Nemechek

HAMPTON, Ga. -- Joe Nemechek made some extra money before he finished second in the NAPA 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday, thanks to a series of pranks by his Hendrick Motorsports crew.

A day earlier, Nemechek lost a chance to win the Busch Series event when he ran out of gas with less than two laps left. When he got to the track before Sunday's Winston Cup race, his crewmen were handing him fistfuls of money, mostly $5 and $1 bills, telling him it was gas money.

Then when got to his car on the starting line, there was another $5 bill taped to the steering wheel.

"You've got to have a comedian in every group," Nemechek said with a smile.

He didn't need much help, running up front most of the day and leading 33 laps. He was in front at the halfway point, and with rain in the area, he had hopes of getting his third career victory. But the inclement weather held off and he had to settle for his best finish of the season.

"I am disappointed," Nemechek said. "But we're coming together."

The No. 25 team hasn't hired a driver yet for next season, and Nemechek is doing all he can to hold on to the ride.

"This is a good start," he quipped.

Johnson's spin

	Johnson

Jimmie Johnson's hopes for the Winston Cup title took a big hit when he spun twice, including an incident on lap 138 when he hit the wall in Turn 3. He recovered to finish a lap down in 22nd and fell 150 points behind leader Tony Stewart.

Johnson was running by himself just before both spins. He also lost it coming off Turn 2 while he was trying to stay ahead of race leader and eventual winner Kurt Busch.

"We had a loose race car and spun out twice," Johnson said. "We brushed the wall on the first one and didn't hit anything the second time, but it's something we didn't need for the big picture.

"The longer we'd go the looser it would get, and I would spin out."

Early exit

	Andretti

John Andretti was the first driver out of the race, crashing on the sixth lap. Since rain interrupted the race shortly after the incident, Andretti was long gone by the time the checkered flag fell.

"Maybe it'll rain out and I'll be home watching," Andretti said before leaving the track. "That's not a good thing, but you've got to look on the bright side."

Andretti lost control of his Dodge in Turn 2 after contact with Jeremy Mayfield. The car slid into the inside wall along the backstretch and sustained heavy damage.

"When he turned, he must have thought he was clear," Andretti said of Mayfield. "He turned me hard enough to turn me sideways on the straightaway. The thing just went straight into the wall."

The crew loaded Andretti's No. 43 on the hauler during the red flag, and after a 15-minute maneuver to back out of the garage, the transporter left the track, too.

Marlin's comeback
Sterling Marlin, out for the past four races with a broken vertebra, might make it back this season. If his doctors agree, he could return for Phoenix in two weeks.

"It's my understanding he's got a checkup next week to see how he's progressing," Ganassi Racing team manager Andy Graves said. "I know he wants to come back bad. Obviously, Sterling is a racer and that's all he's ever done. He wants to get back in the saddle."

Jamie McMurray took over and won at Charlotte, but he's made it clear the No. 40 isn't his ride. The hat McMurray wore this weekend had Marlin's autograph stenciled on it, and the car has Marlin's name on the roof.

Asked why Marlin would get back behind the wheel for just the last three races, Graves said: "He loves to race. It doesn't matter to him if it's for one race this year or two races this year. "He'd race year-round if he could."

Spark plugs