“Our father was a proud Virginian, so this honor from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources is very humbling,” Sybil Scott, daughter of the late Scott, said. “We believe daddy is with us in spirit, smiling on his friends, peers, family and especially his fans and our mother who are witnessing the fruits of his labor. The historic marker stands tall and today’s representation by local, state and NASCAR officials assure that his struggles against the odds, but more importantly, his accomplishments are undeniable.”

Scott competed in the series now known as the Sprint Cup Series for 13 seasons before retiring in 1973. In 495 races, he posted a win, 20 top-fives and 147 top-10 finishes, racing cars he owned and worked on with his sons. That milestone win came in 1964 in Jacksonville, Fla.

Scott was an accomplished driver in other NASCAR series, as well. In 1959, he was the NASCAR Sportsman Division Virginia champion and the Sportsman Division champion at Southside Speedway in Richmond. He finished third in the Virginia standings in 1957.

Scott passed away in 1990.

“The story of Wendell Scott reminds us all of what gritty determination and eyes-on-the-prize perseverance can accomplish,” Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell said. “I applaud Danville for working with the Commonwealth in recognizing Scott’s singular achievements. I am also grateful to NASCAR for celebrating Scott’s legacy this weekend in Danville and at the Martinsville Speedway, a remaining original NASCAR track, and bringing the story of Scott and Virginia’s motorsports legacy to the nation and racing fans around the world.”

– Photos courtesy of Getty Images for NASCAR

Follow Stock Car Spin on Twitter @SCSblog or like Stock Car Spin on Facebook. Amanda’s also on Twitter @NASCARexaminer and has a fan/like page on Facebook: NASCAR Examiner

“Fortunately, we had control of the race late, and was able to hold off a bunch of guys,” Johnson said in victory lane.

Those guys Johnson held off late in the race included Gordon and Clint Bowyer. Bowyer finished second and Gordon was third. Johnson, Bowyer and Gordon restarted first through third on the final restart of the race with eight laps the go. Those same three drivers restarted first through third on a late-race restart at Martinsville last year, with Johnson and Gordon on the front row on older tires and Bowyer behind them on newer tires. All three wrecked racing for the lead last year.

“Fortunately, we didn’t have any craziness with two tires and no tires there at the end, and the fastest car won the race,” Johnson said of Sunday’s race.

With the lead, Johnson was able to control restarts by choosing his lane, and it paid off. Gordon, meanwhile, was hindered by the fact that those late-race restarts were even necessary, as he had a car that was faster on longer runs.

“We just didn’t need those cautions there at the end,” Gordon said. “On the long run, I felt like we had the best car. We just needed more laps there at the end.”

During a green-flag run of almost 90 laps, Gordon was able to make his way up through the field to as high as second with 55 laps to go, but that’s as close to the lead as he was able to get before the yellow flag waved three times in the final 53 laps.

Despite finishing second, Bowyer never led either. The only drivers other than Johnson to lead multiple laps in race were Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth. Johnson, Busch and Kenseth combined to lead all but two laps. Marcos Ambrose and Travis Kvapil led the other two.

In all, the yellow flag waved 12 times throughout the race, with the final caution resulting in a red flag when Kurt Busch’s No. 78 caught fire after a brake issue and contact with the wall with 15 laps remaining.

“Something happened to the brakes,” Busch said. “They felt spongey in turns three and four.”

Race runner-up Bowyer wasn’t even immune to the action. He was among the nearly dozen drivers who were caught up in a chain reaction incident when Dale Earnhardt Jr. was slow on a restart on lap 180.

“It’s just disappointing. She was just torn up too bad,” Bowyer said of the damage to his car from the incident hindering his shot at the race win.

Kasey Kahne finished fourth, Kyle Busch was fifth, Brad Keselowski sixth, Jamie McMurray seventh, Ambrose eighth, and Greg Biffle ninth. Mark Martin finished 10th, substituting for the injured Denny Hamlin in the No. 11.

– Photo courtesy of Getty Images for NASCAR

Follow Stock Car Spin on Twitter @SCSblog or like Stock Car Spin on Facebook. Amanda’s also on Twitter @NASCARexaminer and has a fan/like page on Facebook: NASCAR Examiner