2013 Cheez-It 355 at The Glen


The 2013 Cheez-It 355 at The Glen was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race that was held on August 11 at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, New York. Contested over 90 laps on the 2.45-mile road course, it was the twenty-second race of the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing won the race, his third of the season, while Brad Keselowski finished second. Martin Truex, Jr., Carl Edwards and Juan Pablo Montoya rounded out the top five.
This is the first NASCAR race since the 1998 NAPA 500 not to featuring Tony Stewart.

Report

Background

is one of two road courses to hold NASCAR races, the other being Sonoma Raceway. The standard short road course at Watkins Glen International is a 7-turn course that is long; the track was modified in 1992, adding the Inner Loop, which lengthened the long course to and the short course to the current length of. Marcos Ambrose was the defending race winner after winning the race in 2011 and 2012.
On August 6, it was announced that Tony Stewart would not be participating after breaking both bones in his right leg in a Sprint car accident at Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa, on the night of August 5. Instead, road racing veteran Max Papis would step in and replace Stewart for the Watkins Glen event, with future drivers to be decided for the next four or five oval races. This marked the first race since his debut in the 1999 Daytona 500 that a Sprint Cup race did not have Stewart in the field, ending a streak of 521 straight starts for Stewart.

Practice and qualifying

Qualifying order

Source:
Group 1
DriverTeamManufacturer
36Victor Gonzalez, Jr.Tommy Baldwin RacingChevy
7Dave BlaneyTommy Baldwin RacingChevy
19Alex KennedyHumphrey Smith MotorsportsToyota
40Landon CassillCircle SportChevy
87Tomy DrissiNEMCO-Jay Robinson RacingToyota
52Brian KeselowskiBrian Keselowski MotorsportsFord

Group 2
DriverTeamManufacturer
38David GillilandFront Row MotorsportsFord
83David ReutimannBK RacingToyota
10Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingChevy
93Travis KvapilBK RacingToyota
51Owen KellyPhoenix RacingChevy
30David StremmeSwan Racing CompanyToyota

Group 3
DriverTeamManufacturer
17Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord
14Max PapisStewart-Haas RacingChevy
39Ryan NewmanStewart-Haas RacingChevy
34David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord
55Brian VickersMichael Waltrip RacingToyota
20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota

Group 4
DriverTeamManufacturer
1Jamie McMurrayEarnhardt Ganassi RacingChevy
29Kevin HarvickRichard Childress RacingChevy
43Aric AlmirolaRichard Petty MotorsportsFord
32Boris SaidFAS Lane RacingFord
33Ron FellowsCircle SportChevy

Group 5
DriverTeamManufacturer
48Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevy
27Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevy
22Joey LoganoPenske RacingFord
31Jeff BurtonRichard Childress RacingChevy
5Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevy

Group 6
DriverTeamManufacturer
78Kurt BuschFurniture Row RacingChevy
88Dale Earnhardt, Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevy
24Jeff GordonHendrick MotorsportsChevy
35Michael McDowellFront Row MotorsportsFord
16Greg BiffleRoush Fenway RacingFord

Group 7
DriverTeamManufacturer
18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
47A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingToyota
15Clint BowyerMichael Waltrip RacingToyota
2Brad KeselowskiPenske RacingFord
11Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota

Group 8
DriverTeamManufacturer
56Martin Truex, Jr.Michael Waltrip RacingToyota
9Marcos AmbroseRichard Petty MotorsportsFord
99Carl EdwardsRoush Fenway RacingFord
42Juan Pablo MontoyaEarnhardt Ganassi RacingChevy
13Casey MearsGermain RacingFord

Race

Start

The race was scheduled to start at 1:18 p.m. EDT, Marcos Ambrose led the field to the green flag on lap 1.

1st caution, restart and wreck

The first caution came out on lap 15 for a crash by Jeff Gordon in the back straightaway, the race restarted on lap 19, a couple of laps later, the second caution came out for a multi-car crash in the straightaway, by lap 41, the race was red flagged for seven minutes for cleanup on the track, the race restarted on lap 43.

Quarter mark

The third caution came out when Kyle Busch spun into the tires, and was out of gas, the race restarted on lap 63, A couple of laps later, the fourth caution came out for a wreck again on lap 80, some cars were involved in the crash, the race restarted on lap 86, and the fifth caution came out on lap 85 for a crash by Marcos Ambrose, The race restarted on lap 88, and Kyle Busch won his race at Watkins-Glen.

Results

Qualifying

Race results

;Notes:

Standings after the race

;Drivers' championship standings
PosDriverPoints
1Jimmie Johnson808
2Clint Bowyer733
3Carl Edwards728
4Kevin Harvick707
15Kyle Busch693
16Dale Earnhardt Jr.670
7Matt Kenseth659
48Brad Keselowski634
19Greg Biffle627
410Martin Truex, Jr.625

;Manufacturers' championship standings
PosManufacturerPoints
1Chevrolet156
2Toyota144
3Ford111