NNS Recap: Brad Keselowski out duels Denny Hamlin for NNS win at Texas

 

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

FORT WORTH, Tex. -- Brad Keselowski dominated early and retook the lead late to win Saturday's O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway.

Keselowski led 106 of 200 laps in the 31st NASCAR Nationwide Series race of the season, propelling his No. 22 Penske Racing Ford to a decisive advantage in the owners' standings.

Passing runner-up Denny Hamlin with 14 laps left, Keselowski pulled away to win by .980 seconds. The victory was Keselowski's sixth of the season, his first at Texas and the 26th of his career. Four different drivers have combined to win 12 times in the No. 22 Ford.

Penske teammate Sam Hornish Jr. recovered from a commitment violation (hitting the commitment cone on Lap 53) to finish third. Hornish trimmed two points off series leader and fifth-place finisher Austin Dillon's advantage and trails by six points with two races left in the season.

Matt Kenseth came home fourth, but Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch blew a right rear tire and crashed off Turn 4 on Lap 110. Busch finished 26th and saw the four-point advantage of his No. 54 Toyota entering the race turned to a 26-point deficit to the No. 22 in the battle for the owners' championship.

Keselowski will drive the car next week, and Joey Logano in the NASCAR Nationwide season finale at Homestead. To Keselowski, the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide driver champion, securing the owners' title for team owner Roger Penske is a piece of unfinished business.

The victory also was redemption of sorts for Keselowski's last NASCAR Nationwide start, at Kansas, where he wrecked off Busch's front bumper during intense racing between the two drivers.

"I dug us a hole there at Kansas, obviously, with getting tangled up there, and we lost some points," Keselowski said. "So it's great to recover from that hole and grow a little bit of a lead, but two races is a long ways left, and (26) points is better than nothing, but it's certainly not a guarantee of anything as well…

"But it's about Roger. It's about getting him something he hasn't done, and I take a lot of pride in that."

Hamlin grabbed the lead during a cycle of green-flag pit stops before the third caution of the afternoon, caused by Joe Nemechek's spin off Turn 2 after a tap from Trevor Bayne, slowed the race on Lap 171.

In tight racing after the subsequent Lap 177 restart, Hamlin held off Keselowski for the top spot, but one lap later, Travis Pastrana spun at the exit of Turn 2 and nosed into the inside backstretch wall, necessitating the fourth yellow flag.

Keselowski and Hamlin battled side by side for three laps before Keselowski ducked to the inside of the No. 20 Toyota and completed the decisive pass.

Hornish lost a lap serving a drive-through penalty for the commitment violation, but astute strategy put him in position to take a wave-around under caution for a restart on Lap 76. The caution for Busch's accident on Lap 110 allowed Hornish to pit without losing a lap, and subsequently he charged to his third-place finishing spot.

"It's one of those things," Hornish said of the early mishap. "You wear the tires here, and the track doesn't have a whole lot of grip. Pit road comes up pretty quick, and I got a little locked up as soon as I got on the brakes and did everything I could do to try to get it whoaed up and had a choice of hitting the cone or the back of the 54 car. I figured the cone would hurt the front of my car a lot less.

"It was a great recovery by everyone that works on the Wurth Ford Mustang, and we did what we needed to do today. We got ourselves back up there in position to run for the win and over-tightened the car by the time we got to that point. Hats off to everyone at Penske Racing, and it is good to see our teammate go to Victory Lane."

NASCAR Nationwide Series Race - O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge

Texas Motor Speedway

Fort Worth, Texas

Saturday, November 02, 2013

               1. (2) Brad Keselowski(i), Ford, 200, $69615.

               2. (18) Denny Hamlin(i), Toyota, 200, $54350.

               3. (3) Sam Hornish Jr., Ford, 200, $44450.

               4. (13) Matt Kenseth(i), Toyota, 200, $31550.

               5. (5) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 200, $37525.

               6. (8) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 200, $27925.

               7. (19) Elliott Sadler, Toyota, 200, $26210.

               8. (9) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, 200, $25150.

               9. (16) Kyle Larson #, Chevrolet, 200, $25025.

               10. (11) Brad Sweet, Chevrolet, 200, $24075.

               11. (4) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 200, $22300.

               12. (10) Ty Dillon(i), Chevrolet, 200, $21750.

               13. (14) Parker Kligerman, Toyota, 200, $21225.

               14. (21) Michael Annett, Ford, 200, $20800.

               15. (17) Nelson Piquet Jr. #, Chevrolet, 200, $21550.

               16. (23) Kevin Swindell #, Ford, 200, $20450.

               17. (7) Ricky Stenhouse Jr.(i), Ford, 199, $15525.

