That makes me... the winner?

By DAVID GREEN

Quickly, now, before the news breaks about NASCAR sentencing Chad Knaus and Steve Letarte to a prison colony on the Planet Mungo and that's all everyone will be talking about, let's hear it for Aric Almirola. You remember Aric, the guy who won his first career victory in NASCAR's big leagues -- sort of -- Saturday night at Milwaukee.

In what has to be the weirdest development in racing in some time, Almirola won the pole in place of the absent Denny Hamlin and then, when Hamlin was late arriving from Sonoma for the race, he started the car and led the field to the green flag.

Things were going just great for the young driver -- and then, Hamlin arrived.

Incredibly, the Gibbs Racing team called Almirola in for a driver switch. Even more incredibly, after falling a lap down during the lengthy pit stop, Hamlin roared back to win. To win a victory that won't even be credited to him. A victory that will be credited to Aric Almirola.

This must be some new strategy for motivating young drivers. Sounds like something a consultant cooked up and sold to Joe Gibbs.

As Dr. Phil might say, "How's that working for you, Aric?"

The cliche is that you never forget your first victory. I'll bet Aric would like to forget his -- no, check that. He'd like to remember it. All 250 laps of it.

Oh, well. NASCAR continues to change. Guess we'll have to add a statistical category for "saves" and credit Denny with the first one.