| | | | | |  | | CIA Stock Photo | Busch rallied from an early pit road miscue to score his third Sprint Cup win of the season. | | | | TWO OUT OF THREE | Busch wins again | |
| | Jared Turner / SceneDaily.com Kyle Busch wouldn’t win a popularity contest at Darlington Raceway. On Saturday night, it didn’t stop the 23-year-old from winning another race.
In his first outing since being widely chastised by fans for his role in wrecking Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Richmond International Raceway, Busch rallied from an early pit road miscue to score his third Sprint Cup win of the season and second victory in three races.
Busch, who was greeted with a chorus of boos in prerace introductions, battled back after being relegated to 23rd when he was summoned by NASCAR to pit road for a pass-through penalty for a loose lugnut early in the event.
The No. 18 Toyota took the lead for the final time on lap 304 after getting out of the pits in first.
“I just kind of laid back and stayed cool and tried to maneuver my way through traffic the best I could," said Busch, who extended his points lead to 79 over Richard Childress Racing's Jeff Burton.
Roush Fenway Racing’s Carl Edwards placed second followed by Hendrick Motorsports’ Jeff Gordon in third.
Hendrick’s Earnhardt Jr. and Roush Fenway’s David Ragan completed the top five.
The race, which marked the Sprint Cup Series' debut on the newly repaved Darlington surface, appeared to be Greg Biffle's to lose until an apparent carburetor issue ended the Roush Fenway driver’s night on lap 234 after leading seven times for 95 laps.
Biffle, who started from the pole, had cycled back into the lead after coming to pit road with a loose wheel when mechanical problems forced him to exit the event early. He finished 43rd.
“It is really frustrating, but, you know what, I’ve just come accustomed to expecting it because it’s just week after week it’s something,” Biffle said.
Two other Chase contenders - Richard Childress Racing’s Kevin Harvick and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Tony Stewart – had their own share of trouble.
Harvick’s came on lap 147 when he smacked the wall off Turn 2, forcing the No. 29 Chevrolet to the garage for repairs. Stewart’s came on lap 2, when he was crowded up into the wall by Gillett Evernham Motorsports’ Elliott Sadler.
Stewart, who won Friday night’s Nationwide Series event at Darlington, finished 21st on Saturday.
“I just made a huge mistake,” said Sadler, who placed 42nd. “It’s my fault. I apologize to him and all of his fans.”
| | Posted May 11, 2008 , 3:42 am EST
Last Updated May 11, 2008 , 4:07 am EST | | | | | | | | | | |