               18. (1) Alex Bowman #, Toyota, 199, $23600.

               19. (15) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 199, $20075.

               20. (12) Cole Whitt, Toyota, 198, $20625.

               21. (25) David Starr(i), Chevrolet, 198, $19825.

               22. (26) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 198, $19700.

               23. (20) Mike Bliss, Toyota, 198, $19550.

               24. (27) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 197, $19425.

               25. (30) Mike Wallace, Chevrolet, 197, $19750.

               26. (6) Kyle Busch(i), Toyota, 196, $13150.

               27. (34) Jeff Green, Toyota, 196, $19025.

               28. (38) Robert Richardson Jr., Chevrolet, 195, $18900.

               29. (35) Bryan Silas(i), Ford, 194, $18825.

               30. (37) Joey Gase, Toyota, 190, $13075.

               31. (39) Travis Pastrana, Ford, Accident, 175, $18725.

               32. (36) TJ Bell, Chevrolet, 170, $18680.

               33. (28) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, Accident, 166, $18635.

               34. (31) Carl Long, Dodge, Electrical, 105, $18590.

               35. (29) Ryan Ellis, Toyota, Vibration, 87, $18522.

               36. (33) Blake Koch, Toyota, Handling, 79, $11650.

               37. (22) Johanna Long, Chevrolet, Clutch, 49, $17615.

               38. (32) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, Electrical, 6, $11561.

               39. (40) Dexter Stacey, Ford, Suspension, 5, $11445.

               40. (24) Michael McDowell(i), Toyota, Vibration, 4, $11405.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  144.52 mph.

Time of Race:  2 Hrs, 04 Mins, 33 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.980 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  4 for 19 laps.

Lead Changes:  15 among 6 drivers.

Lap Leaders:   A. Bowman # 1-3; S. Hornish Jr. 4-5; B. Keselowski(i) 6-52; A. Dillon 53-54; B. Keselowski(i) 55-80; D. Hamlin(i) 81-94; M. Kenseth(i) 95-111; D. Hamlin(i) 112-130; M. Kenseth(i) 131-155; B. Keselowski(i) 156-170; D. Hamlin(i) 171-176; B. Keselowski(i) 177-178; D. Hamlin(i) 179-182; B. Keselowski(i) 183; D. Hamlin(i) 184-185; B. Keselowski(i) 186-200.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  B. Keselowski(i) 6 times for 106 laps; D. Hamlin(i) 5 times for 45 laps; M. Kenseth(i) 2 times for 42 laps; A. Bowman # 1 time for 3 laps; S. Hornish Jr. 1 time for 2 laps; A. Dillon 1 time for 2 laps.

Top 10 in Points: A. Dillon - 1,107; S. Hornish Jr. - 1,101; R. Smith - 1,053; E. Sadler - 1,026; J. Allgaier - 1,022; B. Scott - 1,010; T. Bayne - 1,009; B. Vickers - 970; K. Larson # - 945; P. Kligerman - 924.

-

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. wins at Chicagoland, assumes Nationwide points lead

Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR

  
Sept. 15, 2012 (EDITORS: Updates with quotes, results)

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

JOLIET, Ill. -- It was a statement victory for defending NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who won Saturday’s Dollar General 300 Powered by Coca-Cola at Chicagoland Speedway and simultaneously wrested the series lead from Elliott Sadler.

The victory was Stenhouse’s fifth of the season and the seventh of his career. He crossed the finish line 2.402 seconds ahead of Kyle Busch, who fell one spot short of posting his first victory in the Nationwide car he owns.

Austin Dillon ran third, followed by Brad Keselowski and Paul Menard. Sadler finished eighth and fell from the top spot in the standings after holding it for a total of 21 weeks in two different stretches this season, including the last 14. With seven races left, Stenhouse leads Sadler by nine points.

Stenhouse’s No. 6 Ford came to life over the final 29-lap green-flag run, giving team owner Jack Roush his first victory at the 1.5-mile track in any of NASCAR’s top three touring series. In winning the race, Stenhouse overcame two mistakes: stalling the car on pit road and an adjustment that adversely affected the handling.

Stenhouse, however, was cautious in claiming the upper hand toward a second straight title.

“The last four races, I think, we’ve finished second, first, second and first, so I think we’ve got good momentum,” Stenhouse said. “But in this business, in this sport, anything can change at any time. You’ve got to keep your guard up, and you’ve got to keep not making mistakes.

