Kurt Busch outduels little brother to win at Kentucky

The win clinches a spot in the playoffs

SPARTA, Ky. — Kurt Busch did everything possible to get the upper hand on his little brother in a door-to-door overtime battle at Kentucky Speedway.

Busch was the victor in a Saturday night showdown between the brothers that gave him his first victory with Chip Ganassi Racing and a spot in the playoffs.

“My little brother gave me just enough room. It was like ‘You gonna lift? I ain’t gonna lift. You gonna lift? I ain’t gonna lift.’ And we had a duel,” Busch said. “We had a duel going down through (turns) 3 and 4, and I didn’t know who was going to come out on top.” Kyle Busch settled for second after a dramatic ending in which the brothers banged their cars and both nearly lost control as they hurtled toward the checkered flag.

“I’m glad it was a thriller, just unfortunately we were on the wrong end of the deal,” Kyle Busch said. “It’s obviously cool to put on great races and great finishes, and been a part of a lot of them ... none with my brother like that, so that was a first.

“You know, no hard feelings, and we move on.”

The showdown came a week after Kurt Busch lost at Daytona because he pitted from the lead moments before weather stopped the race. That pit call haunted Busch and his crew chief all week, but a late call for four tires gave the No. 1 team a shot at redemption.

Joey Logano had the victory in hand until a spin by Bubba Wallace with six laps remaining sent the race into overtime.

Logano and Kyle Busch lined up side-by-side on the restart for what was expect