During a rain delay that stopped the Pennsylvania 500 for 41 minutes, driver Carl Edwards and crew chief Bob Osborne argued loudly about who made the call to come to the pits after an afternoon thunderstorm began to soak Pocono Raceway. In retrospect, both should be willing to take the credit, because the strategy earned Edwards his fourth Sprint Cup Series victory of the year and the 11th of his career. Tony Stewart was second, 3.858 seconds back. Jimmie Johnson was third, after starting on the pole, and coasting across the finish line after running out of fuel in the final corner.
Kevin Harvick rallied from a first-lap spin to finish fourth. David Ragan was fifth, followed by Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin, Jamie McMurray and Jeff Gordon. Edwards’ chances of winning hinged on the race resuming after the rain delay, which came on Lap 131. Edwards, Johnson and Stewart were among those who had come to the pits on Lap 128, while 19 other cars remained on the track. When the race resumed, however, those 19 cars had to make two pit stops to one for those drivers who already had come to pit road. That proved to be the difference. Martin, Edwards and Johnson dominated the first two-thirds of the race, leading 53, 36 and 33 of the first 131 laps, respectively, but only Martin, who did not pit on Lap 128, was among the frontrunners when NASCAR red-flagged the race.
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