“We’re very fortunate that we overcame the mistakes that we had today, both on pit road -- a wrong adjustment and a stalled car. We overcame that today, and that’s what we need to keep doing. But as we keep going, we’ve got to make sure we don’t make those mistakes. I feel like the 2 car (Sadler) is not done winning, and I don’t feel like we’re done winning either. We’re just going to have to stay on our ‘A’ game.” 

Ninth-place finisher and polesitter Joey Logano took the lead under caution on Lap 124 for Benny Gordon’s accident in Turn 3. Logano beat Dillon off pit road by six inches and led the field to a restart.

Stenhouse lost seven spots when his car stalled in the pits and took the green flag in the 11th position but gradually worked his way back through the field. By the time the race reached Lap 150, Stenhouse had passed Sadler for the third position.

Busch grabbed the top spot shortly after the restart on Lap 130 and pulled away to a lead of 1.5 seconds as Logano faded. Busch, Dillon and Stenhouse staged a three-car breakaway during that green-flag run, but a caution for Jason Bowles’ spin in Turn 3 on Lap 167 shuffled the running order.

With a 12.5-second stop for four tires and fuel, Sadler was first off pit road on Lap 168 and led Busch to a restart on Lap 172. Busch quickly reassumed the lead while Sadler dropped back to sixth by Lap 177. 

Stenhouse, however, moved past Busch on Lap 180 and quickly established an advantage of more than a second.

The racing action aside, the real drama surrounded the Richard Childress Racing teams of Dillon and Sadler. Though he has been in or near the championship lead for the entire season, Sadler announced recently that he will leave RCR at the end of the season.

As Sadler and Dillon raced hard in traffic, Dillon’s crew chief, Danny Stockman, radioed to Dillon, “You will not help the 2 car tonight.” Dillon is third in points, 34 behind Stenhouse and still a contender for the championship, but the emphatic nature of Stockman’s admonition was surprising. 

“We were just racing hard for the championship right there,” Dillon said. “We were racing hard by Sam (Hornish Jr.), or whoever it was, and the 2 went with the other guy when we could have used a push. That’s all it is, racing hard for a championship…

“Everybody’s worked up about it, RCR as a group working for a championship. We’re both wanting to win. We had to beat the 6 (Stenhouse), so we couldn’t help each other at all today. Did it hurt us? Not much, because the 6 was that much faster. It’s just racing hard. I don’t know what else to say--just part of the game, I guess.”

After the race, Sadler was mystified.

“I don’t know what that means, ‘Do not help the 2,’” he said when told of the exchange between Stockman and Dillon. “We share really good notes, and we always have, so I don’t know.”

RACE RESULTS

  1. (3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 200, $92143.
  2. (6) Kyle Busch(i), Toyota, 200, $54750.
  3. (2) Austin Dillon #, Chevrolet, 200, $55093.
  4. (16) Brad Keselowski(i), Dodge, 200, $31265.
  5. (7) Paul Menard(i), Chevrolet, 200, $27790.
  6. (4) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 200, $31408.
  7. (8) Michael Annett, Ford, 200, $29608.
  8. (5) Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, 200, $28958.
  9. (1) Joey Logano(i), Toyota, 200, $29950.
10. (42) Brian Scott, Toyota, 200, $31083.
11. (10) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 200, $26258.
12. (12) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 200, $25508.
13. (9) Mike Bliss, Toyota, 200, $24958.
14. (13) Cole Whitt #, Chevrolet, 200, $24448.
15. (18) Brad Sweet #, Chevrolet, 199, $24488.
16. (25) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 199, $24178.
17. (20) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 199, $23493.
18. (19) Tayler Malsam, Toyota, 198, $23233.
19. (21) Mike Wallace, Chevrolet, 198, $23223.
20. (11) Kenny Wallace, Toyota, 196, $23488.
21. (17) Johanna Long #, Chevrolet, 196, $22703.
22. (34) Erik Darnell, Chevrolet, 195, $22593.
23. (22) Jamie Dick, Chevrolet, 195, $15990.
24. (24) Dexter Stacey, Ford, 194, $22343.
25. (30) Eric McClure, Toyota, 194, $22683.
26. (37) Juan Carlos Blum, Chevrolet, 193, $22098.
27. (35) Danny Efland, Chevrolet, 192, $21988.
28. (15) Jason Bowles #, Toyota, Engine, 153, $21868.
29. (14) Benny Gordon, Toyota, Suspension, 122, $21718.
30. (31) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, Oil Leak, 68, $21908.
31. (27) Jeff Green, Toyota, Vibration, 30, $15005.
32. (39) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Engine, 30, $14895.
33. (36) Timmy Hill, Ford, Vibration, 28, $14785.
34. (38) Tony Raines(i), Chevrolet, Electrical, 26, $14675.
35. (40) Joey Gase #, Chevrolet, Handling, 23, $14565.
36. (29) Blake Koch, Toyota, Vibration, 19, $14455.
37. (33) Scott Riggs(i), Chevrolet, Ignition, 19, $14335.
38. (32) Matt Carter, Chevrolet, Rear Gear, 15, $14275.
39. (41) Mike Harmon, Chevrolet, Overheating, 12, $13940.
40. (28) JJ Yeley, Chevrolet, Vibration, 11, $13830.
41. (23) Josh Wise(i), Chevrolet, Electrical, 10, $13725.
42. (26) Chase Miller, Chevrolet, Overheating, 9, $13520.
43. (43) Tim Andrews, Ford, Ignition, 9, $13413.

