TALLADEGA, Ala. - The first organized protest at the Talladega Superspeedway came in 1969 when NASCAR teams boycotted the inaugural race because they had concerns over speeds.

A second protest may have happened Sunday during the AMP Energy 500.

Drivers weren't happy with the combination of cars, restricted speeds, out of bounds lines and rules against bump-drafting, and they responded with nearly 450 miles of single-file racing at the 2.66-mile track.

Talladega is renowned for its three-wide packs of traffic, lead changes and exciting finishes. Fans had to wait for 450 miles to finally get their money's worth, and nobody, especially the drivers, were happy about it.

"It was a boring race and it was a ridiculous race," Ryan Newman said. "To see 43 cars run single file is not what people showed up here today for. We'll see what happens."

Newman was knocked on his roof with five laps remaining in a five-car pileup on the backstretch as everyone started jockeying for position. Mark Martin was knocked upside-down with two laps remaining in a 13-car crash. Both drivers had considerable disdain for restrictor-plate racing at Talladega long before Sunday, and their finishes only solidified their attitudes.

"They have created a lot of the boredom because we couldn't race," Newman said. "It is survival. The race could have been 100 laps long and we could have had a great race. It is just not the way it is and it is unfortunate. I just hate it for the fans."

Newman was so bored with the racing early he wanted to talk about football on the radio. Brian Vickers told his crew he couldn't stop yawning. One crew chief asked his driver if he wanted to listen to his iPod. Another asked for some No Doz.

"Let us race," Denny Hamlin said. "They gave us a car to race, now let the drivers handle it. That's the way I see it."

Drivers were told before the race they would be penalized if they made contact with another car in the corners. In the past, the best way to gain speed and make passes was to use the front bumper to push a leading car through traffic. Many argued it made passing more difficult.

In reality, the race had just as much action up front as in the past. There were 58 lead changes among 25 drivers on Sunday. There were 57 changes among 25 drivers in April when bump-drafting was allowed.

The two big pileups on Sunday came on the straightaways, and both started with a bump from behind.

Jamie McMurray won the race - his first top-five finish of the year - because he was out front when NASCAR threw the caution flag for the 13-car crash on the final lap.

Jimmie Johnson, who was running as far back as 30th with 20 laps to go to avoid trouble, wound up sixth after most lead-leap cars either ran out of gas or were involved in the final two crashes. In the process he extended his lead in the Chase for the Championship to 184 points.

By not challenging to run up front, Johnson inherited a good finish while the five drivers behind him in the standings were all involved in crashes.

He didn't like being so conservative, but it was a game plan born of necessity.

"The only way we avoid this, if anybody wants to avoid these big wrecks and this type of racing, is to eliminate the need for restrictor plates," he said. "At the end of the day, the restrictor plate is still here because it's a good show for the fans. So at some point when the fans dislike it, I guess we'll make a change, and we won't have this stuff. But until then, we're a product of what the fans want to see."

Which doesn't include 450 miles of single-file racing.