Gear jammin': Infineon Raceway

Top 4 stories from the Toyota SaveMart 350:

1st gear -- Montoya becomes 2nd non-U.S. born driver to win Nextel Cup race: Sunday's win may have stamped Juan Pablo Montoya as one of the best drivers of this generation, though he rarely receives enough credit for that. On his resume: a win at Indianapolis, a win at Monaco and two NASCAR-sanctioned victories. Not only can he drive virtually anything -- high praise stock-car types love to heap on Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart, and rightly so -- but he can win in them, too. Canadian Earl Ross, at Martinsville in 1974, is the only other non-U.S. driver to win a Cup race.

2nd gear -- Fuel mileage: Michigan and California have nothing on Sonoma when it comes to fuel strategy. The decision whether or not to pit had as much to do with when to do it. Montoya crew chief Donnie Wingo opted not to pit, hoping to conserve enough fuel to make it to the end. Robby Gordon, who dominated the first half of the race, did pit and it cost him a top-10 finish when he pitted too long too late. Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart lost top-5 runs because they were forced to stop.

3rd gear -- RCR's run: Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th, respectively, saying 2 things about Richard Childress Racing. They've got a great Car of Tomorrow program on the road courses and they've got a handle on fuel mileage. Harvick and Burton have both won at New Hampshire International Speedway, the Cup circuit's next stop, and Bowyer is closing in on career win No. 1. This could have been the start of a summer run from these 3 cars.

4th gear -- NASCAR penalties: Punishment will certainly be handed out this week for the Nos. 24 and 48 teams, but what NASCAR chooses to do could impact more than a few points or a couple of wallets. A 100-point penalty for each (which is what Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team got at Darlington in May) would keep Gordon in the points lead but drop Jimmie Johnson from 3rd to 5th. Suspensions for crew chiefs Steve Letarte and Chad Knaus should be in line, too, and for Knaus -- a repeat offender in the NASCAR books -- it could be especially harsh.