Saturday, July 27, 2013

Kyle Busch Destroys the Track Record En Route To the Pole at The Brickyard

         With a time of 50.099 seconds (179.644 mph), Kyle Busch demolished the track record at Indianapolis and grabbed the pole. It was a very historic day for Busch. He grabbed his thirty first career NASCAR Nationwide Series pole, which breaks the all time record previously held by Mark Martin. It was also a very interesting session for most of the drivers. Three cars ended up wrecking and not being able to run a qualifying lap. Two of these guys were Travis Pastrana and Alex Bowman, who have had very good seasons so far. Another story line to follow is the amount of drivers who beat the previous track record. In total, seventeen cars beat the previous track record with their run. It was a very fast session at one of the most famous race tracks in the world.

       Morgan Shepherd was the first driver out on the track. He picked up a lot of speed from practice, but he did not have enough to make the field. The first driver to have trouble in the session was Joey Gase. Coming out of turn 1 on his first lap, his left side tires left the racing surface and he got loose. He slid up the track and slammed the outside wall with the rear end of his car. Since he had to make the race on time, he will not be in the race this afternoon. The second driver to have trouble in the session was Alex Bowman. Coming out of turn 4 on lap 1, Bowman got loose and tried to save his car, but his car went up the track and slammed the outside wall. He is in the race, but he will probably have to go to a back-up car. The third and final driver to have trouble in the session was Travis Pastrana. Coming out of turn 1 on lap 1, Pastrana got loose and slid down the track. He made hard contact with the inside wall and then went back up the track and hit the outside wall. He is in the race, but he will have to go to a back-up car. Parker Kligerman went out a few drivers after Pastrana and was able to take the provisional pole with a time that was the first to beat the track record. Sam Hornish Jr. was the next to take the provisional pole with a time that beat Kligerman by three tenths. It seemed like Hornish would walk away with the pole and the track record, but Kyle Busch had something to say about that. Busch went out and bested Hornish by two tenths and the previous track record by a second to grab the pole. The last four drivers were unable to best Busch and he walked away with his fifth pole of the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series season.

        It seems like Kyle Busch is unbeatable this year when he starts up front. In the four races he has started on the pole this year, Busch has walked away with the win after pretty much dominating the race. This race has a little bit more prowess and could prove a challenge to Busch. Even winning at The Brickyard in a series like the Nationwide Series is a great accomplishment and many will be looking to take the victory. Plus, a few of the contenders are starting outside the top 10 and they will look to move up and challenge for the win. It will also be interesting to see if Alex Bowman and Travis Pastrana can move from the back to the front of the field. All in all, it should be a very awesome race at the prestigious Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
(More Stats Down Below!)





Top 5 Qualifiers (With Times):
1st: Kyle Busch    50.099 (179.644 mph)
2nd: Sam Hornish Jr.     50.288 (178.969 mph)
3rd: Trevor Bayne     50.457 (178.370 mph)
4th: Elliott Sadler     50.562 (177.999 mph)
5th: Parker Kligerman     50.578 (177.943 mph)

Notables Not in Top 5 (With Times):
6th: Brian Vickers    50.622 (177.788 mph)
7th: Austin Dillon     50.633 (177.750 mph)
9th: Matt Kenseth     50.665 (177.637 mph)
12th: Kasey Kahne     50.718 (177.452 mph)
13th: Joey Logano     50.725 (177.427 mph)
15th: Kevin Harvick    50.940 (176.678 mph)

Go-or-Go Homers (With Times):
9th: Matt Kenseth     50.665 (177.637 mph)
15th: Kevin Harvick    50.940 (176.678 mph)
18th: Kevin Swindell     51.105 (176.108 mph)
20th: David Starr     51.533 (174.645 mph)
25th: Ryan Sieg     51.911 (173.374 mph)
27th: Tanner Berryhill     52.218 (172.354 mph)
32nd: Josh Wise     52.779 (170.522 mph)
33rd: Jeff Green     52.918 (170.074 mph)
34th: J.J. Yeley    52.918 (170.074 mph)
40th: David Green    55.032 (163.541 mph)#
41st: Matt Dibenedetto    53.096 (169.504 mph)
42nd: Carl Long     53.835 (167.177 mph)
43rd: Morgan Shepherd     53.980 (166.728 mph)
44th: Joey Gase     No Time*
(#: David Green used his past champion provisional to make the race.)
(*: Joey Gase wrecked when he was on his run.)

DNQs: Matt Dibenedetto, Carl Long, Morgan Shepherd, and Joey Gase




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-qualification.html
-Image:
https://twitter.com/NASCAR_NNS/status/361194343052238848/photo/1

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