Recap
A fuel mileage gamble in the mid-stages of the Save Mart 350 effectively ended Jeff Gordon's chances for his first road course win since 2006. Gordon was running 3rd when he ran out of gas on the track. By the time the pit stops cycled through, he was back in 15th place. He rallied for a 6th place finish -- the first time he's posted back-to-back top-10's since October/November 2011.

Gordon started on the outside of the front row and ran 2nd to Marcos Ambrose for the first 11 laps. Gordon took the lead from Ambrose in the esses and pulled away. He led until lap 25 when Clint Bowyer passed. However, during the sequence with the lead, Gordon led the 23,000th lap of his NASCAR career -- good enough for 7th on the all-time list. Gordon slipped back to 5th place before a pit stop on lap 35. He cycled through the stops and ran in 6th place. He moved up to 4th by lap 50, but was distantly behind race lead Clint Bowyer due to the lack of caution flags. Gordon took 3rd place from Jimmie Johnson on lap 68.

After crew chief Alan Gustafson elected to keep Gordon on the track for an extra lap during a pit stop sequence, Gordon ran out of fuel on the track. He made it to pit road on lap 73, but fell to 15th in the running order due to the extended time getting to pit road. On lap 80, Gordon moved up to 13th with a pass on Carl Edwards. The first caution waved on lap 82 for Tomy Drissi's crash. Gordon came to pit road to ensure he could make it to the finish on fuel. He restarted in 14th place and moved to 13th with 20 laps to go. Gordon took 12th from Matt Kenseth with 18 laps to go. Gordon entered the top-10 with 16 laps to go and moved to 8th around AJ Allmendinger with 13 to go. Gordon battled Martin Truex for 6th place before a caution with 4 laps to go. On the green/white/checkered restart, Gordon took 6th from Truex.

Turning point
Gordon was running 3rd when he ran out of fuel on the racetrack. Crew chief Alan Gustafson opted to keep the #24 car on the track for an extra lap to get into a fuel window. He crawled to pit road and dropped out of the top-10, thus ending any chance at a victory.

JG's comments
"We went about a half-of-a lap too far there on that one run. I think we made the car a little bit better, and just used a little bit more fuel in that second run, and ran out unfortunately. It never fails, you run out just as you pass pit entrance. We were lucky to get back to pit road, and get it fueled up. We had a really strong car today. Luckily we had enough laps to slowly work our way up into the top-10, I guess we ended up sixth. I thought I had a shot at getting a top-five and then someone laid someone laid oil going into four. We didn't know, so a little frustrating there. Still a great finish, and a great, great performance."

HOW DID THE LACK OF CAUTIONS FIT YOUR STRATEGY?
"Well, strategy here really isn't as effective by caution as much as you think. You're still trying to get in your fuel window. We made one extra stop I guess due to the caution coming out mainly because of the caution coming out and mainly because we ran out of fuel. Had we not run out of fuel, it wouldn't have affected it at all. We would have just stayed up towards the front and battled those guys at the end like (Clint) Bowyer was and like Kurt (Busch) was doing and Jimmie (Johnson) was doing. We had a really good car there, you know. So after the first run, we got real loose and faded. We made some adjustments; I thought we made it a lot better, so I think we could have battled up there with them."

DO YOU FEEL LIKE GUYS WERE REALLY USING THEIR HEADS OUT THERE TODAY COMPARED TO THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS?
"Well, yes; up until the restarts. I mean when you double-file restart on a track like this, then all bets are off on respect and trying to work with one another. Although, A.J. Allmendinger really worked with me there; I hit some oil and got wide off of (Turn) 4 and he had the inside lane on me, and we rubbed. But it could have been a lot uglier than it was. And so it ended up being a good finish for all of us. They guys I was running with used their heads pretty good. I saw some stuff happening in front of me with Kyle (Busch) and the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin) and the No. 20 (Joey Logano). I don't know what went on there, but I just saw guys spinning around and we were able to get through there okay. But it didn't involve us at all."

Recap
Dale Earnhardt Jr snapped a four-year winless skid with a victory in the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan Speedway. Jeff Gordon posted a 6th place finish, which was the 400th top-10 finish of his NASCAR Cup series career. Gordon became the second youngest driver to achieve the milestone. It was Gordon's fifth top-6 finish at Michigan in the last seven races there.

Gordon started 26th and slowed to avoid Kurt Busch's spinning car on lap 2. He restarted in 30th place on lap 5. The second caution waved on lap 10 for Josh Wise's engine with Gordon advancing to 25th. He ran 26th when the competition caution came on lap 25. Gordon came to pit road for tires and held the 26th spot. He moved up to 24th by lap 40 and ran 21st when the competition caution slowed the field on lap 50. Gordon opted for two tires and restarted 17th on lap 54. He moved up to the 14th position within 5 laps of the restart, and ran 13th on lap 70. Two laps later he took the 12th spot from Jimmie Johnson and entered the top-10 on lap 80. A debris caution on lap 81 brought pit stops with Gordon again opting for two tires. He restarted in 4th place on lap 84 and held the spot past the halfway point of the race.