RACE STATISTICS

Average Speed of Race Winner:  138.373 mph.
Time of Race:  2 Hrs, 10 Mins, 05 Secs. Margin of Victory:  2.402 Seconds.
Caution Flags:  5 for 20 laps.
Lead Changes:  17 among 9 drivers.
Lap Leaders:   J. Logano(i) 1-7; S. Hornish Jr. 8; J. Logano(i) 9-59; A. Dillon # 60; K. Busch(i) 61-62; A. Dillon # 63; K. Busch(i) 64-69; A. Dillon # 70-95; R. Stenhouse Jr. 96; M. Annett 97; J. Allgaier 98-100; J. Nemechek 101; A. Dillon # 102-125; J. Logano(i) 126-134; K. Busch(i) 135-168; E. Sadler 169-171; K. Busch(i) 172-179; R. Stenhouse Jr. 180-200.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  J. Logano(i) 3 times for 67 laps; A. Dillon # 4 times for 52 laps; K. Busch(i) 4 times for 50 laps; R. Stenhouse Jr. 2 times for 22 laps; J. Allgaier 1 time for 3 laps; E. Sadler 1 time for 3 laps; M. Annett 1 time for 1 lap; J. Nemechek 1 time for 1 lap; S. Hornish Jr. 1 time for 1 lap.
Top 10 in Points: R. Stenhouse Jr. - 982; E. Sadler - 973; A. Dillon # - 948; S. Hornish Jr. - 925; J. Allgaier - 875; M. Annett - 837; C. Whitt # - 767; M. Bliss - 722; J. Nemechek - 634; B. Scott - 633.

--30--

 

Last-lap surge propels Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to Nationwide win at Atlanta

 
Credit: Wesley Hitt/Getty Images for NASCAR

Sept. 1, 2012

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

HAMPTON, Ga. -- There's an arrest warrant out for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -- or perhaps there should be -- after the defending NASCAR Nationwide Series champion stole Saturday night's NRA American Warrior 300 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Indeed, Kevin Harvick left the 1.54-mile track feeling robbed -- but not by Stenhouse, who grabbed the lead from Harvick on the final lap, after a restart with three laps remaining, but by race runner-up Brad Keselowski.

In an awkward post-race press conference with the protagonists seated side-by-side, Harvick accused Keselowski of highway robbery for throwing a water bottle out of his car late in the race. Harvick, who saw the replay of the water bottle toss on the Sprint Vision screen as he circled the track under caution, believed that was the cause of the seventh caution, which allowed Keselowski and Justin Allgaier to pit for fresh tires.

It was contact between the cars of Danica Patrick and James Buescher, however, that ignited a four-car wreck on Lap 188 that caused the eighth and final caution and gave Stenhouse the chance to win.

"Heck, yeah, we stole it," Stenhouse said. "We've had a few stolen from us. You go out and get as many as you can, any way you can. It was good, hard, clean racing. I'm glad we could put on a show for the fans, because it really wasn't a show up to that point."

Keselowski, on fresh tires, passed Harvick for the second spot after Stenhouse grabbed the lead. Harvick ran third, followed by Elliott Sadler and Allgaier.

Though it was Stenhouse who prevailed on the track, it was Keselowski's water bottle that stuck in Harvick's craw.

"It's pretty obvious," said Harvick, who had confronted Keselowski on pit road after the race. "They put it on TV and showed when the caution came out on the same lap. . . . He told me it was intentional, so it is what it is."

Turning to Keselowski, Harvick added, "Sleep good tonight."

Keselowski said throwing a water bottle from the car is nothing unusual and that many drivers follow the same practice. Keselowski also disagreed with Harvick on the timing of the incident.

"It went out of my car 15 to 20 laps before the yellow came out," Keselowski asserted. "I guess that's why I was caught off guard with the comment that the water bottle caused the yellow.

