Busch seals drive for 5 in row at Texas
FORT WORTH, Texas -- Kyle Busch ended a long NASCAR doubleheader by completing an impressive drive for five.
Busch won his fifth consecutive Nationwide race at Texas Motor Speedway on Monday, joining two-time series champion Jack Ingram and Dale Earnhardt Sr. as the only drivers to win five consecutive races in NASCAR's second-tier series at the same track.
Drive For Five
Kyle Busch became the third driver in NASCAR Nationwide Series history to win five straight races at a single track.
Single Track, NNS History |
||
|---|---|---|
| Kyle Busch | Texas | 5 |
| Dale Earnhardt | Daytona | 5 |
| Jack Ingram | South Boston | 5 |
"That's cool," Busch said.
Only about an hour after finishing third in the rain-postponed Sprint Cup race -- 501 miles over 334 laps -- Busch led 153 of the 200 laps in the 300-mile Nationwide race that was originally scheduled for Saturday.
"This makes it a lot easier to get out of the car," Busch said in Victory Lane. "I feel good."
It was Busch's second consecutive Nationwide victory, third this season and 33rd of his career. Only Mark Martin (48) and Kevin Harvick (36) have more career victories.
Busch beat teammate Joey Logano, the polesitter, by 0.688 seconds. Busch's victory provided a doubleheader sweep for Joe Gibbs Racing after Denny Hamlin won the Cup race.
Kyle Busch Fast Facts
• Kyle Busch, who finished third in the Sprint Cup race, won the Nationwide Series race. It was his 33rd career NNS win, and he remains third on the all-time wins list.
• Busch has finished third or better in five of his past six NNS starts (includes three wins).
• Busch led four times for a race-high 153 laps.
• Busch also takes over the points lead from Brad Keselowski. Busch is the defending series champion, but he is not scheduled to run the entire season.
• This is the fifth time Kyle Busch has scored a top-5 finish in two national series races held on the same day.
-- ESPN Stats & Information
It is the first time a team has won Cup and Nationwide races on the same day.
"We're really thrilled," said Gibbs, the former three-time Super Bowl champion coach.
Earnhardt won the season-opening race at Daytona from 1990 to 1994. Ingram, the series' champ in 1982 and 1985, won five times in a row at South Boston Speedway in Virginia from 1985 through 1986.
Since a runner-up finish to Harvick in November 2007, Busch has won every Nationwide race at Texas. He swept both races in 2008 and 2009, and has led 810 of 1,000 laps during his winning streak.
"Once you figure it out here, you have to stick with it. Something clicked in 2007 here, and I've used it ever since," Busch said. "I can't let the secret out of the bag for sure. Joey learned a little bit about it. I told him a little of what I know. Once he pieces the other 20 percent to that, he's going to be hard to beat, too."
Busch led four times, regaining the lead for good with 24 laps left when he drove under Logano on the backstretch only three laps after the final restart.
"Apparently he has this place figured out," Logano said. "I felt like this is the best I've ever been here by far. ... I feel like we gave him a run for his money."
Reed Sorenson finished third, ahead of Brad Keselowski, Harvick, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle and David Reutimann.
The top eight finishers were among 15 drivers who were in both races. Busch, Harvick and Biffle were the only ones to complete all 534 laps Monday.
Busch, the defending series champ, who is not scheduled to run the whole season, took over the Nationwide points lead by 20 over Keselowski. Harvick is 65 behind the lead.
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
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