Kyle Busch's new crew chief faces big decision in first race, loses the gamble

FORT WORTH, Texas - It didn't take Dave Rogers long to face a huge decision as crew chief for the volatile Kyle Busch.

Rogers said it wasn't much of a decision at all. He was sure Busch had enough fuel to stay in front to the finish Sunday in Texas, where Rogers made his debut atop the pit box for the No. 18 Toyota.

Rogers was wrong by three laps. That's when Busch ran out of gas just as he was starting another trip around the 1�-mile high-banked oval. He sputtered through the backstretch and was passed by older brother Kurt Busch and quite a few others. Kyle Busch finished 11th.

"Welcome to the club, huh?" Rogers said.

Busch, known for his outbursts when things aren't going well and mistakes are made, didn't disagree with the decision to stay out because Rogers said they never really discussed it.

"I told him my plan was to stay out. He trusted me. It didn't work," Rogers said. "It's discouraging. It's hard for Kyle, and it's hard for myself."

Rogers replaced Steve Addington after an inconsistent season kept Busch out of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. Those points standings played a role in Rogers' choice. He said it would have different if they had been racing for points.

"We really didn't have anything to lose," Rogers said. "If we would have pitted, the 2 car certainly would have beat us. Our only shot to win it was to stay out, so we gambled. Sometimes when you gamble, you lose."

Rogers said he didn't face the wrath of Busch, who disappeared without talking to reporters after losing despite leading 232 laps.

"He said, 'We're out of fuel' and after the race he took his helmet off and went to his motor home and calmed down," Rogers said. "I think he handled it well. You lead all these laps and we could have gone for the clean sweep this weekend, won all three in a row, deserved to win all three in a row and we get beat. It's tough."

Dale Earnhardt Jr. joined Kyle Busch among a group of several trying to push their fuel to the limit. He ran out, too.

Earnhardt ended up stalled on pit road after creeping up the standings while others ahead of him pitted. He ended up 25th.

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STILL WINLESS: Carl Edwards' oh-fer season continued.

The nine-time winner from a year ago was knocked out about halfway through the race when he pulled alongside Juan Pablo Montoya just before Montoya lost control and grazed Edwards, sending him into the wall.

Edwards took the optimistic outlook before the race when he said he preferred to view things as nine wins over two seasons rather than the big zero of 2009. He had the same rosy outlook after the wreck, too.

"I guess I'll win the race home," Edwards said. "I get to go home and see the wife. That's a good thing."

Montoya was hanging around the fringe of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, and got a boost when points leader Jimmie Johnson wrecked on Lap 3. His own wreck ruined a chance to gain significant ground.

"It was just really close racing," said Montoya, who picked up three points on Johnson but dropped from fourth to sixth in the standings, 236 behind. "I know Carl has had a frustrating season and was just trying to get to the front. He just didn't give me any room."

The early departure was just another illustration of the stark difference between seasons for Edwards. Last year, he ran away with the fall Texas race for his second win in a row.

"It's frustrating in general because I was having fun," Edwards said.

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MORE TRIBUTES: Fort Hood soldiers played a prominent role in NASCAR's prerace ceremonies just 273 kilometres from the site of the massacre that left 13 dead at the Army post.

There were 40 Fort Hood soldiers displaying the huge American flag during the national anthem Sunday. The number was supposed to be 45, but five soldiers scheduled to attend were among the 29 injured in Thursday's shootings, track officials said.

A moment of silence was observed for the fourth time during the weekend. The other observances came during the Nationwide and truck series races, and Sprint Cup qualifying.

A U.S. Army logo with the words "God Bless Our Fort Hood Troops" was pained on the infield grass Friday.

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SPACE RACE: Space shuttle pilot Doug Hurley went for a different ride before Sunday's race. Two, actually.

Hurley, who guided Endeavour in July, was inside the pace car, which was inside a Chinook helicopter that landed on the infield. He drove the car off the helicopter.

The Marine colonel is a season ticket-holder at Texas Motor Speedway. Greg Zipadelli, crew chief for Joey Logano, married into Hurley's family, and Hurley attended his first race earlier this decade at Watkins Glen not far from where he grew up.

Since he's based in Houston, Hurley decided to become a regular at the Texas track. He presented Zipadelli with a hat that went into space with him.

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SPARK PLUGS: Sunday's unofficial attendance was 167,000, the lowest in 18 races at Texas. Attendance figures have declined steadily the past couple of years. The previous low was 171,000 last fall. ... Kurt Busch's victory made a US$1 million winner of Oklahoma school teacher Michael McGee. The 25-year-old from Broken Bow picked Busch in a random drawing of the 12 Chase drivers. McGee was chosen the Dickies American Worker of the Year, earning $50,000 and the shot at the bigger prize.