"Everybody throws water bottles out of the car. . . . That's how racing works. If you go around the infield at these tracks, I'm sure after the race you'll find 20 water bottles."

NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said that a piece of aluminum in Turn 1 was the cause of the caution. He added that the jettisoning of water bottles is a common practice with some drivers.

"We don't think it's out of hand," Pemberton said.

An ESPN spokesperson said the network had taped the water bottle toss earlier and showed it during the caution as a possible cause of the yellow, a set of facts which supports Keselowski's version of events.

Perhaps a portion of Harvick's frustration can be attributed to his failure to win the race with the fastest car, one that led 157 of 195 laps before Stenhouse grabbed the lead on the final circuit. Before the last restart, Harvick appeared to have the race in hand, having opened an advantage that exceeded 16 seconds at one point.

Emblematic of Harvick's dominance was a restart on Lap 127. Travis Pastrana had stayed out under caution for Eric McClure's brush with the Turn 2 wall and led the first six laps of his Nationwide career under yellow.

Under green? Another matter. Pastrana led the field to the restart, but before the field cleared Turn 2, Harvick had powered from fifth to first, as Stenhouse tried in vain to keep pace.

Harvick lost the lead briefly during a cycle of green-flag pit stops late in the race, but he was back in front for a restart on Lap 188, after NASCAR called the seventh caution of the night -- the source of the controversy between Harvick and Keselowski -- on Lap 182 for the debris in Turn 1.

Stenhouse narrowed Sadler's lead in the Nationwide standings to 12 points, as the same two drivers who battled for last year's title have begun to separate themselves from their pursuers. Sam Hornish Jr. finished ninth Saturday and is third in points, 32 behind Sadler.

RACE RESULTS

 1.  (2) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 195, $63,793.
 2.  (8) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 195, $29,200.
 3.  (3) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 195, $28,575.
 4.  (7) Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, 195, $27,743.
 5. (13) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 195, $27,768.
 6.  (9) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 195, $23,368.
 7.  (1) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 195, $19,210.
 8. (12) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 195, $21,238.
 9.  (6) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 195, $20,818.
10. (14) Michael Annett, Ford, 195, $21,168.
11. (15) Brian Scott, Toyota, 193, $19,393.
12.  (5) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 193, $12,875.
13. (17) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 193, $18,318.
14. (18) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 193, $17,768.
15. (25) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 191, $18,768.
16. (20) Jason Bowles, Toyota, 191, $17,518.
17. (27) Mike Wallace, Chevrolet, 191, $17,443.
18. (38) Tayler Malsam, Toyota, 189, $17,343.
19. (36) Danny Efland, Chevrolet, 187, $17,268.
20. (28) Erik Darnell, Chevrolet, 187, $17,668.
21. (30) Eric McClure, Toyota, 187, $17,268.
22. (10) Mike Bliss, Toyota, Accident, 186, $17,018.
23. (23) James Buescher, Chevrolet, Accident, 185, $16,943.
24. (35) Benny Gordon, Toyota, 184, $16,868.
25. (24) Kyle Fowler, Ford, Accident, 183, $17,293.
26. (16) Travis Pastrana, Toyota, 173, $16,768.
27. (19) David Starr, Chevrolet, Engine, 130, $10,250.
28.  (4) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, Accident, 128, $10,425.
29. (40) Tony Raines, Chevrolet, Brakes, 105, $16,593.
30. (26) Matt Carter, Ford, Ignition, 101, $16,793.
31. (41) Robert Richardson Jr., Chevrolet, Accident, 68, $16,438.
32. (11) Reed Sorenson, Ford, Accident, 63, $9,910.
33. (33) Timmy Hill, Ford, Electrical, 42, $9,875.
34. (37) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Handling, 35, $9,840.
35. (21) Jeff Green, Toyota, Vibration, 25, $9,810.
36. (22) Blake Koch, Chevrolet, Ignition, 14, $9,750.
37. (42) Fain Skinner, Ford, Engine, 8, $9,715.
38. (31) Chase Miller, Chevrolet, Vibration, 7, $9,661.
39. (39) Mike Harmon, Chevrolet, Overheating, 6, $9,545.
40. (29) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, Electrical, 5, $9,480.
41. (32) Carl Long, Chevrolet, Fuel Pressure, 4, $9,415.
42. (34) JJ Yeley, Chevrolet, Overheating, 3, $9,365.
43. (43) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, Accident, 2, $9,286.

