Busch overcomes early woes to dominate Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 presented by Westgate Resorts
Twice in his Hall of Fame career, Kyle Busch has swept a NASCAR triple-header weekend – both times at Bristol Motor Speedway. His attempt at a third weekend three-peat, this time at his home track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, was anything but easy. The veteran driver had to overcome a series of early troubles on pit road and near misses on the track to win the Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 presented by Westgate Resorts.
“It’s a lot of fun to run in the truck series; I appreciate that,” Busch said following the 63rd NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win of his career. “It’s an honor to come out here with my own team – Kyle Busch Motorsports. Whole new group and still winning. It’s fun.”
After starting on the pole, Busch found himself shuffled back in the field after an early caution. With his pit crew stuck in traffic on the way to the track, the 37-year-old driver leaned on a replacement crew for his first stop of the night. A loose wheel forced Busch back down pit road, putting his quest for a sweep in jeopardy.
But the savvy wheelman, who was eventually reunited with his over-the-wall crew, powered his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports entry back to the front early in Stage 3.
After six cautions (including stage breaks) for 27 laps in the opening two stages, the final 74 laps ran caution free. Busch, who led 84 circuits of the 134-lap race, pulled away to a 4.981-second victory over Zane Smith.
“There was a couple of dicey moments in traffic, but not too bad. I would have loved to have raced with Zane. They kind of got off strategy where we were able to cycle up. If we would have been able to race it out, it would have been a hell of a show. All in all, a good night. You gotta win the first one to win all three, right?”
Ben Rhodes, Corey Heim and Ty Majeski rounded out the Top 5.
The victory marks Busch’s fourth CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win at Las Vegas and the 18th different season in which he’s captured at least one win in the series, including each of the last 11 years.
Busch’s next hurdle en route to a potential weekend sweep comes in Saturday’s Alsco Uniforms 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race, where he’ll start in 11th position.
