Kyle Busch Dominates the Second Half of the Race at Bristol to Take His Third Straight NASCAR Nationwide Series Win at the Track

        Kyle Busch walked away with his third straight NASCAR Nationwide Series win at Bristol after a dominating performance in the race. Busch ran well the entire time, but a final restart was the deciding factor whether he would win or not. He was able to hold off Kyle Larson and then run away to his second victory of the season in NASCAR's second tier series. The aforementioned Larson walked home second for the second straight NASCAR Nationwide Series Spring race at Bristol. This time, though, Larson wasn't as close to Busch, but he was still fast for the entire race after starting on the pole. Kevin Harvick was also fast for the entire day and he walked away third with Ryan Blaney and Matt Kenseth behind him. Today's race was actually pretty good even though Busch won the race. The leaders were constantly battling lap traffic to stay out front and they had to battle tons of strategy along with a few cautions. Plus, a lot of close calls were avoided and a few drivers ended up in trouble because of these moves. Finally, a late race restart gave some drivers a final chance to take the win from Busch. All in all, it was another great Bristol battle for NASCAR's second highest series.

       Kyle Larson started on the pole. It was his first career NASCAR Nationwide Series pole after running the full season last year and having a good many races planned for this year. The race went green and Larson was able to lead the first lap over the field. It wasn't long before Kyle Busch jumped to the lead on lap 3 with a superb run on the outside of the track. Just after Busch took the lead, the first  caution of the race waved on lap 5. Elliott Sadler bumped Jeffrey Earnhardt exiting turn 2. Earnhardt went up the track and slammed the outside wall hard. His back decklid popped off and Earnhardt drove away, but he had a lot of damage and a lot of repairs were needed. None of the drivers received the lucky dog. The drivers stayed on track and the race went back green. Kyle Busch was able to hold onto the lead. He began to run away from the field and he hit lap traffic pretty quickly. The lap traffic was a key factor for the leaders of the race. On lap 31, Matt Kenseth was able to catch Kyle Busch and take the lead from him thanks to the lap traffic. Kenseth began to be the class of the field and he ran away. Every lap, he clicked by cars and the laps passed through the afternoon. He had lapped all the way up into the top ten when the second caution of the race waved on lap 95.

        Debris was spotted on the race track in turn 2. Ryan Blaney received the lucky dog. The caution brought the first pit stops of the race. The six lead lap drivers came down pit road with all six taking four tires and Matt Kenseth coming out as the leader. Kyle Larson made a huge mistake during the stops. He was caught speeding on pit road and he would be forced to start back behind most of the cars on track. The debris was cleaned up and the race went back green. Matt Kenseth was able to hold onto the lead. Kenseth began to drive away just as teammate, Elliott Sadler, had trouble on lap 113. He came down pit road because he suspected he had a loose wheel. His team changed all four tires and Sadler returned to the track, but he had lost a ton of time. Kenseth continued to lead the field around the track as he lapped cars every single lap. Pretty soon, the third caution of the race waved on lap 135. Mike Bliss broke loose in turn 3. His car slid up the race track and piled into the outside wall. He came to a stop next to the wall and finally drove away, but he had a good bit of damage. Chase Elliott received the lucky dog. The seven lead lap drivers came down pit road for the second time on the race. All of them took four tires with Matt Kenseth returning to the lead. The track was cleaned up and the field was ready to get back going.

         On the restart, Matt Kenseth was able to hold onto the lead. Kenseth began to run away from the field once again and the laps clicked by. Kenseth began to lap cars in every corner quickly into the run. The lap traffic allowed Kyle Busch to move closer to Kenseth every single corner and lap. Finally, Busch made it up to Kenseth and he was able to take the lead on lap 212. Just as Busch took the lead, the fourth caution waved on lap 213. Debris was spotted on the track in turn 3. Ty Dillon received the lucky dog. The eight lead lap drivers made their way onto pit road with all taking four tires and Kyle Busch returning to the track as the leader. The debris was picked up and the race went back green. Kyle Busch jumped out to the lead ahead of the field. Busch began to sneak away just as the fifth caution waved on lap 226. Ruben Garcia Jr. broke loose exiting turn 2. His car pointed straight towards the inside wall and he went for a slide. He slammed the inside wall hard and rolled to a stop. He had huge damage and he wouldn't return to the race. Trevor Bayne received the lucky dog. None of the leaders decided to come down pit road and the wreck was cleaned up. The race went back green and Kyle Busch was able to hold onto the lead. Busch began to pull away slightly, but Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, and others were right near him. Busch hit lap traffic and was lapping cars just as the sixth caution waved on lap 260. Ryan Reed made slight contact with James Buescher on the frontstretch. Reed slid down the track and plowed into the inside wall. He continued up track and piled into the outside wall. Reed drove his car to the bottom of the track, but he stopped with extremely heavy race ending damage. Cale Conley received the lucky dog. The caution brought a little bit of race strategy.

