FONTANA, Calif. — For Carl Edwards, it’s a signal. At least one NASCAR Sprint Cup team is ready to take on Hendrick Motorsports.
Edwards won the rain-delayed Auto Club 500 on Monday, finishing ahead of Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. In a race that resumed with the 88th of 250 laps, Edwards assumed the lead for good with 13 laps left.
“I hope it’s an indication we’ve caught up with them,” Edwards said after the eighth victory of his career. “They still were second and third, and they were the guys to beat today. I hope this is a sign we’re up to their standards, to their level.”
Johnson took the green flag for the final restart in the lead with 26 laps left, but Edwards surged from third. He then showed fine form on his traditional victory backflip after capturing the checkered flag in a race that ended under caution when Dale Jarrett spun on the final lap.
Edwards had it all but wrapped up at that point, driving his Roush Fenway No. 99 Ford to a lead of more than four seconds over Johnson. It was his first victory at Fontana but his seventh top-10 finish in eight starts at the track formerly known as California Speedway.
Gordon finished third. He was followed by Kyle Busch and Roush’s Matt Kenseth.
Edwards went into the final round of pit stops under caution on lap 221 while leading. He came out behind Johnson, Gordon and Roush Fenway teammate Jamie McMurray.
He quickly passed McMurray after the green flag for the start of lap 225 and set out after the leaders, passing Gordon for second on lap 233 and moving alongside Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet on lap 236. They stayed side-by-side for almost two laps before Edwards nosed ahead and began to pull away.
“I told my guys, ‘We got ’em right where we want ’em.’ ” Edwards said.
Stewart wins Nationwide event.
Tony Stewart was dominant in winning his second straight NASCAR Nationwide Series race, holding off hard-charging Kyle Busch in the State Brothers 300.
“The car was awesome. I’ve got to hand it to my crew chief, Dave Rogers, and his guys,” said Stewart, who led 136 of the 150 laps. “They made this car real, real good and there were a lot of cars out there that weren’t real good.”
