Kyle Busch wins second Pocono Cup race
Kyle Busch scored his second win of the season Sunday with his car stuck in fourth gear almost the entire race. The No. 18 driver might not have had a functional clutch at the end of 140 laps, but he had just enough fuel to outpace the field.
The final 20 laps of the Explore the Pocono Mountains 350 race in Long Pond, Pa., were all about fuel strategy with multiple teams trying to stretch their supply. Busch was sitting in sixth place with the best car on fuel mileage at that point, while
William Byron was told to save from second place.
It was a question of whether Byron could make it, and if not, who could – Denny Hamlin? Kurt Busch?
Byron assumed the lead with eight laps to go when
Brad Keselowski pitted from first. A few laps later, Byron was in the pits and Hamlin was up to first place with just two laps left. Hamlin was eyeing his first win of the season, but again fell short as his fuel dwindled. He headed
to pit road while his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate headed into his white flag lap and then across the finish line in first. Kyle Larson finished second.
“Great job to my team,” Busch said on NBCSN, thanking No. 18 crew chief Ben Beshore.
“Thanks to Matt, the fuel guy, for getting it full. That’s a big important one today. Really great to take home another checkered flag.”
Beshore after the race described how the transmission issue made restarts difficult. The team attempted unsuccessfully to send a crew member
into Busch’s car at the end of the second stage to attempt to pry the shifter from high gear. It didn’t work, and the car needed a push from crew members to get back on track. Busch pitted before the final restart and the team added fuel, hoping the race stayed green, while other teams tried to stretch their tank.
The victory for Busch snapped Hendrick Motorsports’ six-win streak after Alex Bowman took the checkered flag at the same track in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Busch finished second in that race. On Sunday, he earned his fourth career win at Pocono and his
59th career win in the Cup Series. While Busch credited his team for the win, Beshore pointed to the driver.
“Any time you go to Pocono with Kyle Busch, you’ve got a shot,” Beshore said.
ELSEWHERE
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen has won half of the races this Formula One season.
And if that wasn’t worrying enough for his rivals, his car keeps getting faster and faster.
The championship leader dominated the Styrian Grand Prix on Sunday in Spielberg, Austria, to win back-to-back races for the first time in his career.
Leading from start to finish, it was “super nice to drive,” the Dutchman said. “I could keep my pace consistent to the end. The balance of the car was the best so far this season.”
Verstappen has won three of the last four races, and only a tire issue when leading in Azerbaijan prevented him from making it four.