Gear jammin': New Hampshire

Top 4 stories from the Lenox Industrial Tools 300:

1st gear -- No crew chiefs, no problem: For Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, not having their respective crew chiefs on top of the pit box didn't pose much of a problem at New Hampshire International Speedway. They finished second, fourth and fifth, respectively, showing just how deep these organizations are when it comes to talent both at the race shop and in the garage area. Earnhardt, of course, finally gets a reprieve -- as Tony Eury Jr. returns from his 6-race suspension next week at Daytona. For Steve Letarte and Chad Knaus, however, it's another 5 races on the sidelines; not that it's shaping up as much of a road block for the teams.

2nd gear -- Hamlin gets 1st win of season: Not only did Denny Hamlin get his first win of the year, but he did so in a way even he didn't think possible a couple of months back. Where pit road miscues had the team beating itself at both Phoenix and Darlington, the No. 11 team won this won by gambling on pit road with a two-tire stop late that put the car out front to stay. The team also has a handle on this COT stuff -- with 6 top-5s in 8 COT races this season.

3rd gear -- Hendrick's COT program at head of the class: The individual cars of Hamlin and Carl Edwards may look good in COT trim right now, but as an overall organization, Hendrick Motorsports is head and shoulders above the rest of the Nextel Cup garage. At one point near the midway point of the Lenox 300, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon were all running in the top-4 -- with future Hendrick driver Earnhardt second. All had moved through the back half of the top-10 with relative ease, too. With 8 COT races still to go this year, including 4 in the final 10 Chase races, that could be bad news for the rest of the field.

4th gear -- Truex emerges as DEI leader: Martin Truex Jr. won at Dover and had one of the best cars all day long at New Hampshire, too. This team, one that's been kept virtually intact since its Busch Series championship days, seems to be getting the hang of the Nextel Cup racing thing. That's nice to see and, given Earnhardt's imminent departure and Bass Pro Shops signing an extension as the primary sponsor of the his car, Truex is positioning himself as a bona fide No. 1 driver in a multi-car stable.