LONG POND, Pa. — Kyle Busch saved his best for last in Saturday’s CRC Brakleen 150 at Pocono Raceway.
The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion chased down NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series point leader Corey Heim on the final lap, making the race-winning move in the Tunnel Turn (turn two) at the 2.5-mile track.
“A great ride. Obviously, this [Chevrolet] Silvarado today was really really fast, just mired in traffic,” Busch said. “Couldn’t find a way to make a clean move so had to make a little bit of a racey one, a little bit of a dicey one there at the end getting into two. Heim ran a great race. We just needed this hundredth win to get it over with.
“Really proud of the guys and everybody at KBM,’’ he said, adding, “It’s a monumental day, a century mark of being able to win a hundred truck races. We’re a small team, just one that performs in the Truck Series.’’
For Busch it was the 64th of his career in the Craftsman Truck Series, along with the 100th for Kyle Busch Motorsports.
Heim wheeled his No. 11 Tricon Garage Toyota to second, leaving the 21-year-old frustrated about leaving Pocono empty handed.
“It seemed like our truck just got a little tight at the end there,” Heim said. “I feel like after four or five laps, really just didn’t get the run in (turn) one and (turn) two down the short chute there into the Tunnel Turn. He (Busch) had some serious straightaway speed today. He obviously is one of the greats, he got a good run.
“I didn’t expect him to be able to drive it as deep into the Tunnel as he was, because I drove it just as deep and ended up in the wall because of it. Just got a lot of respect for Kyle. He’s always raced me with a lot of respect and he’s a hard racer. That’s part of it. I would’ve done the same thing. Just got a lot of respect for him.”
Taylor Gray finished behind teammate Heim in third, followed by Cup Series regular Christopher Bell and Grant Enfinger.
“I just needed a little more front grip through (turn) three, but by biggest issue was just being a little too tight,” Gray said. “I can’t thank my guys enough for bringing me a really fast JBL Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. I’m going to go back and work on myself, watch some more film and keep getting better.”
What Else Went Down
• Nick Sanchez started the day from the pole alongside Jake Garcia. An early caution flag was displayed on lap four, when Tanner Gray got loose in turn one, spinning and hitting the inside wall hard.
• On the ensuing restart, Zane Smith took the lead, eventually scoring the Stage One victory. Smith took the Stage Two win as well after pit stops cycled through.
• A lap-52 restart saw calamity ensue when Carson Hocevar got loose from eighth, spinning up the track into Kaz Grala. The chain reaction sent Grala into Parker Kligerman, along with Stewart Friesen, Austin Hill, early leader Zane Smith and Ross Chastain all receiving damage.
“I don’t really know who wrecked in front of me,” Smith said after the accident. “It was obviously just a matter of time with those weapons, but it’s just unfortunate. I got hit right into it and it just caught on fire. Our First Gold Ford was really fast. We won both stages, so fortunately we had that.
“It’s just a bummer we got put back there with those guys where we don’t belong.”
• With fluid spewing on the track, the race would be red flagged for 13 minutes on lap 53.
• The final restart came with five laps to go with Heim shooting out to the lead. Though Busch would make his move on the final lap, locking up the win.