Random Recap: The 2005 UAW-Ford 500
Dale Jarrett snuck ahead of Tony Stewart before the caution flag waved on the final lap to win the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega.
The race was extended two laps because of a crash and Jarrett restarted fourth, behind leader Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman and Stewart. He was fourth as the field headed into the tri-oval on the penultimate lap when Stewart made a big attempt at a pass on both Newman and Kenseth, who had maintained the lead.
After passing Newman on the high side Stewart dove low to pass Kenseth, who threw a block. As Kenseth attempted to make sure Stewart didn’t get around him, Jarrett cruised around on the high side, pulling even with Stewart through turns one and two on the final lap.
The two were side-by-side down the backstretch as Jarrett held a slim lead. As he was ahead of Stewart, the caution came out for a crash involving Kyle Petty, meaning the field was frozen and Jarrett had his 32nd Sprint Cup Series win.
Kenseth ended up third while Newman was fourth. Carl Edwards, a fourth Chase driver, was fifth.
Steweart takes over the points lead because of the second-place finish. He entered the race 11 points behind Newman, but since he led the most laps (65), he now has a four-point advantage. Stewart entered the race fifth in the standings behind Jimmie Johnson, Rusty Wallace, Newman and Mark Martin. Johnson finished 31st, 32 laps down after he was in a crash on lap 65. Wallace was also in the same crash and finished 25th, five laps down.
Martin was the Chase driver who took the biggest hit in the standings. Martin lost 140 points to Stewart after he was caught up in a lap 20 crash that involved Michael Waltrip’s car going upside-down.
Epilogue: The win was the final one of Jarrett’s NASCAR Hall of Fame career. It was also the final win for Robert Yates Racing. Stewart went on to win the title, his second of three career championships.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