RACE STATISTICS

   Average Speed of Race Winner: 117.880 mph.
   Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 32 Mins, 51 Secs.
   Margin of Victory: 0.157 Seconds.
   Caution Flags: 8 for 43 laps.
   Lead Changes: 9 among 6 drivers.
   Lap Leaders: K. Busch 1-2; R. Stenhouse Jr. 3-17; K. Harvick 18-49; S. Hornish Jr. 50; K. Harvick 51-120; T. Pastrana 121-126; K. Harvick 127-170; J. Allgaier 171-183; K. Harvick 184-194; R. Stenhouse Jr. 195;.
   Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): K. Harvick 4 times for 157 laps; R. Stenhouse Jr. 2 times for 16 laps; J. Allgaier 1 time for 13 laps; T. Pastrana 1 time for 6 laps; K. Busch 1 time for 2 laps; S. Hornish Jr. 1 time for 1 lap.
   Top 10 in Points: E. Sadler - 904; R. Stenhouse Jr. - 892; S. Hornish Jr. - 872; A. Dillon - 867; J. Allgaier - 810; M. Annett - 760; C. Whitt - 707; M. Bliss - 662; B. Scott - 583; D. Patrick - 570.

Joey Logano survives two-lap dash for Nationwide win at Bristol

Credit: Tyler Barrick/Getty Images

  Joey Logano survives two-lap dash for Nationwide win at Bristol

Aug. 24, 2012

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- Passing Kevin Harvick for the lead on Lap 216 of 250, Joey Logano held on to win Friday night's Food City 250 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, notching his series-best sixth victory of the season.

Logano, who posted his 15th career win and his first at the .533-mile short track, outran runner-up Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and crossed the finish line .503 seconds ahead of the defending series champion.

Kyle Busch ran third, followed by Austin Dillon and Nationwide points leader Elliott Sadler, who was pushed aside by Stenhouse after a restart on Lap 249 and lost three positions over the final two laps.

"It's about time," said Logano. "I think we've led the most laps in this race about three or four times, and we've never been here in Victory Lane. This is one of the coolest race tracks you can win at. It means a lot to be up here."

Logano, who led a race-high 81 laps, had no issues once he made the decisive pass. The drama happened behind him, between Stenhouse and Sadler.

Those two protagonists battled for the championship last year, with Stenhouse prevailing, but Friday's incident may change the tenor of the campaign this season. Sadler leaves Bristol with a 19-point lead over second-place Stenhouse.

"I feel bad getting into Elliott -- that's not what you want to do racing for a championship," said Stenhouse, who conceded he could have given Sadler more room.

To Sadler, however, the contact was a game-changer.

"He said he didn't mean to hit us," Sadler said, "I told him I'd always been careful around him last year and this year, because we've always raced each other with a lot of respect. I'm glad he didn't wreck us. He pushed us out of the way, but it could have been ugly -- not the finish we deserved tonight.

"He just opened it up to where we can race each other a lot differently the last 10 races."

Harvick took the lead for the first time on Lap 118 with a two-tire stop under the sixth caution, for Fain Skinner's spin off Turn 2. On left-side tires that were mounted on his Chevrolet on Lap 47, Harvick kept Logano in his mirror until Benny Gordon's spin in Turn 4 on Lap 171 caused the seventh yellow.

Logano, on fresher rubber, harried Harvick after the ensuing restart on Lap 181, but it took Logano 35 more laps to make the winning pass. Ultimately, Logano used the lapped car of Jeremy Clements as a pick, trapped Harvick to the outside and sailed past in the low groove.

When John Wes Townley's Toyota slammed into the Turn 4 wall on Lap 225, Harvick had to give up the second position and pit for fuel, dropping the No. 33 from contention.

With eight laps left, Dillon's Chevrolet collided with the Ford of pole-sitter Trevor Bayne, causing the ninth and final caution of the race. That set up the two-lap dash to the finish, with Logano clearing Sadler through the first two corners.

Despite a penalty for speeding while exiting pit road under caution on Lap 175, Danica Patrick worked her way up to a ninth-place from the 34th starting position.

