July 13, 2019 | By Lee Spencer

Kurt Busch comes out on top of sibling rivalry in Kentucky

For once, the racing gods smiled on Kurt Busch.

After being denied one week ago at Daytona International Speedway, the NASCAR champion got a lucky break with a late race caution in the Quaker State 400—and made the most of the opportunity.

When the race went into overtime, Busch came from fourth on the restart and took his brother Kyle and Erik Jones three-wide. The sibling rivalry ensued over the final two laps—with Busch bouncing off of the wall and his brother—but the driver of the No. 1 Monster Energy Chevrolet stayed in the gas all the way to the checkered flag for his 31st Cup career win.

“It's awesome,” said Busch, who took a celebratory lap with his crew. “Just to get back to Victory Lane for the first time with a new team means the world to me. But with all these guys, there's so many that got their first win tonight, and they put me in position. A fast car, we had lap time, and we got a nice lucky break to get a shot at it with that yellow at the end. 

“It takes teamwork all the way through, and thanks to Chevrolet, Monster Energy. These guys are winners, I couldn't be more proud of them.”

Busch held a .076-second advantage over Kyle at the line. Jones, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, Joey Logano, pole winner Daniel Suarez, Ryan Newman and Chris Buescher rounded out the top 10.

“I'm glad it was a thriller,” Kyle Busch said. “Just unfortunately we were on the wrong end of the deal for everybody at M&M's and Toyota—all the folks that get us to where we're at. 

“But congratulations to Kurt and Chip and Monster and all the guys over there. It's obviously cool to put on great races and great finishes, and been a part of a lot of them and not very many—in fact none with my brother like that, so that was a first. You know, no hard feelings, and we move on.

It was a night of firsts for the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing team at Kentucky Speedway. The first win for Kurt Busch at Chip Ganassi Racing. The first career win for crew chief Matt McCall. And the first Cup win for Chevy in the Blue Grass State.

Busch started the night fourth—the top Chevy in the field. He led for the first time on Lap 52 when the team opted for a fuel only pit stop during the first caution after Chase Elliott had a flat tire. He held the point throughout the remainder of the segment for his first stage win of the season on Lap 80.

After pit stops on Lap 83, Busch, who took four tires, restarted 16th after the cars of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Bowyer, Austin Dillon, Newman, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman and Ty Dillon remained on the track. By Lap 100, Busch was back in the top 10. He finished second in Stage 2 behind his brother who picked up his sixth stage win of 2019.

McCall elected not to pit after Stage 2 and Busch restarted second next to Clint Bowyer. William Byron and Aric Almirola passed Busch on the restart, and he ended up racing Kyle for fourth but retained the position when the sixth caution was called for Jimmie Johnson spinning off of Turn 2 while running seventh.

Bowyer remained in the lead with Byron second, but the No. 24 jumped the start on Lap 185 and was penalized with a drive-thru penalty for a restart violation. Byron’s departure setup a battle between the Nos. 14 and 1. Although Busch had the faster car, Bowyer continued to side draft the No. 1 Chevy and Busch was unable to make the pass.

When Bowyer pitted on Lap 206, Busch took the lead again. Busch pitted from the lead on Lap 213 and turned over the point to his brother. Kyle Busch and Logano pitted on Lap 226 and turned over the lead to Hamlin. Hamlin pitted four laps later giving Newman the lead. The No. 6 Roush Fenway Ford held the point for 15 laps—until he ran out of fuel on Lap 246.

Suarez, who started from the pole and was three laps down following a pit road penalty, cycled out to the front. Logano passed Kyle Busch for second on Lap 247. When Suarez pitted on the next lap, Logano appeared primed to sail off to the win. He had a second-and-a-half lead over the No. 18 when a right front tire blew on the No. 43 Chevy of Bubba Wallace to trigger the seventh and final caution on Lap 261 to extend the race.

“The caution came out at the wrong time,” Logano said. “It happens. You try to think through your notebook on how to have a good restart. I thought I was going to have a decent one but I got stopped on the left rear there when Kyle (Busch) got into me. That is what it is. That stopped all my momentum. The 1 had a huge run and I didn’t have anywhere to go. I couldn’t block them all.

“I tried to stop the 18 on his right rear by side-drafting. I saw the 1 coming and felt like if I could get in front of him that we were so low at the time if I blocked the 1 he would just go to the middle and pass me. I felt like I couldn’t stop the 1. I was in a bad spot. Once I got stopped on the left rear on the restart I was a sitting duck and they just went by me on both sides.”

Busch took the high lane around Logano and made contact with the No. 18 Toyota down the stretch.

“My little brother gave me just enough room,” Busch said. “It was like, ‘You gonna lift? I ain't gonna lift. You gonna lift? I ain't gonna lift.’

“And we had a duel. We had a duel going down through 3 and 4, and I didn't know who was going to come out on top.”

Busch held on to score the “W” and secure his position in the Playoffs for the seventh consecutive season. The 40-year-old driver has won in 16 of his 19 seasons on the tour with four different Cup teams.

“This is the first win for this group of guys and I’m really proud of them,” Busch said. “The way that we came together really had speed. We just weren’t completing all the steps that it took to be a winner in the Monster Energy Cup Series. And now we’re all winners.”