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Austin Dillon entered the race eight points ahead of Sam Hornish Jr., but Hornish was starting on the pole for the fourth time of the year while Dillon was back in eleventh. The race went green and Hornish all ready had the advantage over Dillon as he came around to lead the first lap. The laps began to click by early and Sam Hornish Jr. continued to hold the lead as Dillon started to fall back. Hornish would hold the lead for most of the first run before Kyle Larson passed him on lap 39 for the lead. Hornish began to fall a few positions before the first caution waved on lap 47. Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2. Travis Pastrana received the lucky dog. All the lead lap drivers came to pit road for four tires with Kyle Busch coming out as the leader. The race went back green and the field immediately fanned out three and four wide. Busch held the lead after a short battle with Matt Kenseth. Kenseth would not be denied the lead long as he took it from Busch on lap 54. The race would only go a couple of laps after this before the second caution waved on lap 56. Corey LaJoie made slight contact with Kevin Swindell exiting turn 4. LaJoie drifted down the track and pointed towards the inside wall. He slowed the car down enough to barely make contact with the inside wall. He drove away and continued after his team did some work in the garage. Jeff Green received the lucky dog. A little bit of strategy occurred during the caution. Austin Dillon, Trevor Bayne, and others came down pit road for some fuel while the rest of the leaders stayed on track. Dillon, who was deep in the field anyway while Hornish continued to run well and hold the points lead, felt he needed some more work done. It would be interesting to see if his team could get the car right enough to contend for the win and take the championship home.
The race went back green and Kyle Busch took the lead from Matt Kenseth after a short battle. Busch would not hold the lead long before Brad Keselowski took it away on lap 66. Just as Keselowski took the lead, the third caution of the race waved on lap 66. Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2. Mike Wallace received the lucky dog. Another bit of strategy occurred during the caution. Ryan Reed, Travis Pastrana, and others at the back of the field pitted while the leaders stayed out. The race went back green and Brad Keselowski held the lead after a battle with Kyle Busch. Keselowski would not hold the lead long as his teammate, Joey Logano, took the lead on lap 83. Logano, who was in control of the #22 leading the owner's points, had the advantage over Kyle Busch for the title at the moment. Logano held the lead until the fourth caution waved on lap 93. Debris was spotted in turn 3 of the track. Jeremy Clements received the lucky dog. All the lead lap drivers came to pit road for four tires with Joey Logano coming out as the leader. Austin Dillon still sat deep in traffic with Sam Hornish Jr. running up front with some other contenders. It would be interesting to see if Dillon could make the championship battle competitive once again.
The race went back green and Kyle Busch took the lead from Joey Logano. Busch would hold the lead for a few laps before Logano would charge back up and begin another battle on lap 112. Logano could not take the lead from Busch as Kyle Larson moved into second place. The race would only go a few laps before the fifth caution waved on lap 121. Brad Sweet went high in turn 3 and made contact with the outside wall. He tried to pull off the wall and spun down the track in turn 4. He saved it and did not receive anymore damage other than the wall contact. Johanna Long received the lucky dog. The race deciding strategy occurred during this caution. Brad Keselowski and Parker Kligerman stayed out while Trevor Bayne took fuel only and the rest of the lead lap drivers took four tires. Keselowski, Kligerman, and Bayne now had two sets of tires left while the rest of the lead lap drivers would only have one. It would be interesting to see how this strategy would play out to the finish.
The race went back green and the drivers who didn't have tires became road blocks. Kyle Larson ran three wide with Parker Kligerman and Joey Logano to take the lead in the race. Larson would hold the lead a few laps before the sixth caution waved on lap 128. Drew Herring and Brian Scott made contact exiting turn 2 and Scott went down towards Kevin Swindell. The two made contact and Swindell soared down the track. He slammed hard into the inside wall and stopped with heavy damage on the apron of the backstretch. Bryan Silas received the lucky dog. The accident scene was cleaned up and the race went back green. Joey Logano was able to pass Kyle Larson for the lead. Logano pulled away from the field and continued to lead as the seventh caution waved on lap 149. Parker Kligerman made contact with the wall in turn 3. He rode around to make it to pit road, but he lost a tire and went around in turn 4. He was able to keep it off the wall and avoid further damage, but he would have to come down pit road to take tires. Dakoda Armstrong received the lucky dog. Another piece of race winning strategy occurred during the caution. Joey Logano, Elliott Sadler, Regan Smith, and others took fuel only while Kyle Larson, Sam Hornish Jr., Austin Dillon, and others took their last set of four tires. Ty Dillon and Travis Pastrana also stayed out. This added to the amount of drivers with one set of tires left for the final stretch of the race, but it also meant the championship contenders didn't have tires left. It would be interesting to see how the championship battle played out.
The race went back green and Ty Dillon was able to hold the lead after staying out. The race would only go a few more laps before the eighth caution waved on lap 154. Brad Sweet got into the outside wall exiting turn 2 after getting loose and contact with Justin Allgaier. Sweet drove away and went into turn 3. He made more contact with the outside wall and pulled onto pit road with heavy damage. The damage was too much and he would not return to the race. Timmy Hill received the lucky dog. The race went back green and Kyle Larson took the lead from Ty Dillon. Larson would hold the lead a few laps before Kyle Busch took it away on lap 166. Larson would not stay in second long as he passed Busch two laps later. Larson held onto the lead as the ninth caution waved on lap 178. Justin Allgaier got into the wall entering turn 4. He rode the wall out of turn 4 and continued around to turn 2. He lost a tire in turn 2 and spun down the track. He was able to spin and come back around to pit road to replace the tires. Timmy Hill received the lucky dog. The final bit of strategy occurred during the caution. Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and the rest of the drivers with a set of tires left came to pit road to take four tires while Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Sam Hornish Jr., Austin Dillon, and the drivers without another set stayed on track. This left Hornish right in front of Dillon, but Dillon was in control of the title battle. It would be interesting to see if Hornish could get away and take the title or if Dillon could hold on just a few more laps.
