Current Nextel Cup points leader Jeff Gordon earned his fourth win of the 2007 season in rather fortuitous fashion in a delayed, shortened Pocono 500 on Sunday.
A combination of some inspired pit strategy, persistent poor weather and some good old fashioned racing luck helped Gordon and his #24 Hendrick Motorsports team claim their fourth win at the unique 2.5-mile Pocono triangle despite an initial rain delay of nearly four hours and another, terminal shower with just 262 of the 500 scheduled miles completed.
Gordon, who started the 14th round of the season from 18th position on the grid bolted to the front of the field thanks to a decision not to pit for fuel and tyres under caution on lap 65 and while he had no chance of making it to the magical half-way point of the 200-scheduled laps without stopping for fuel, the rains held off long enough to force all those who did pit to make their own extra green flag pitstop.
With Gordon re-taking the lead on lap 99 he knew that if he were to have any chance of victory the rains would need to return for good some time before the race reached lap 114, the lap of his next scheduled stop.
Thankfully the wet stuff returned on lap 104 just as Gordon was coming under pressure from Bud Pole winner Ryan Newman and even though NASCAR tried valiantly to dry the track again, by 7:30pm local time it became clear that it would be impossible for racing to continue on Sunday.
But as more than half of the original intended race distance had been completed the result was declared and Gordon was awarded the full compliment of points for his efforts.
Newman, Martin Truex Jr, Casey Mears and Tony Stewart rounded out the top five with defending Pocono 500 winner Denny Hamlin sixth after dropping from the lead to 20th during the lap 65 pit stop shuffle.
Colombian Juan Montoya was 20th on his first visit to Pocono while Cup Series debutant Chad McCumbee drove a sensible race to 25th in the #45 Dodge vacated for the next six races by Kyle Petty.
![Jeff Gordon - DuPont Chevrolet [pic credit: image.net]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/303460.jpg)
