kelly Bires Raybestos Ford
24 38 Jason Leffler Great Clips Toyota
25 17 Trevor Bayne Roush Fenway Ford
26 49 Mark Green FrontlineWraps.com Chevrolet
27 05 David Starr Cash America Chevrolet
28 56 Kevin Lepage RaceDaySponsor.com Toyota
29 70 Shelby Howard K21 Cancer Care Fund / ForeTravel Chevrolet
30 10 James Buescher # AccuDoc Solutions Toyota
31 81 Michael McDowell DeWafelbakkers/Red Line Oil Dodge
32 15 Michael Annett Valvoline Toyota
33 36 Jeff Green TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet
34 34 Tony Raines Long John Silvers Chevrolet
35 01 Mike Wallace TireBuyer.com Chevrolet
36 87 Joe Nemechek HostGator.com Chevrolet
37 35 Jason Keller TriStar Motorsports Chevrolet
38 27 Hermie Sadler CruiseOne / enMotion Ford
39 43 Josh Wise OTWcrew.com / Ingersoll Rand Dodge
40 40 Mike Bliss Westerman Companies Chevrolet
41 23 Robert Richardson Jr. Pink and Blue for Two Chevrolet
42 28 Kenny Wallace Kengor Metals Chevrolet
43 24 Eric McClure Hefty Odor Block Ford

Patrick To Race In First 4 Nationwide Series Events of 2011

JR Motorsports Unveils New No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Friday, October 15, 2010) – Danica Patrick will drive the No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet in the first four NASCAR Nationwide Series events of 2011, JR Motorsports officials announced today at a press conference at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The races beyond that have not been determined, although Patrick will take on a schedule similar to that of her 13-race rookie campaign.

The first four races include the season-opening DRIVE4COPD 300 at Daytona International Speedway (Feb. 13) followed by the 200-mile race at Phoenix International Raceway (Feb. 26), the 300-mile race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, (March 5) and the 150-mile dash at Bristol Motor Speedway (March 19). Patrick will then return to the IndyCar Series to dedicate full-time attention to open-wheel racing, making sporadic returns to NASCAR throughout the year.

Friday’s announcement also included the unveiling of the 2011 paint scheme for Patrick’s No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet (photos available upon request). JR Motorsports co-owners Kelley Earnhardt and Tony Eury Jr., the team’s general manager and crew chief, respectively, joined Patrick for the unveiling and schedule announcement.

“I know we’re all anxious to get the whole schedule put in place, but I’m extremely excited to be able to confirm our participation in the first four races of the 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series season, and also unveil another beautiful Go Daddy car,” Patrick said. “Go Daddy has been extremely good to me in both series. I know Bob Parsons is a huge fan of our racing program, and I thank him for all the support. We’ll have four extremely challenging and unique races to start our 2011 season, and I’m anxious to return to a lot of those tracks with at least a little bit of familiarity.”

One track she will not be returning to is Bristol Motor Speedway, as it will mark her first appearance at the challenging half-mile speed bowl. Patrick will join teammates Aric Almirola and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in competing in the Bristol race.

“Danica has shown immense dedication in her NASCAR endeavor,” Kelley Earnhardt said. “She proved last week (at Auto Club Speedway) that even a little bit of experience goes a long way, as she drove an exceptional race. Starting this weekend at Charlotte, she will compete in each of the final five races of 2010. Add the first four Nationwide races of next season, and that’s a solid stretch of seat time she will get to continue learning the intricacies of these race cars. She has done a commendable job so far given the limited seat time, and we appreciate her work ethic and dedication to Go Daddy and our race team.”

Patrick is currently in her first season in competitive stock car racing, as she has driven the No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet in eight of 13 scheduled races so far this year. She just wrapped her 2010 IndyCar campaign, finishing 10th in the championship point standings.

“When Danica drives, she drives with a vengeance,” said Go Daddy CEO and Founder Bob Parsons. “She’s as passionate a competitor as anyone in sports right now, and an undeniable inspiration for people who dream big!”