Gordon stayed out to lead a lap during a green flag pit stop sequence on lap 119. He came to the pits for a four-tire change on lap 120. Kurt Busch's spin on lap 121 brought out the caution with Gordon inheriting the top spot. He lost the lead in turn one to Dale Earnhardt Jr after the restart before the caution waved for Joey Logano's spin on the backstretch, which collected Kasey Kahne. Another caution for Denny Hamlin's spin on lap 133 slowed the field. The green flag waved on lap 140 with Gordon dropping to 3rd behind Earnhardt Jr and Tony Stewart. Greg Biffle passed Gordon on lap 159 as the DuPont Chevrolet battled loose handling issues. He came to pit road for a green flag pit stop on lap 165 and cycled through in 6th place. As the laps wound down, Gordon was unable to make headway due to a blistered tire. He finished 6th and moved to 20th in the series points standings.

Turning point
Gordon battled for the race lead from lap 120-140, but his pace slowed due to handling issues in the closing stages. Blisters on the right side tires hindered his efforts to claim a top-5 finish.

JG's post-race comments
THAT MIDDLE PART OF THE RACE YOU LOOKED TO STRONG AND THERE WEREN'T TIRE ISSUES BUT I JUST LOOKED AT THE RIGHT REAR AND YOU'VE GOT SOME BLISTERS.
"I knew something happened in that last run. We took off and it was really good; and boy, it just went away fast. It got really, really loose. So yeah, that's unfortunate. What a great day for Hendrick Motorsports and Junior and Stevie and all those guys on that No. 88 team. I'm so proud of them. I'm proud of my guys too; we fought hard to come from 28th. It was not easy. We had a really good race car today. So Happy Father's Day! I know to Rick (Hendrick), especially. Happy Father's Day to you, Rick; I know that was a great Father's Day gift. And I'm just glad we had a solid day as well. It's something to build on."

WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR ALL OF HENDRICK TO GET THIS DONE SO YOU GUYS CAN ALL MOVE ON?
"Well we are next on the list now. I think when Rick (Hendrick) brought (Dale Earnhardt) Junior on and especially when they made the swap a couple of years ago there is a lot of pressure that comes along with having Junior on there. You get beat up by everybody if he is not winning. Even Junior has gotten beat up some himself. There is a lot of pride on the line. You know that when Junior wins it's going to be great for the sport. You know that it's a great thing for the whole company. Yeah it's a win, win."

Recap
In hindsight, vision always seems to be perfect. The decision to take on fuel in the closing stages of the Pocono 400 ultimately cost Jeff Gordon a solid finish. Gordon was running 5th when a caution waved with 23 laps to go at Pocono Raceway. Realizing he was 3 laps short on fuel, crew chief Alan Gustafson opted to have Gordon pit. However, a litany of caution flags in the closing stages of the event ensured that drivers would be able to make it to the finish. Nevertheless, had it been a green flag run to the finish, Gordon would have run out of fuel. He finshed in 19th place and is 22nd in the series standings. Gordon has just 4 top-10 finishes in the last 17 races.

Gordon started 12th and was running ahead of a multi-car wreck on lap 1. Landon Cassill, Martin Truex, and AJ Allmendinger sustained damaged in an incident that began with Cassill's spin in turn 3. On the restart, Gordon moved to 8th place on lap 6. He took 7th from Regan Smith with a pass in turn 3 on lap 10. The second caution waved on lap 13 for Reed Sorensen and JJ Yeley's wall contact. Pit stops followed with Gordon exiting in 8th place. He dropped to 10th before rallying back to 7th by lap 30. Gordon came in for a green flag pit stop on lap 42 and was penalized for speeding entering pit road. Gordon came back to pit road for a pass-thru penalty and dropped to 23rd place. The third caution waved on lap 67 for AJ Allmendinger's wall contact, which allowed Gordon to make up ground. He restarted 21st on lap 72 and moved back into the top-20 before a caution on lap 74. Gordon stayed on the track and moved up to 14th for the restart. He re-entered the top-10 on lap 88 with a pass on Clint Bowyer.

At the 100-lap mark, Gordon ran in 8th place. He came to pit road for a green flag stop on lap 103. Gordon cycled through in 9th place and took 8th from Tony Stewart on lap 114. A debris caution on lap 123 slowed the field and brought the leaders to pit road for the final time. Gordon restarted in 11th place on lap 129. After the restart, Gordon moved up to 7th within two laps and took 5th from Kasey Kahne on lap 134. Kahne's wall contact on lap 138 brought out the caution flag. Gordon came to pit road for fuel to ensure he could make it to the finish. He restarted 17th with 17 laps to go. However, he fell to 20th before a debris caution with 12 laps to go. He restarted in 18th place with 8 laps to go. Gordon dropped to 23rd with 5 laps to go and crossed the finish line in 19th place.