        Ryan Blaney, Regan Smith, and others decided to come down pit road for four tires while Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, and the rest of the lead lap drivers stayed on track. The wreck was cleaned up and the race went back green. Kyle Busch held the lead on the restart as the rest of the lead lap drivers battled behind him. They knew laps were fleeting and they were battling hard to pass Busch for the lead. Unfortunately for Busch and fortunately for the rest of the lead lap drivers, the seventh and final caution waved on lap 286. Jeremy Clements made slight contact with the outside wall in turn 4. He left some debris on track, but he drove away with damage. Landon Cassill received the lucky dog. This put Kyle Busch at the front with Kevin Harvick below him and Kyle Larson immediately behind him. The race went back green one final time and Busch cleared the pack. Kyle Larson cleared Kevin Harvick and he went on the chase for Busch. Larson was running hard behind Busch, but the laps were clicking away. With about six to go, Larson went out of the racing groove and lost a lot of time. He began to battle hard with Kevin Harvick as Busch was clean to keep racing. Busch took the white flag quickly and he came back around to take the checkered flag with ease. It was another dominating run for Busch that he fought hard to turn into a win.

        Kyle Busch has been a beast in his time in NASCAR at Bristol. He holds the record for the most wins all time in the Nationwide Series at the track with seven total. Plus, he owns five Cup wins at the track and four wins in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in Bristol, Tennessee. To add to that, he has a three race sweep at Bristol across all three of NASCAR's divisions in one single weekend in 2010. It is just amazing what he can do at Bristol in a car and he has a chance to take a sweep this weekend. Sunday's race will decide that and it should be a good battle. Kyle Larson fell just short at Bristol for the second straight year. He did everything right this year, but he just didn't have the car to take it this go around. If he gets a chance later in the year, he could very well take his first victory in the series. Ryan Blaney battled hard all day long and he took a very respectable fourth place finish. Matt Kenseth led more laps than Kyle Busch, but he wasn't able to take the win after falling to fifth. Ty Dillon, Trevor Bayne, Chase Elliott, and Regan Smith also finished very well after a tough battle of a race. Dylan Kwasniewski even battled from the back of the field to take a fifteenth place finish in his first race in a Nationwide car at the track. The points battle for the Nationwide title remained very close. Trevor Bayne is only one point behind Regan Smith, but it is still extremely early in the year and time will tell who will win the title. Next week, the series heads to the massive Auto Club Speedway in California. Will Kyle Busch be able to go back to back along with repeating at California, will Kyle Larson finally take a Nationwide victory, will a rookie surprise everyone and take a victory, or will another series regular take the win at the track? We will have to wait one week to find this out and a whole lot more.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 5- Jeffrey Earnhardt slammed the outside wall in turn 2 after contact with Elliott Sadler.

2nd Caution: Lap 95- Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2.

3rd Caution: Lap 135- Mike Bliss broke loose in turn 3 and piled into the outside wall.

4th Caution: Lap 213- Debris was spotted on the track in turn 3.

5th Caution: Lap 226- Ruben Garcia Jr. broke loose in turn 2 and slammed the inside wall hard.

6th Caution: Lap 260- Ryan Reed made contact with James Buescher on the frontstretch and piled into the inside wall and then into the outside wall.

7th Caution: Lap 286- Jeremy Clements made slight contact with the outside wall in turn 4 and left debris on track. 

Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: None
2nd Caution: Ryan Blaney
3rd Caution: Chase Elliott
4th Caution: Ty Dillon
5th Caution: Trevor Bayne
6th Caution: Cale Conley
7th Caution: Landon Cassill

Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Kyle Busch
2nd: Kyle Larson
3rd: Kevin Harvick
4th: Ryan Blaney
5th: Matt Kenseth

Notables Not in Top 5:
6th: Ty Dillon
8th: Trevor Bayne
9th: Chase Elliott
10th: Regan Smith
15th: Dylan Kwasniewski
17th: Elliott Sadler
31st: Ryan Reed




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://racing-reference.info/race/2014_Drive_to_Stop_Diabetes_300/B
-Image:
http://www.sbnation.com/nascar/2014/3/15/5512880/nascar-bristol-2014-nationwide-series-results

Kyle Larson Steals the Pole at Bristol Away From Kyle Busch

         With a time of 15.415 seconds (124.476 mph), Kyle Larson was able to take the pole away from one of the fastest guys in the series, Kyle Busch. Larson was definitely on his game in the second round, but the first was a struggle. He finished the first round tenth and he was very unhappy with the car. He came out in the second round and his car was yards better, which allowed him to take the pole from Kyle Busch and the other drivers who moved onto the second round of qualifying. Still, Larson won't be too far ahead of Kyle Busch. Busch qualified second and he was very fast in both qualifying rounds. He will definitely be a threat in just a few minutes when the race starts. The rookies were also well represented at the front. Ryan Blaney starts fifth and Ty Dillon will start ninth as Chase Elliott rolls off fifteenth with Dylan Kwasniewski four spots in front of Elliott, but he had a problem in qualifying that could force him to move to a back-up car. That incident was the first indication of a great qualifying session. The others were great racing, great battles, and hard fought laps laid down on track. It was definitely one of the best group qualifying sessions we have seen this year and it will definitely decide a winner today.

