NASCAR's annual All Star weekend concluded with a fairly uneventful NASCAR Nextel All Star Challenge on Saturday night. Dale Jarrett and the #44 UPS Team treated the 80-lap event like a test session for next week's Coca-Cola 600 and in the process, walked away with a 12th-place finish.
The four segment event featured 20 laps for each segment. Jarrett started the race from 13th and slipped back to 18th during the opening laps. Jarrett started to pick up a spot or two as the event continued - the result of the handling slipping away on other cars while the UPS Toyota didn't lose as much on the run. Jarrett was running in 11th during the closing laps and was passed on the last lap by Jeff Gordon who had one of the best cars of the night.
"We definitely learned some things for next week's race," Jarrett said. "The car did seem to handle better than it has earlier this season at the down force tracks. The guys did a great job on pit road like they always do but we feel like it was a good night overall for us."
Jarrett's teammates competed in the Nextel Open earlier in the evening. Only the top two finishers transferred from the Nextel Open to the Nextel All Star Challenge. David Reutimann started the event in 28th and managed to miss the numerous incidents that took place throughout the 40-lap event. Reutimann, like teammate Michael Waltrip, contended with severe handling issues that resulted in finishes of 21st and 20th, respectively.
The event was marred by only three cautions. Kevin Harvick won with Jimmie Johnson finishing second.
Next weekend regular point racing resumes with the longest race of the season - the Coca-Cola 600. FOX will provide live television coverage of the event with the green flag scheduled to wave approximately at 5:30 p.m. EDT.
