The first caution is out in the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 following an accident involving Cole Whitt, Carl Edwards, and Joey Logano.
Whitt's Chevrolet received a nudge from the Ford of Casey Mears, getting Whitt out of shape. He then went down across Mears' nose, and hooked the right-rear of Edwards. Both Whitt and Edwards slammed the outside wall, and Logano was collected as Whitt's car slid across the race track. Amazingly enough, considering the incident occurred in the middle of a large pack, they were the only three drivers involved in the wreck.
Logano's right front damage is not all that significant, but Edwards made heavy right-rear contact with the wall and limped to pit road. Whitt has climbed from his demolished Chevrolet uninjured.
Kyle Busch had the lead when the yellow came out. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver, coming off a dominant performance in Dover that turned into a disappointing seventh-place finish and left the driver enraged with his Toyota engine, is looking to repeat the feat of Dale Jarrett, Brian Vickers, Jamie McMurray, and Clint Bowyer. The trio all won the Talladega event despite not being a part of the Chase for the Sprint Cup title.
There have been a variety of strategies among the drivers. Some - such as Busch, Bowyer, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Trevor Bayne, have opted to run up front and try to lead the race. Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, and Tony Stewart are among the drivers who dropped to the tail end of the field, looking to avoid being wrapped up in a melee like the one that has ruined the days of Edwards and Whitt.