        Kyle Larson was one of the first drivers to head on track to begin the first round of qualifying at Bristol. He ran a decent lap that put him at the top of the board early on in the first round. About two minutes later, Matt Kenseth was able to go out and blister Larson's lap to take the top spot on the board.  Behind Kenseth, the battle was beginning to rage for twelfth. Still, a lot of time was left and the spot would definitely start to change. Nine minutes into the session, Kyle Busch went out and jumped to the top of the board with a single lap. He came in and he was ready to move onto the next session. Around this time, the battle for twelfth began to pick up. Chris Buescher, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Elliott Sadler, Trevor Bayne, and others were battling to move onto the second round. Soon, only ten minutes remained. Kyle Larson was on the outside looking in, but with a few minutes left he jumped to the tenth position and into the top twelve. This put Chris Buescher just on the outside with about five minutes left to go. Teams on the outside began to thrash to make it into the top twelve, but they all fell short of Brian Scott's twelfth place time in the final minutes. The red and black flag waved and the field was set for the second and final round of qualifying. Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, Dylan Kwasniewski, Mike Bliss, Kevin Harvick, James Buescher, Ryan Blaney, Regan Smith, Ty Dillon, Kyle Larson, Cale Conley, and Brian Scott moved on while Chris Buescher, Trevor Bayne, Chase Elliott, Elliott Sadler, and others barely missed the top twelve. Now, the twelve fastest drivers from the first round would fight for the pole in a ten minute battle.

        Matt Kenseth was the first driver on track in the second round. He ran a good lap and jumped to the provisional pole spot. All the cars began to file onto the track and Kenseth looked to be in good shape on the point. Three minutes into the session, though, Kyle Larson propelled himself to the top of the board after a struggling first round. He was on top, but Kyle Busch was on track. Busch fell just short of Larson and it looked like Larson was in control, but six minutes remained. With about four minutes left, the field began to file back on track for their second runs. On his second run, Dylan Kwasniewski had trouble. His car began to break loose in turn 1 and he began to slide up the track. He almost saved the car, but he backed into the outside wall. He was able to drive away, but he had significant damage. This brought out the red flag with only two minutes left. The wreckage was quickly cleaned up and some of the drivers went on track for their final runs of the session. Some improved their laps slightly, but the red and black flag waved with Kyle Larson still sitting on provisional pole. This gave him his first career pole in the Nationwide Series at the track he almost took his first win at one year ago.

        This qualifying session ended pretty much the same as the Spring race at Bristol did one year ago. Last year in the race, Kyle Larson came up just short of Kyle Busch in attempting to take his first win in the series. After today's session, the only difference was Larson came out on top of Busch, but it was still a very close margin. Trends would show that this race might end up the same as it did one year ago. Both Larson and Busch are extremely fast and they will both be at the front to start the event. This year, though, the running order might end up flipped. Matt Kenseth also had a very clean session today. He wasn't mentioned much, but he was in the top three at the end of both rounds of qualifying. He seems fast and he could be a part of the battle between the two Kyle's. Kevin Harvick also has to be counted in this battle as he rolls of sixth this weekend. Plus, don't count out the Nationwide Series regulars. Brian Scott, Regan Smith, Trevor Bayne, and others look fast and they could very well take a win today at Bristol. Even the rookies have a chance. Ryan Blaney has been consistent all weekend and Chase Elliott was fastest in one of the practice sessions. Everything is unknown when we head to Bristol. One thing is for sure: the action will be amazing. The 2014 Drive to Stop Diabetes 300 starts in just a few short moments. Will Kyle Busch repeat at the track, will Kyle Larson redeem himself after coming so close last season, will a series regular take a victory, or will a rookie show all the veterans how it is done? We don't have to wait too long to find these questions out and more. 
(More Stats Down Below!)




Top 5 Qualifiers (With Times):
1st: Kyle Larson      15.415 (124.476 mph)
2nd: Kyle Busch     15.436 (124.307 mph)
3rd: Matt Kenseth     15.451 (124.186 mph)
4th: Brian Scott     15.525 (123.594 mph)
5th: Ryan Blaney     15.561 (123.308 mph)

Notables Not in Top 5 (With Times):
6th: Kevin Harvick     15.575 (123.197 mph)
7th: Regan Smith      15.579 (123.166 mph)
9th: Ty Dillon     15.748 (121.844 mph)
11th: Dylan Kwasniewski      15.828 (121.228 mph)
14th: Trevor Bayne     15.543 (123.451 mph)*
15th: Chase Elliott      15.561 (123.308 mph)*
18th: Elliott Sadler      15.609 (122.929 mph)*
20th: Brendan Gaughan      15.637 (122.709 mph)*
(*: These four drivers were faster than some of the drivers in the top twelve, but they all missed the second round of qualifying.)

DNQ:
41st: Willie Allen     16.387 (117.093 mph)




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-qualification.html
http://racing-reference.info/getqualify/2014-04/B
-Image:
https://twitter.com/pixelcrisp/status/444855780383424512/photo/1