BROOKLYN, Mich. --- Several drivers were upset that Dale Earnhardt Jr. was allowed to speed up and pass the pace car during a caution so he could save gas to make it to the finish line. The running start gave Earnhardt enough momentum to allow him to turn his engine off and coast halfway around Michigan International Speedway.
"I just didn't know you could pass the pace car," third-place finisher Matt Kenseth said.
NASCAR rules prohibit anyone from passing the pace car during a caution, but Earnhardt was allowed to pull in front of the pace car at least twice to save fuel. The sanctioning body eventually warned him not to do it, but by then he had saved enough to win the LifeLock 400 on fumes.
Earnhardt admitted he stretched the rules -- and NASCAR's patience -- but not enough to give the victory back.
"I got a little greedy," he said. "I can understand how it looked, especially if you're not a Dale Jr. fan. But I got the trophy; I got the points."
NO NATIONWIDE FOR BUSCH: After crashing in Saturday night's Nationwide Series race at the Kentucky Speedway, Kyle Busch has given up on plans to compete full-time in two different NASCAR series. Busch will race only at Infineon Raceway next week at Sonoma, Calif., and not jet across the country to compete in the Nationwide race on Saturday at Milwaukee.
PIT STOPS: Jeff Burton likes basketball, but he can't stay awake during the NBA Finals. He said he usually goes to bed during the game. "The games are too late," he said. "I mean, who starts a game at 9:30 at night? It's ridiculous. I can't stay up until midnight watching a ball game, so I don't ever see the end of them." Coincidentally, three Sprint Cup races have ended past 11 p.m. this year, and one didn't take the green flag until after midnight ...
On Sunday, Busch finished 13th and stretched his lead over Burton to 32 points in the Sprint Cup Series standings. Michigan race winner Earnhardt remained third in the rankings, followed by Carl Edwards in fourth and Jimmie Johnson in fifth.
Reach Don Coble at don.coble@morris.com.
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