Once again reliability was excellent with only Vickers not running at the end of the 500 laps. Sam Hornish Jr stayed out of trouble and finished 29th with Franchitti a bruised and battered 36th. Dale Jarrett's final points paying start ended in a distant 37th place, some ten laps off the pace while Jamie McMurray's 43rd place finish means that his #26 Roush team slips out of the top 35 in owner points ahead of the next race at Martinsville in two weeks.
Despite his accident Kyle Busch maintains the overall series lead with Biffle 30 points behind in second spot. Harvick and Burton move into third and fourth places respectively with Earnhardt Jr rounding out the top five.
Further down the order Sunday's race was critical for teams battling to stay in the top 35 in owner points as, from Martinsville onwards the current owner points will be used to determine who is guaranteed a grid position every week. Hornish Jr's efforts combined with McMurray's accident means that the triple Indycar Series champion scrapes into the top 35 by just four points, joining Kurt Busch and all three Michael Waltrip Racing entries, including Jarrett's #44 team, on the ‘guaranteed start' list for Martinsville.
In addition to McMurray, Bill Davis Racing's Dave Blaney, rookie duo Franchitti and Regan Smith and veteran Kyle Petty have all slipped out of the top 35 since the start of the season and must all now fight for their grid positions when the series resumes after the Easter Break.
![Jeff Burton, Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. [Pic Credit image.net]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/407272.jpg)