RACE RESULTS

 1.  (2) Joey Logano, Toyota, 250, $43,675.
 2.  (5) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 250, $48,218.
 3. (10) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 250, $26,625.
 4.  (4) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 250, $32,093.
 5.  (7) Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, 250, $27,718.
 6. (19) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 250, $29,018.
 7. (12) Ryan Blaney, Chevrolet, 250, $18,710.
 8. (18) Michael Annett, Ford, 250, $25,038.
 9. (34) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 250, $24,818.
10.  (9) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 250, $25,418.
11. (16) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 250, $24,643.
12. (23) Tayler Malsam, Toyota, 250, $24,218.
13. (14) Mike Bliss, Toyota, 250, $24,118.
14. (15) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 250, $17,585.
15. (13) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 250, $20,915.
16.  (1) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 250, $20,905.
17. (33) Mike Wallace, Chevrolet, 247, $23,928.
18. (26) Jason Bowles, Dodge, 247, $23,883.
19. (27) Josh Richards, Ford, 247, $23,848.
20. (30) Kevin Lepage, Ford, 247, $18,015.
21. (11) Nelson Piquet Jr, Chevrolet, 246, $23,743.
22. (38) Benny Gordon, Toyota, 246, $23,698.
23. (20) John Wes Townley, Toyota, 246, $23,638.
24. (42) Robert Richardson Jr., Chevrolet, 246, $23,603.
25. (28) Timmy Hill, Chevrolet, 245, $17,350.
26. (41) Brad Teague, Chevrolet, 245, $23,678.
27. (39) Eric McClure, Toyota, 244, $23,418.
28. (36) Fain Skinner, Ford, 244, $23,348.
29. (29) Johanna Long, Chevrolet, 244, $23,313.
30.  (6) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 242, $23,568.
31. (32) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 239, $16,760.
32.  (8) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 226, $16,690.
33. (21) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 213, $23,138.
34.  (3) Brian Scott, Toyota, Clutch, 198, $23,118.
35. (22) Erik Darnell, Chevrolet, Electrical, 173, $23,103.
36. (40) Rick Crawford, Chevrolet, Overheating, 55, $16,615.
37. (43) Carl Long, Chevrolet, Oil Pressure, 27, $16,595.
38. (25) Scott Riggs, Chevrolet, Electrical, 20, $16,556.
39. (37) David Starr, Chevrolet, Engine, 19, $16,455.
40. (24) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, Electrical, 14, $16,430.
41. (35) Tim Andrews, Ford, Brakes, 11, $16,405.
42. (17) Jeff Green, Toyota, Vibration, 6, $16,375.
43. (31) Chase Miller, Chevrolet, Ignition, 2, $16,330.

RACE STATISTICS

   Average Speed of Race Winner: 76.556 mph.
   Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 44 Mins, 26 Secs.
   Margin of Victory: 0.503 Seconds.
   Caution Flags: 9 for 59 laps.
   Lead Changes: 7 among 4 drivers.
   Lap Leaders: J. Logano 1-35; E. Sadler 36-46; R. Stenhouse Jr. 47-105; J. Logano 106-116; R. Stenhouse Jr. 117; K. Harvick 118-215; J. Logano 216-250.
   Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): K. Harvick 1 time for 98 laps; J. Logano 3 times for 81 laps; R. Stenhouse Jr. 2 times for 60 laps; E. Sadler 1 time for 11 laps.
   Top 10 in Points: E. Sadler - 864; R. Stenhouse Jr. - 845; S. Hornish Jr. - 836; A. Dillon - 829; J. Allgaier - 770; M. Annett - 726; C. Whitt - 671; M. Bliss - 640; B. Scott - 550; D. Patrick - 539.

--30--

Austin Dillon roars to first Nationwide win at Kentucky, nabs points lead

June 29, 2012

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

SPARTA, Ky. -- In his 26th NASCAR Nationwide Series start -- in his first full season in the series -- pole-sitter Austin Dillon administered an emphatic, definitive, no-doubt-about-it beating to 42 also-rans in Friday night's Feed the Children 300 at Kentucky Speedway.

How decisive was Dillon's first Nationwide victory? Consider this:

Dillon led 192 of 200 laps, most ever by a Nationwide race winner at the 1.5-mile track.

He beat runner-up Kurt Busch to the finish line by 9.828 seconds.

Dillon and seven other drivers finished on the lead lap, despite a mass wave-around for a restart on Lap 150 after the second caution of the race.

When that caution interrupted a series of green-flag pit stops, after Dillon had built a lead of more than seven seconds, he simply ran away from the field after the restart.

Just after the halfway point, on Lap 106, Dillon put Elliott Sadler, the series leader entering the race, a lap down. With his dominating win, Dillon wrested the points lead from Sadler and carries a two-point cushion to Daytona, site of a July 6 Nationwide race.

And, oh, by the way: Kevin Harvick, Michael Annett and Justin Allgaier completed the top five. For Annett, it was his first top-five finish in 120 Nationwide starts.

"I was loose the whole race," said Dillon, grandson of team owner Richard Childress. "I'd just get looser and looser, and I was really driving as straight as I could not to slip the tires. I just kind of back-steered the whole race.

"That last adjustment, he (crew chief Danny Stockman) got me tight enough to fire off (the corners) really good. We knew Kurt was good, but our car was just stronger."

The car Dillon drove was a black No. 3 Chevrolet, reminiscent of the car Dale Earnhardt Sr. drove for Childress until his death in the 2001 Daytona 500.

