Junior Nation can finally take a sigh of relief…

Dale Earnhardt Jr.-

After a 76 race winless streak Dale Earnhardt Jr. finally found his way back to victory lane. The only real surprise here was that it took Jr. so long to get his first win of the year. With Hendrick power under the hood and the chemistry that Tony Eury Jr. and Dale have it was only a matter of time before Dale got it together and finished on top. No fear Junior fans no bashing here just a simple congrats to your driver and a thank goodness he finally did it now we can all move on with life.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports-

It's safe to say that GEM is back with a vengeance. Kasey Kahne and the number 9 team have won 3 of the last 5 races and were contenders for the win in Michigan too but came away with a respectable second after the race ended under caution. Kahne isn't the only GEM driver who is starting to come into their own; Elliott Sadler driver of the number 19 Best Buy Dodge finished a strong 9th this week and has been doing a heck of a job during qualifying the past few weeks. Keep an eye on these guys they will be winning races and I think you'll find Kasey being a strong contender for the Sprint Cup this year.

Matt Kenseth and Brian Vickers-

If you would have asked me a month or so ago if I thought that Kenseth and Vickers would make the chase this year my answer would have been a pretty positive no. But with NASCAR you soon learn that anything can happen a struggling team can turn it around in one week and that's just what these boys are doing. There are 11 races left before the chase and these two are just out of the top 12, with finishes like they both have had the past few weeks it is completely possible that they will both be in the chase this year. Look for Brian Vickers to step it up and finally get a win for team Red Bull very soon.

The Sour:

Greg Biffle-

You know things just never seem to fall into line for Greg Biffle. He seems to always have the car to beat at the beginning and if it's not his car giving out on him it's his crew dropping the ball (or lug nuts…). Anyway another disappointing finish for him this week, I really hope the number 16 can get it together and get Greg a finish that he deserves.

Junior and his questionable "gas saving" measures-

Well it wouldn't be a Junior win with out some sort of drama and drama there was. Here's some background, the race was winding down and all of the leaders were running out of fuel, Sam Hornish Jr. spins off of turn 4 and slides through the grass bringing out caution number 6. Here is where it gets interesting; in Matt Kenseth and Brian Vickers post race interviews they both commented about Dale Jr. passing the pace car during this caution. Everyone knows that's not allowed at least we didn't think it was and Matt Kenseth saw him pass it not by just a little bit but by 10 car links…I don't know I guess I can't really say weather it was wrong or right, NASCAR did warn Junior to stay back but should he have been penalized? Maybe but when you're the prince of NASCAR and your about to win your first of the season NASCAR tends to bend the rules a little…anyway it defiantly ruffled the feathers of some of his fellow drivers…

My Picks for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma:

It's already time for the first road race of the season so look for the crossover drivers like Juan Pablo Montoya, Dario Franchitti, and maybe even Patrick Carpentier to do well this weekend. But my pick is going to be Jeff Gordon, over the past few years it has kind of become his house also keep an eye on Tony Stewart its about time for him to make his late season serge.

Top 12 Chasers as of Michigan: