Kyle Busch held off his teammate, Joey Logano, by .019 of a second - the closest margin of victory at Bristol Motor Speedway - for a record breaking 50th career victory in that series.
Busch had built up a big lead, before a late race caution, and appeared to be on cruise control. He pitted giving up the lead briefly. Then he wrestled the lead from Logano and it was game on. There was some bumping as the teammates battled side-by-side over the final ten laps.
“I don’t know where Joey came from, but he had a rocket ship there at the end,” said Busch. “I just kept getting a little bit looser and a little bit looser the more we ran there.
"Had to protect the bottom there a little bit and we just kept rolling the bottom because he wanted it. I thought that maybe the top was going to win the thing and I was just trying to pinch him down a little bit. He used me up right here through (turns) three and four."
The crowd at the half-mile oval, sometimes called the Concrete Coliseum, roared at the battle of the teammates. “The fans loved, I’m sure they wanted to see him win too. Anyone but Kyle,” Busch added, acidly.
He led four times for 186 laps and Busch’s 50th Nationwide victory broke the tie with Mark Martin for that record. And it was the 14th time the teammates finished one-two.
Logano, who took the lead before lap 200 when Busch pitted, smiled through his disappointment in coming so close for win.
“I was going to do everything I could but wreck my teammate (on the last lap). "Man I wish I was going to victory lane. My car was unbelievable I knew I had one shot at it. It was just a little short.”
Busch echoed that thought: "Certainly it would have been a lot uglier if it had not been a teammate (at the end). Joey did what he needed to do to win."
Clint Bowyer, who finished third, pitted on the same lap as Busch but failed to get a good restart.
Ricky Stenhouse, who finished 11th, is the series points leader with a five point margin over Elliott Sadler and 10 points over Reed Sorenson with nine races remaining.
Busch had built up a big lead, before a late race caution, and appeared to be on cruise control. He pitted giving up the lead briefly. Then he wrestled the lead from Logano and it was game on. There was some bumping as the teammates battled side-by-side over the final ten laps.
“I don’t know where Joey came from, but he had a rocket ship there at the end,” said Busch. “I just kept getting a little bit looser and a little bit looser the more we ran there.
"Had to protect the bottom there a little bit and we just kept rolling the bottom because he wanted it. I thought that maybe the top was going to win the thing and I was just trying to pinch him down a little bit. He used me up right here through (turns) three and four."
The crowd at the half-mile oval, sometimes called the Concrete Coliseum, roared at the battle of the teammates. “The fans loved, I’m sure they wanted to see him win too. Anyone but Kyle,” Busch added, acidly.
He led four times for 186 laps and Busch’s 50th Nationwide victory broke the tie with Mark Martin for that record. And it was the 14th time the teammates finished one-two.
Logano, who took the lead before lap 200 when Busch pitted, smiled through his disappointment in coming so close for win.
“I was going to do everything I could but wreck my teammate (on the last lap). "Man I wish I was going to victory lane. My car was unbelievable I knew I had one shot at it. It was just a little short.”
Busch echoed that thought: "Certainly it would have been a lot uglier if it had not been a teammate (at the end). Joey did what he needed to do to win."
Clint Bowyer, who finished third, pitted on the same lap as Busch but failed to get a good restart.
Ricky Stenhouse, who finished 11th, is the series points leader with a five point margin over Elliott Sadler and 10 points over Reed Sorenson with nine races remaining.