Kyle Busch has finally earned his 200th career victory
- On Sunday at Auto Club Speedway, Kyle Busch won the Auto Club 400 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, tying NASCAR legend Richard Petty as the driver with the most wins across all three of NASCAR’s national series (200)
- Petty’s wins all came in the Cup Series while Busch’s have been combined across the NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series, the NASCAR XFINITY Series, and the Cup Series
- Busch overcame a speeding penalty he incurred on lap 123 of the 200-lap race but was back in the lead on lap 161
- The Team Penske duo of Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski served as Busch’s biggest challengers, finishing second and third, respectively
- Kevin Harvick and Ryan Blaney — the third Team Penske driver — rounded out the top five
- Busch led 134 of the 200 laps, more than any other driver
Additional info: Full Auto Club 400 results … Race recap … Story on Joey Logano's day from kickinthetires.net/'s Zach Catanzareti
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Cole Custer was on standby for an ailing Austin Dillon on Sunday
- Saturday’s NASCAR XFINITY Series winner Cole Custer luckily stayed in the area an extra day, as Richard Childress Racing driver Austin Dillon was fighting a stomach illness over the weekend and needed a back-up driver
- Custer was on standby for Dillon during Sunday’s race in case Dillon decided he was not well enough to continue
- Though Custer is a Ford Racing driver and RCR is supported by Chevrolet, both manufacturers agreed to allow the switch to occur if needed
- Dillon wound up running the race to its conclusion, finishing 10th despite bringing out the first caution of the day on lap 56 due to a tire rub
- Dillon went to the infield care center after the race; he was treated and released
- During an appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Sunday morning, team owner Richard Childress stated that Dillon’s spotter Andy Houston was dealing with a similar illness
- According to a tweet from FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass, Dillon’s wife Whitney appeared to faint on pit road during pre-race festivities; Dillon was later told she was okay
Additional info: Story from NBC Sports’ Dustin Long … Story from SPEEDSPORT.com’s Jacob Seelman … Video of Dillon’s tire rub incident
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Bottas earns F1 victory in Australia
- Valtteri Bottas won the Australian Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday, overtaking pole-sitter and Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton on the first corner
- The victory is Bottas’ first since the 2017 F1 finale in Abu Dhabi
- Five-time champion Hamilton was able to hold on for second, 20.9 seconds behind Bottas, while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was able to drive around Sebastian Vettel to claim the final podium spot in third
- Vettel would remain in fourth; Charles Leclerc rounded out the top five
- Carlos Sainz Jr. had to retire early from the race after his engine caught on fire on lap 10 while he was running in the 14th position
- Daniel Ricciardo – in his first race since switching to Red Bull – retired from the race on lap 30/58 after damaging the nose of his car in the grass
- F1 returns to action in Bahrain on March 31st
Additional info: Story from Martin Parry via ABS CBN News … Full race results … Australian Grand Prix Race Highlights
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Crampton, Hight, Butner, and Hines win Gatornationals pro titles
- At the conclusion of the 50th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Richie Crampton (Top Fuel), Robert Hight (Funny Car), Bo Butner (Pro Stock), and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were all celebrating victories
- Crampton defeated Clay Millican in the finals via a holeshot, 3.769 to 3.756 at the line
- Robert Hight earned his second win in three races this season against Tim Wilkerson in the final after Wilkerson encountered issues just past the starting line
- Bo Butner earned the victory in the Pro Stock title after Alex Laughlin was unable to make the final run due to an electrical issue
- Andrew Hines broke a long winless streak to earn his Gatornationals victory, edging opponent Eddie Krawiec’s 6.762 with a 6.752
- Todd Tutterow earned the victory in the E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod class; Beau Layne took the win in the Mickey Thompson Tires Top Fuel Harley class
- Up next are the DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway from April 5 – April 7
Additional info: NHRA recap … Story from Autoweek.com … National championships standings
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