Kyle Busch takes a hit, then wins
Wreck in Cup car will hurt chances after truck victory.
Kyle Busch’s trip to victory lane Saturday took some of the sting out of a wreck that will compromise his NASCAR Sprint Cup race chances today.
Busch passed Ryan Blaney’s Ford with four laps remaining and won the Truck Series race at Michigan International Speedway. The victory came after he wrecked his Cup car during a morning practice, and then was penalized on lap 27 of the 100-lap truck race for speeding on pit road.
After being sent to the rear, Busch made it all the way back in his Toyota and battled Blaney the final few laps before edging him by .157 seconds and getting his 44th career win in the series. He has won both of his truck starts this year.
Now Busch will have to start at the back in today’s 400-mile Sprint Cup race on the 2-mile oval at Brooklyn, Mich., because Saturday’s wreck forced him into a backup Toyota. He was sixth in qualifying Friday. But in practice he slid onto the grass after coming through a turn and heavily damaged the front of the car.
“Everything was fine and I was actually feeling pretty good about it,” Busch said. “Just started to get a little free up off of (turn) 4.”
Busch has won four times this year, but he’s only 30th in points because he missed the first 11 Cup races after breaking his right leg and left foot during an Xfinity Series race in February at Daytona. He needs to be in the top 30 at the end of the regular season to make the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup, and he’s six points ahead of 31st-place Cole Whitt.
So he needs to avoid major mistakes during the last four races of the regular season.
“If top-20 is it, then that’s it,” Busch said of today’s outlook. “Michigan is not a place that I had circled on the list to go win at, so let’s just make it through and carry on.”
Busch also made clear he isn’t a fan of grass at racetracks. At Daytona he crashed into the infield wall after careening through the grass, and the track has since begun removing grass and putting up more shock-absorbing barriers.
“I think at all these racetracks we need more grass,” Busch said with sarcasm. “I think we should have more grass and it should be taller.”
Smith wins Xfinity race:
Regan Smith bumped his way past Alex Tagliani a turn from the finish to win the 75-lap NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by .766 seconds. Smith, in a Chevrolet, raced to his first victory of the season.
Tagliani’s Ford was the stronger car on the 2.258mile road course, until the leaders pitted a final time on lap 43 during the fifth of a track-record eight cautions. Smith took over the lead in the pits.
Tagliani caught Smith on lap 61, but couldn’t hold him off on the last turn.