NASCAR
Kyle Busch’s 5th Win of 2018 Comes in Amazing Last-Lap Battle with Kyle Larson at Chicagoland
From beginning to end, the Overton’s 400 from Chicagoland Speedway may have been the most dramatic race in 2018. On a day where all 4 Stewart-Haas Racing cars were looking as strong as ever, Kyle Busch used pit strategy to get out front late. Then came some late race drama, as Kyle Larson was able to close a 3 second lead to be ahead on the last lap. Contact multiple times between the 18 and 42 saw the elder Kyle win his 5th race of 2018, while the younger Larson was in 2nd place again.
Up-and-Down Opening Stages For Ford Racing
Qualifying Surprise for Paul Menard, Wood Brothers Racing
After winning his first pole in 10 years, many thought Paul Menard would be a contender for a strong finish today. Win number 100 would not happen for Wood Brothers Racing at Chicagoland, as Menard would fail to lead any laps. Paul would eventually bring the 21 car home in 13th place.
Career Day for Aric Almirola
The opening 80 lap stage saw several different drivers lead, as pit strategy took shape for the first run. After starting 2nd, Ryan Blaney would lead early in the Penske 12 car. Clint Bowyer would then lead up until his first pit stop on lap 38. Staying out longer than everyone else saw RCR teammates Austin Dillon and Ryan Newman lead the field as well. In the end of the Stage however, it was all Aric Almirola, as the 10 car had speed reminiscent of his SHR teammates. Stage 1 at Chicago did not have a single caution flag. This is similar to other races so far this year. This would also be the first career stage win for Almirola, as he led 23 laps to this point.
Major Mistake Leads to Impressive Recovery for Clint Bowyer
When he made his first pit stop, the day took a major blow for Clint Bowyer, as he had a pit road speeding penalty. The issue got even worse from there for the 14 team. Bowyer was speeding again while serving his initial penalty. On pit road while serving the 2nd penalty, Clint then failed to stop during a stop-and-go infraction. This would see Clint lose 2 laps to the leader, as the day appeared to be over for Bowyer.
However, Bowyer’s day would be redeemed by a debris caution on lap 129. Bowyer would be the wave around on this caution, and get back on the lead lap. Even though he led laps early on, Bowyer would recover from multiple pit speeding penalties to finish 5th.
Last Lap Drama for Stage 2
Much like the opening segment, Stage 2 at Chicagoland was dominated by Stewart-Haas Racing drivers. Kevin Harvick would pass Aric Almirola for the lead on lap 123. Surprisingly, Almirola recovered and caught the 4 car, passing him again in just 6 laps. Almirola looked to be on his way to sweeping both stages with one of the fastest cars. However, a loose wheel forced the 10 car to pit road on lap 141. Almirola lost a lap, going all the way back to 26th place. But Aric would gain his lap back under the stage break.
After Aric made his way to pit road, teammate Kurt Busch inherited the lead, with Harvick several seconds back. On the last lap of Stage 2, Harvick made a daring last-lap move to pass Kurt Busch on the high side. Kurt was less than happy to finish 2nd in the stage, since he is trying to gain as many Playoff points as possible to race for the championship.
Last Stage Has Lapped Traffic Influence Fight for the Win
The remainder of the race’s final stage would only be halted twice by yellow flags. Denny Hamlin spun exiting turn 2 on lap 178. Corey LaJoie would then hit the turn 2 wall on lap 209. Even with a lack of restarts, the last stage was defined by battles among some of the strongest drivers in the sport. Kevin Harvick was the class of the field for much of the day, but a 2-tire call put Kyle Busch out front on lap 209. Harvick was chasing down the 18, but was unable to pass him.
Kyle Larson, who had a very up-and-down day, was able to pass Harvick for the runner-up spot with just over 20 to go. From there, Larson was the quickest car on track as he made up a major deficit to leader Kyle Busch. Lapped traffic would be a major factor in slowing Busch’s progress, especially when the 18 had to pass Ryan Newman.
Last Lap Contact Between Busch and Larson
With 3 laps remaining, Busch caught several lapped down cars who were racing side-by-side for position. This allowed Larson to close in, as Busch did everything possible to avoid wrecking. Coming to the white flag, the 18 and 42 were nose-to-tail. Larson would attempt a slide job on Busch going into turn 1 on the last lap, but washed up into the 18. The 18 was pushed up into the turn 2 wall, and lost all of his momentum.
Larson appeared to be pulling away down the back stretch, but the contact was far from over. Going into turn 3, Busch closed up to Larson quickly, and drove into the back of him. This sent the 42 spinning and the 18 into the outside wall. Busch was able to get to the line first to win the race. Miraculously, Larson saved his spinning car and was able to finish 2nd to Busch.
Respect Maintained Among Busch and Larson
Chicagoland was far from the first time Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson have raced hard for a win. To many people’s surprise, Larson was not mad at Busch for dumping him in the final corner. Instead Larson knew that he had “opened the door for (Busch) to retaliate into 3,” due to their contact in turn 1. “I love racing Kyle, we had a blast, and that’s got to be one of the best NASCAR finishes of all time,” said Larson.
How Chicagoland Changes the Playoff Picture
With his last lap win at Chicagoland, Kyle Busch now has 5 wins in 2018. This is tied with Kevin Harvick for the most in the Cup Series. Busch now also has 30 Playoff points, compared to Harvick’s 27. The 3rd man in the ‘Big 3’ drivers in 2018, Martin Truex Jr., also had a solid performance at Chicago, finishing 4th. In the points standings, Busch also leads Harvick by 62 points. Only 9 races now remain until the NASCAR Playoffs.
The top 10 finishers from Chicagoland were Busch, Larson, Harvick, Truex, Bowyer, Erik Jones, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, and Alex Bowman.
How to Watch the Next Race
As if Chicagoland wasn’t crazy enough, up next will be the Cup Series’ return to Daytona. The Coke Zero Sugar 400 is always an intense battle, as the drama of plate racing combined with pressure to win before the Playoffs has everyone on the edge. Daytona will mark the halfway point of the 2018 NASCAR season, with only 8 races left until the Playoffs. Be sure to catch every lap of the Daytona summer action this Saturday night at 7 PM EST. Coverage will be on NBCSN, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
