#10 Valvoline Pontiac driver Johnny Benson and his teammates know they have just ten races remaining in the 2002 Nascar Winston Cup season.

They also know if they bring a car to the rest of the races as fast as the car they brought to Richmond International Raceway Saturday night then the last third of the season could be pretty exciting.

Now if they could just figure a way to avoid penalties and Robby Gordon.

Both of those maladies led to a 35th finish Saturday night despite Benson turning some of the fastest lap times of the evening and running in the top ten all night.

“We had a fast car tonight,” said Benson. “We hurt ourselves and then we got wrecked.”

Benson began Saturday’s race in ninth and never moved far below that position for the first half of the race. A lap 18 scare saw Benson narrowly avoid a multi-car accident and survive contact with Bobby Labonte who was also attempting to avoid the wreck.

By lap 68 Benson used a 15-second stop by the pit crew and climbed to 7th place. By lap 179 Benson was reeling in the top runners in fifth place when the top half of the field made their green flag stops and Benson came to pit road.

The slower cars in the back of the field that had made pit stops during an earlier caution remained on the track hoping for a caution flag that would put them a lap ahead of those who had just pitted.

And they got that caution flag.

Benson along with about 25 cars that were on the lead lap were now on the tail end of the lead lap or down a lap. After a quick pit stop for tires Benson and the team expected to easily regain the lost lap, but a penalty for a tire loose on pit road during the pit stop forced Benson to the tail end of the longest line.

Regaining the lost lap would now be tougher.

“Don’t worry we can get our lap back if we are patient,” counseled Crew Chief James Ince. “You are one of the fastest cars here. We’ll get it back.”

A few cautions enable Benson to be in prime position to regain the lap but on lap 254 Robby Gordon and Benson battled on the track. Gordon nearly wrecked Benson in turn two and accomplished the mission on the front stretch slamming Benson into the outside wall.

The damage to the right front of the Valvoline Pontiac was too great to continue and Benson left Richmond with a 35th-place finish.

“These guys build a rocket ship tonight and if we can keep doing that then only good things are going to happen,” Benson said. “We aren’t giving up. We can still win a few races and end up having a pretty good year.”

Matt Kenseth survived two cut tires and won his fourth race of the season.

Benson and his teammates return to action this weekend in New Hampshire.

Results

1 Matt Kenseth

2 Ryan Newman *

3 Jeff Green

4 Dale Earnhardt Jr.

5 Todd Bodine

6 Mark Martin

7 Ricky Rudd

8 Ward Burton

9 Dave Blaney

10 Jeremy Mayfield

11 Steve Park

12 Mike Wallace

13 Jimmie Johnson *

14 Kenny Wallace

15 Rusty Wallace

16 Bill Elliott

17 Kyle Petty

18 Kevin Harvick

19 Kurt Busch

20 Brett Bodine

21 Ricky Craven

22 Mike Skinner

23 Hermie Sadler

24 Casey Atwood

25 Joe Nemechek

26 Ken Schrader

27 Jerry Nadeau

28 Robby Gordon

29 John Andretti

30 Tony Stewart

31 Dale Jarrett

32 Bobby Labonte

33 Greg Biffle

34 Elliott Sadler

35 Johnny Benson

36 Michael Waltrip

37 Tim Sauter

38 Geoffrey Bodine

39 Jeff Burton

40 Jeff Gordon

41 Terry Labonte

42 Jimmy Spencer

43 Sterling Marlin