GEM has another solid day, led by Kahne's runner-up

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- Chrysler's proving grounds are in Chelsea, just a few miles from Michigan International Speedway. In Sunday's LifeLock 400, three Dodge drivers from Gillett Evernham Motorsports proved up to the challenge.

Kasey Kahne stretched fuel mileage to finish second behind Dale Earnhardt Jr., Elliott Sadler started 27th and drove his way into the top 10, and Patrick Carpentier had a lead-lap finish evaporate when he crashed at the start/finish line just as the white flag waved.

For Kahne, it was a continuation of his recent success. Coming off wins at Lowe's and last weekend at Pocono, Kahne moved from ninth to seventh in the standings, all because crew chief Kenny Francis packed the No. 9 Dodge full of fuel during a caution period with 45 laps remaining.

"We had a real loose racecar sideways all day, especially in entry and middle exit," Kahne said. "We just tried to keep fixing it and getting the car better and we did at the end of the race. The final run was the best all day, but it was still a 10th- to 12th-place car.

"So Kenny decided to take fuel as late as we could under that last caution. Because of all the green-flag runs all day, we just kept on taking on fuel and trying to save it. I saved [fuel] for 40 or 42 laps and never ran out coming to the pits [after the race]. We had enough to finish if it stayed green. It was just a great finish."

Sadler steadily moved his way into the top 15 by the midway point of the race, then dropped all the way back outside of the top 20 when team director Rodney Childers called for two tires and fuel under green, with the laps winding down. It turned out to be the perfect decision.

"Strategy, that's what it should be about," Sadler said. "That's why crew chiefs make the big bucks. You have to know when to stay out, when to take two or when to get gas only.

"Rodney made a great call. We got two [tires] there, the last stop. That put us up front with track position and it was my job to hold them off. It was a great day."

It was Sadler's third top-10 finish of the season, with the other two coming at Lowe's (eighth) and Daytona (sixth).

Carpentier appeared to be heading for his best finish of the year, running 18th when the field took the green for the final two-lap shootout. But coming to the line for the next-to-last time, Carpentier couldn't avoid a spinning car directly in front of him.

"I hit the brakes and had nowhere to go, so I started to get loose and spun," said Carpentier, who ended up 24th. "We should have finished in the top 20, but that's life. We just don't seem to have any luck these days. We'll just try again next weekend in Sonoma."