The race went back green and Kyle Larson held the lead. The drivers with new tires began their charge as the tenth and final caution waved on lap 183. Regan Smith, who was on new tires, went high in turn 4 because he thought he had cleared Jeremy Clements and Mike Wallace. He wasn't and the three made contact. All three piled into the outside wall hard. Clements pulled to the apron with his car on fire, but he got out okay. Mike Wallace drove away and went to the garage. Regan Smith stopped at the top of the track and was able to climb out okay. All three had extremely heavy damage. Jamie Dick received the lucky dog. The clean up began. It seemed to take forever as the pressure mounted with fast cars behind the two championship contenders in Austin Dillon and Sam Hornish Jr. The clean up took twelve laps and finally the run to the checkered flag could be set up.
Kyle Larson led the field out of turn 4 for the final time under caution and took the final green flag of the season. He took the lead into turn 1, but the drivers with new tires were coming. Around this time, Sam Hornish Jr. stayed ahead of Austin Dillon, but he wasn't far enough in front to take the title. Brad Keselowski motored past and moved to the front of the field as Hornish fell into eighth place and Dillon fell into tenth. With two laps to go, Keselowski passed Larson for the lead. Hornish still sat in eighth with Dillon in tenth as the white flag waved. Hornish could not gain any spots, but Blake Koch passed Dillon in turn 1. The cars behind him could not get by and that is where Dillon would finish. Keselowski crossed the line for the win while Dillon crossed the line for his first championship in the series. Austin Dillon had lasted just long enough to take the championship away from Sam Hornish Jr., but it was definitely closer than he would have liked.
What a season it was for Austin Dillon and Sam Hornish Jr. Dillon did not capture a victory, but he was consistent all season and handled himself well in the final events. He made sure to keep his contenders behind him and this allowed him to take the championship in the end. It was also a great season for Sam Hornish Jr. Even though he did not take the championship, he still won a race and stayed up front for the entire season. He did make it close in the final race, but he just barely missed out on a chance to take the championship that could put his career back on track. Also, it was a great season for the #22 and #54. A.J. Allmendinger, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, and Brad Keselowski were the four drivers who piloted the #22 to victory during the season. The four drivers combined for twelve wins including all three of the road course events. This allowed the team to take the owner's title for Roger Penske for the first time. It was not a bad season for the #54 either. Kyle Busch took twelve wins for the team and finished up front in almost every event. He barely lost the owner's points battle, but it still did not detract from his season. Kyle Larson did not capture a win, but he took the rookie of the year award. From his engine laying in the stands at Daytona to his battle with Kyle Busch at Bristol to his almost win at Homestead, Larson had an impressive rookie season that will lead to him making the move to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series next season. What a season it was for the NASCAR Nationwide Series. There were crazy wrecks, awesome finishes, great comeback stories, and always a great show lurking at every corner. Next season will be a whole new game with the defending champion leaving. A few questions will also be answered. Will Austin Dillon's brother, Ty, take over for his brother, will Sam Hornish Jr. return and take the title, or will another driver move into title position? We will have to wait until February to start answering these questions and more.
(More Stats Down Below!)
Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 47- Debris was spotted in turn 2 of the track.
2nd Caution: Lap 56- Corey LaJoie made slight contact with the inside wall after contact with Kevin Swindell in turn 4.
3rd Caution: Lap 66- Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2.
4th Caution: Lap 93- Debris was spotted in turn 3 of the track.
5th Caution: Lap 121- Brad Sweet went high in turn 3 and made contact with the outside wall. He spun out while trying to pull his car off the wall.
6th Caution: Lap 128- Drew Herring and Brian Scott made contact in turn 2 and Scott sent Kevin Swindell sliding into the inside wall on the backstretch. Swindell slammed the inside wall after the contact.
7th Caution: Lap 149- Parker Kligerman made contact with the wall in turn 3 and rode around to make it to pit road, but he lost a tire in turn 4 and spun.
8th Caution: Lap 154- Brad Sweet got into wall exiting turn 2 after contact with Justin Allgaier. He drove into turn 3 and slammed into the wall again.
9th Caution: Lap 178- Justin Allgaier got into the wall exiting turn 4. He rode around and spun after losing a tire in turn 2.
10th Caution: Lap 183- Regan Smith made contact with Jeremy Clements and Mike Wallace after he went up into them exiting turn 4. All three piled into the wall and Clements stopped at the bottom of the track while Smith stopped at the top and Wallace drove to the garage.
Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: Travis Pastrana
2nd Caution: Jeff Green
3rd Caution: Mike Wallace
4th Caution: Jeremy Clements
5th Caution: Johanna Long
6th Caution: Bryan Silas
7th Caution: Dakoda Armstrong
8th Caution: Timmy Hill
9th Caution: Timmy Hill
10th Caution: Jamie Dick
Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Brad Keselowski
2nd: Kyle Larson
3rd: Kyle Busch
4th: Matt Kenseth
5th: Trevor Bayne
Notables Not in Top 5:
6th: Joey Logano
8th: Sam Hornish Jr.
12th: Austin Dillon
16th: Elliott Sadler
18th: Travis Pastrana
29th: Regan Smith
32nd: Brian Scott
Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/lapbylap/view-all-laps.html?intid=lapbylap_lapbylapleaderboard_08292013
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/live-standings.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2013_Ford_EcoBoost_300/B
-Images:
https://twitter.com/NASCAR_NNS/status/401877296975319040/photo/1
https://twitter.com/NASCAR_NNS/status/401881182373019648/photo/1
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