| Date: July 17, 2016
Event: New Hampshire 301 (Round 19 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon (1.058-mile oval)
Start/Finish: 2nd/8th (Running, completed 301 of 301 laps)
Points: 6th with 556 points, 80 points out of first
Winner: Matt Kenseth of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
- Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), finished eighth in Sunday’s New Hampshire 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon.
- Busch started the race from the second position and wasted no time in asserting himself as a contender, taking the top spot on lap two and leading the next 87 circuits around the 1.058-mile oval before surrendering the lead to fellow Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. He had dropped to fifth place by the time the second caution waved on lap 99.
- Throughout the first third of the race, Busch dealt with a couple of handling issues, specifically noting the car was tight through the turns – more so in the center than the entrance and exit of the turns.
- After restarting the race from second place, Busch steadily tracked down the leader during the next green-flag run, retaking the top spot on lap 172. The reigning Sprint Cup Series champion maintained the lead until getting beat off of pit road during a stop under caution on lap 218.
- Busch was in second place for the restart on lap 227. He lost a couple positions during the next several laps of the race, which went on to be slowed by a series of cautions as the race wound down.
- With his car not handling as well in traffic and a lack of the long, green-flag runs that suited the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota early in the race, Busch was unable to make a challenge for the lead in the closing laps.
- After leading a race-high 133 laps, Busch was scored in eighth place when the checkered flag waved.
Busch Discusses the New Hampshire 301:
“Our Interstate Batteries Camry was fast today; we just didn’t need all of those cautions at the end. The car was strong on a long run. We still seemed to battle the balance and just kept going loose and tight at different points on the track. Given how much we led we are a little disappointed with eighth, but we’ll take it and look to Indy next weekend.”
The following are the race results of Busch’s JGR teammates in Sunday’s New Hampshire 301:
- Matt Kenseth and the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota finished first.
- Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota, finished ninth.
- Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 19 Sport Clips Toyota, finished 20th.
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the Brickyard 400 on Sunday, July 24, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race starts at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN.
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK! |