"Dale would have been proud," an emotional Childress said after the race.

Busch thought he would be able to gain ground on Dillon during the final green-flag run, but it didn't work out that way.

"Austin Dillon, he was in his own zip code," Busch said. "So congratulations to him, Richard Childress, those guys. It's neat to see that kid develop. I thought we could battle with him. I expected to lose some ground to him early in the run. I expected he would be quicker than us for 20 laps.

"I thought that we would level out after 10 more, and I thought we could reel him in with 20 to go and put on a show for the fans here in Kentucky -- and he was just too strong tonight. . . . He just had that car dialed in. There was nothing that we could do."

In fact, Busch got as close as 4.1 seconds behind during the final 51-lap run, but he dropped a cylinder in the closing laps and fell back but held second place.

RACE RESULTS

1. (1) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 200, $97,068.

2. (8) Kurt Busch, Toyota, 200, $51,825.

3. (2) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 200, $36,275.

4. (9) Michael Annett, Ford, 200, $33,993.

5. (7) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 200, $29,943.

6. (4) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 200, $26,168.

7. (3) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 200, $18,325.

8. (5) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 200, $25,468.

9. (12) Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, 199, $22,543.

10. (13) James Buescher, Chevrolet, 199, $23,193.

11. (26) Kenny Wallace, Toyota, 198, $21,468.

12. (11) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 198, $20,943.

13. (25) Reed Sorenson, Ford, 198, $13,925.

14. (10) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 198, $19,868.

15. (14) Ryan Blaney, Chevrolet, 198, $14,150.

16. (20) Brad Sweet, Chevrolet, 198, $19,418.

17. (17) Mike Bliss, Toyota, 197, $19,293.

18. (24) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, 197, $19,143.

19. (42) Johanna Long, Chevrolet, 196, $19,018.

20. (18) Josh Richards, Ford, 196, $13,100.

21. (21) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 196, $18,968.

22. (19) Jason Bowles, Toyota, 195, $18,643.

23. (33) Tayler Malsam, Toyota, 195, $18,493.

24. (16) Jamie Dick, Chevrolet, 195, $18,343.

25. (35) Erik Darnell, Chevrolet, 193, $18,343.

26. (40) Eric McClure, Toyota, 193, $18,398.

27. (37) TJ Bell, Chevrolet, 192, $11,475.

28. (23) Tanner Berryhill, Toyota, 192, $11,355.

29. (41) Jamie Mosley, Chevrolet, 182, $17,688.

30. (15) Brian Scott, Toyota, Engine, 176, $17,878.

31. (34) Mike Wallace, Chevrolet, Accident, 143, $17,468.

32. (30) Timmy Hill, Ford, Rear Gear, 141, $17,358.

33. (6) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, Engine, 132, $10,785.

34. (27) Danny Efland, Chevrolet, Ignition, 103, $17,143.

35. (36) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Fuel Pressure, 48, $10,560.

36. (39) Kevin Lepage, Chevrolet, Wheel Bearing, 32, $10,525.

37. (29) Scott Riggs, Chevrolet, Ignition, 11, $10,475.

38. (32) Tim Andrews, Ford, Rear Gear, 10, $10,431.

39. (31) Chase Miller, Chevrolet, Ignition, 6, $10,295.

40. (38) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, Vibration, 5, $10,210.

41. (43) Blake Koch, Chevrolet, Engine, 5, $10,150.

42. (28) Jeff Green, Toyota, Vibration, 4, $10,120.

43. (22) Scott Speed, Chevrolet, Engine, 2, $10,053.

RACE STATISTICS

Average Speed of Race Winner: 151.643 mph.

Time of Race: 1 Hrs, 58 Mins, 42 Secs.

Margin of Victory: 9.828 Seconds.

Caution Flags: 2 for 12 laps.

Lead Changes: 7 among 4 drivers.

Lap Leaders: A. Dillon 1-81; R. Stenhouse Jr. 82; M. Annett 83; J. Allgaier 84-86; A. Dillon 87-141; M. Annett 142-143; J. Allgaier 144; A. Dillon 145-200.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): A. Dillon 3 times for 192 laps; J. Allgaier 2 times for 4 laps; M. Annett 2 times for 3 laps; R. Stenhouse Jr. 1 time for 1 lap.

Top 10 in Points: A. Dillon - 554; E. Sadler - 552; R. Stenhouse Jr. - 531; S. Hornish Jr. - 521; J. Allgaier - 481; C. Whitt - 472; M. Annett - 455; M. Bliss - 391; D. Patrick - 369; B. Scott – 353.