Several winless Cup Series drivers found themselves toward the front as the laps wound down at The Tricky Triangle, but Kyle Busch once again dashed their hopes.
The biggest problem with toppling the Big 3 is inherent in the number: There are three dominant Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers this year, not just one. Nowhere was that more evident than at Pocono Raceway in the Gander Outdoors 400.
Martin Truex Jr. didn’t have the best car. Kevin Harvick had an excellent car but ran into some misfortune on pit road. None of that mattered, because Kyle Busch was still around, and even with late cautions giving Daniel Suarez, among others, a shot at him, no one could catch the M&M’S car when it mattered most.
Kyle Busch outran his younger teammates, Suarez and Erik Jones, in overtime to sweep the weekend at Pocono Raceway. Driving in his own Kyle Busch Motorsports truck, Rowdy also beat Jones in the Truck Series race on Saturday.
It wasn’t one of the 18 team’s easiest days. Because the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was one of 13 cars to fail post-qualifying inspection, Kyle Busch was sent to the rear of the field, along with original pole-sitter Harvick and some other very fast cars. Early on, it was Harvick who had an easier time making his way through the field, though Chase Elliott took Stage 1, only his second stage win of 2018.
Harvick went from second in the opening stage to first in Stage 2. But he ran into trouble in the pits halfway through the final stage, running into teammate Aric Almirola and damaging both Stewart-Haas Racing Fords enough that they needed to visit the pits several times under caution. Harvick still made a late charge, aided by some late yellow flags.
One of those was thrown for a frightening incident involving Bubba Wallace, who fortunately emerged without serious injury. A subsequent wreck forced an overtime restart, one that saw Suarez run almost as well as Busch through turn 1.
A showdown wasn’t to be, though, as Jones attempted to take the action three-wide, and the loser in that situation was Suarez. Busch set sail on the field, cruising to his sixth win of 2018, tying him with Harvick for the series lead.
The win also tied him with Tony Stewart for career NASCAR Cup Series wins, always a good thing at 13th all-time. But it once again left some drivers who haven’t tasted Victory Lane beverages wondering once again if they’ll ever be able to shake free from the Big 3.
So far this year, the answer has almost always been no.
2018 Gander Outdoors 400 finishing order from Pocono Raceway
- Kyle Busch
- Daniel Suarez
- Alex Bowman
- Kevin Harvick
- Erik Jones
- William Byron
- Chase Elliott
- Ryan Newman
- Kurt Busch
- Denny Hamlin
- Clint Bowyer
- Ryan Blaney
- Austin Dillon
- AJ Allmendinger
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Michael McDowell
- Jimmie Johnson
- Matt Kenseth
- David Ragan
- Jamie McMurray
- Paul Menard
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Kyle Larson
- Ty Dillon
- Aric Almirola
- Joey Logano
- Matt DiBenedetto
- JJ Yeley
- Jeffrey Earnhardt
- Kasey Kahne
- Kyle Weatherman
- Reed Sorensen
- Bubba Wallace
- Landon Cassill
- Ross Chastain
- Timmy Hill
- Chris Buescher
- Brad Keselowski
- Corey LaJoie
- BJ McLeod
More quick facts from Pocono Raceway:
- Kyle Busch won his 49th career Cup Series race in 483 starts.
- Suarez’s second-place finish was the best of his Cup Series career, and his fifth top-10 result of 2018.
- Alex Bowman also had a career-best day by finishing third, as did his Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, who came home sixth.