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Emotional race in Martinsville ends with top-10 finishMaybe I do like Martinsville, after all. I have to admit that last week I was dreading Martinsville. We didn't run well there in the spring and it's been a hard track for me because I have very little seat time on it. Leaving there with a fifth place in the No. 15 ditech.com Silverado and a ninth place in the No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet was a pleasant surprise — even to me. Billy Ballew Motorsports was nice enough to schedule a test date for the truck the Wednesday before Martinsville. We had an up and down day. Things went well, then they went bad. We learned a lot and went back to the shop with some good notes. During practice sessions in both the truck and Cup car, things went well. We were decently fast and ended up qualifying second in the truck and 23rd in the Cup series. Saturday's truck race was solid. We led some laps early and then just faded a little during pit stops. There were too many cautions and we couldn't get a long enough run late in the race to pass anyone. A fifth place was good for the team and we are looking forward to racing this weekend in Atlanta. The Nextel Cup race was an emotional one for everyone. Every single person affiliated with Hendrick Motorsports and every fan that pulls for us every weekend had heavy hearts on Sunday. We remembered those that were lost on the plane one year ago, and we raced for them because that is what they would want us to do. Once the green flag dropped, though, it was focus forward. My Kellogg's car was tight at first and we made some adjustments on each pit stop. The car just kept getting better and better and we actually raced our way into the top 10. Later in the race my crew chief Alan Gustafson made the call to stay out and that put us third in line. We had fresher tires, but decided to pit again when others stayed out because the car became loose off the corners as the track conditions changed. I have to apologize to Matt Kenseth for getting into him. He tried to pull a "slide job" on me and I just stood my ground. That was just one of those racing incidents that will happen time to time. I respect Matt a lot and hope that he understands. I am sure I will be on the receiving end of one of those "racing deals" a few times in my career. Anyway, we finished out the day in ninth. Our teammate Jeff Gordon won and Jimmie Johnson finished third. Not a bad day for the Hendrick Organization to have three out of four cars in the top 10. The incredible performance was a fitting way to honor our friends who were lost in the tragic plane crash one year ago — their memories will always be with us and they won't ever be forgotten. This is cache, read story here
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