Turning point
Gordon was running 5th in the late stages but came to pit road for fuel on lap 139. In a turn of bad luck, Gordon likely would have been able to make it to the finish if he stayed out due to the number of caution laps in the final 30 laps of the race.

Recap
It looked as if Jeff Gordon has his best car at Dover International Speedway in more than 6 years. However, once again, a dose of bad luck cost him a legitimate shot at his 86th career victory. Gordon led 60 laps, but a loose left rear wheel after a pit stop doomed his chances as the laps wound down. Gordon finished 13th and lamented another lost opportunity.

Gordon started 14th and was running 13th on lap 9 when a major pileup occurred on the backstretch after Tony Stewart tapped Landon Cassill. More than 12 cars were collected in the melee. When the green flag waved, Gordon advanced into the top-10 on lap 15. By lap 30, Gordon moved up to the 7th position with a pass on Kevin Harvick. Gordon entered the top-5 on lap 56 after moving around Kyle Busch. Following a cycle of green flag pit stops, Gordon ran in 5th place. At the 100-lap mark, Gordon ran 3rd behind Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin. The second caution waved on lap 111 when David Reuttiman's engine expired. Gordon departed pit road in 5th place, but moved back to 3rd by lap 135. He took the runner-up spot from Busch on lap 145. A caution for Carl Edwards' wall contact on lap 163 slowed the field.

Gordon took the race lead from Johnson shortly after the halfway point. However, Gordon slowed on lap 245 and came to pit road three laps later for tires. A loose left wheel was the culprit that cost Gordon a lap. As green flag pit stops began, Gordon stayed on the track and re-assumed the top spot. He came to pit road with 75 laps to go for a four-tire change and returned to the event one lap down. A caution with 60 laps to go trapped Gordon a lap down. Gordon stayed on the track for the wave-around to get back on the lead lap. He restarted in 18th place with 55 to go. Kurt Busch's blown engine and subsequent caution allowed Gordon to get fresh tires. Gordon moved to 16th with 46 to go and took 15th from AJ Allemdinger one lap later. Gordon was running 13th when the caution waved with 37 to go for Jeff Burton's blown engine. He came to pit road for tires and restarted in 16th place.

* Gordon led more laps during the event than he had in the previous 11 races at Dover combined.

Turning point
While leading the race (and pulling away) on lap 245, Gordon experienced a loose wheel and needed a pit stop. Although he may have scored the win if the race went to the end without a caution, the yellow flag on lap 340 hindered his efforts.

JG's comments
"We had the best race car. We've just been talking about this too many times this year. We cannot afford to make mistakes. We had the car to win the race and it's unfortunate.. I'm just tired of the same old things -- one thing or another getting us. The fastest car doesn't always win the race. And we're sitting here in 13th or whatever; it's silly."

AS BAD AS YOUR MISFORTUNE WAS, IT SEEMED LIKE IT WAS GOING TO WORK OUT AND YOU WOULD BENEFIT FROM IT
"Until that debris caution? Yeah, I can't wait to see that debris on TV. I'd like to see it because I certainly never saw it. I'm not going to make any comments until I see what the reasoning for it was. I don't know who you blame if there really wasn't much out there because all the media has been talking about all week long is oh, there's no cautions, there's no cautions. It used to be debris cautions. So, who do you blame that on?"

IS IT FRUSTRATING BECAUSE YOU WERE IN THE LEAD AND THEN YOU HAD THE TIRE PROBLEM AND YOU WERE MAKING YOUR WAY BACK?
"Ultimately, we put ourselves in this position to get his finish. So, that's very frustrating. We've had things out of our control this year. And I'm not really sure what happened. But obviously something happened. And then I don't know what happened. But we definitely had a loose left rear. It didn't go on right to begin with and the left-rear tire-changer (Chad Avrit) knew that. And so when I started to complain about it, we knew that there might be an issue there and there was. So, in some ways we got fortunate today. I could have stayed out there and wrecked because it wasn't really vibrating. It was getting real loose.”

WERE RESTARTS AS CRITICAL AS THEY LOOKED?
"You know, it was the greasiest restarts that I've ever felt here. There was just zero-grip for the first three, four, or five laps. So you really couldn't even race one another on a restart because you were so out of control. And there's a lot of rubber laid down on the race track and then the way the rubber on the tires matched up to it after you got going there was horrendous. Other than that, the tire was awesome. I really liked it. We ran great with it and the restarts were definitely hairy."

YOU'VE HAD SO MANY FRUSTRATING MOMENTS THIS SEASON. DOES THIS ONE TAKE THE CAKE? OR HAVE YOU JUST HAD SO MUCH CAKE THAT IT'S ALL THE SAME?
"It's always more frustrating when you've got a car that can win; and you show it by going up there and taking the lead. We don't care about finishing top 15 or top 10 right now. That does nothing for us. We need wins."