June 27, 2021 | By Lee Spencer

Kyle Busch breaks Hendrick stranglehold with Pocono win

Kyle Busch didn’t know whether he could go the distance at Pocono Raceway on Sunday.

And unlike his fellow competitors, Busch’s issues had more to do with a faulty transmission than running out of fuel in the Explore the Pocono Mountains 350. Despite clutch issues over the final 100 laps, Busch soldiered on to his second win of the season and his fourth victory at the Tricky Triangle.

But the celebration was a bit anticlimactic. After taking his bow and quick post-race interview, Busch needed a tow truck to push him to Victory Lane.

“We got it, oh yeah,” Busch exclaimed as he realized Denny Hamlin had run out of gas and the No. 18 Toyota had the win in hand.

“Sometimes you have to have a little luck on your side and today we had luck on our side. Pretty cool to win up here at Pocono.”

Kyle Larson, who started from the rear after going to a back-up car and received nose damage after running into Hamlin in the first stage, recovered with a second-place finish. With Hamlin finishing 14th, Larson has moved to within two points of the lead in the standings. 

“It's a surprising finish for us,” said Larson following his seventh finish of second or better in the last eight races. “Our HendrickCars.com Chevy was really loose for a majority of the race, then we got a lot of nose damage there on one of the restarts. Was off on speed. I felt like after that.

“Cliff and everybody did a really, really good job managing the race, coached me through saving fuel there at the end. Was hoping that the 18 (Busch) was going to run out. I saw the 11 running out. I was, Okay, they're teammates, they got to be close to running out. The 18 did pit a lap after us under caution. That actually probably won them the race. But, yeah, second-place finish, I thought we would be outside of the top 20. A lot of points throughout the race today; we'll take it. Happy about the effort for sure all weekend.”

Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Bubba Wallace rounded out the top five. For Wallace and 23XI racing, it was the organization’s first top-five finish.

Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Ryan Preece, Tyler Reddick and Joey Logano rounded out the top 10. After winning the first stage, Martin Truex Jr. finished 11th.

Kyle Busch’s transmission woes manifested at the start of Stage 2 on Lap 36. While teams used a variety of strategies throughout the race, he was able to take the lead for the first time on Lap 46. His 30 laps led were second only to Keselowski’s 31 circuits at the point.

Busch led 28 laps before coming in for service on Lap 74—with his shifter stuck in fourth gear. The crew had to push the No. 18 Toyota off of pit road to get restarted and started formulating a plan to fix the problem.

Wallace assumed the lead for three laps before turning the point over to William Byron, who went on to win Stage 2. Byron remained on the track during the caution while Busch’s crew worked in earnest to fix his transmission. He returned to the pits multiple times for repairs—to no avail. Busch made a mad dash to regain the field—and remain on the lead lap—when the race returned to green on Lap 91. Three laps later, NASCAR called the fourth caution for debris with Christopher Bell in the lead. Busch topped off for fuel and went into conservation mode.

On the final restart, Bowman shot out to lead on Lap 97 and held serve for 18 laps. Ross Chastain made contact will Bell, who developed a right-rear tire run. On the next lap, Chase Elliott clipped Bell entering Turn 3. Both drivers pitted with tire issues on Lap 99 and fell out of contention.

The final 40 laps consisted of fuel conservation—and chicken among the leaders. Kurt Busch and Hamlin were both told they could go the distance. Byron was on the fence if he could save enough fuel. Harvick pitted from second on Lap 112. Three laps later, Bowman pitted from the lead and opted for two tires. Reddick topped off on Lap 118.

On Lap 120, Keselowski was in command with Byron, Kurt Busch, Hamlin, Larson, Kyle Busch, Wallace and Preece in tow. Keselowski punted on Lap 132 and turned the lead over to Byron.

“We ran a really good race but just didn’t have enough fuel to make it to the end like those other guys did,” Keselowski said. “They beat us on power and fuel mileage. We have a lot of work to do to keep up with those guys.

“I am really proud of (crew chief) Jeremy Bullins and the team. They had the setup really well and it put us in position and we ran a great race today and maximized our day.”

Byron was told, “Wait till the fuel bubbles then flip the switch.” But by the time he received that command, the driver reported low fuel pressure and was forced to pit which gave the lead to Hamlin on Lap 138.

But it didn’t last. “We’re out,” Hamlin said as the lead turned over to Busch on the last lap. 

Busch's victory ended a six-race winning streak for Hendrick Motorsports.

“Just saving, just riding, playing the strategy the best we could with what was given to us,” Busch said after his 59th career win. “Just can't say enough about everybody on my team, everybody at Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota, TRD, all the work they're putting in. Sometimes these races aren't always won by the fastest car, but I felt we had the fastest car.

“Even though we were in the back and behind and having to come through and persevere through being stuck in fourth gear, no clutch, all that stuff. It's all burned out. Nothing left in this M&M's Minis Camry.

“It was awesome today. Thanks to everybody that works on this car. Thanks to Rowdy Nation, all the Kyle Busch fans up there supporting and pulling for us. Really great to pull off another win here at Pocono. Feels good.”