The ‘follow the leader' pattern was set right from the drop of the green flag as second place starter Dale Earnhardt Jr passed pole sitter Jeff Gordon around the outside of turn four on the opening lap to take the lead. Within 15 laps the driver of the #88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet had built a lead of nearly six seconds over his nearest rival and by the lap 20 mark was already lapping slower traffic.
From the third row of the grid Busch in the #18 Toyota had managed to establish himself as Earnhardt Jr's closest threat with the under-fire Carl Edwards gelling well with stand in crew chief Robbie Reiser in third position but neither would be able to get within three seconds of the race leader as he proceeded to lap half the field, including Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch, before the first caution flag of the afternoon for debris on lap 38.
Earnhardt Jr and Busch were able to escape again on the first restart of the day but now Busch was able to keep the race leader within range and when Earnhardt Jr scraped the outside wall on lap 60 Busch was quick to pounce and wrest the lead away.
By lap 75 and with Busch holding a four second lead it was abundantly clear that the tyre compound brought to the track by Goodyear simply wouldn't allow the drivers to race side by side with any level of confidence. Although there were no issues regarding excessive tyre wear, few drivers were able to get a comfortable feel for their cars with many totally lost on set-up and doing nothing but hanging on to their wayward vehicles in the corners, trying to keep out of everybody's way.
The second caution, for more debris on lap 84 was a blessing for nearly every driver as it allowed the teams to try and work on the set-ups of their cars. However for many it was too late as just 19 cars remained on the lead lap and when Busch and Earnhardt Jr took off again at the restart with only Denny Hamlin able to offer any fleeting resistance, the race resumed a familiar pattern.
![Dale Earnhardt Jr signs autographs for the fans. [Pic Credit image.net]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/405537.jpg)
