By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor
On most days a late charge like Kyle Busch managed in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 would be enough to bring him to victory lane.
But at his home track he would have to settle for second.
The 2015 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion used a spirited drive in the final run to the checkered flag to rise to a runner-up result at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, crossing the start-finish line 2.906 seconds behind the dominant Kevin Harvick.
Typically it was a result Busch would be disappointed in. But after the beatdown Harvick gave the field – sweeping the stages and leading 214 of the race’s 267 laps – the Nevadan was content to claim what equated to a best in class finish.
“Second is fine if you get your butt beat as bad as we got our butt beat,” Busch said afterward. “We’ll take that finish. It was a win for the field as the 4 (Kevin Harvick) was a class of his own. Our guys did a great job.
Busch started the weekend with the intent of completing the first tripleheader weekend sweep at Las Vegas, matching the two similar feats he’s completed at Bristol Motor Speedway. He kept himself inc contention through night one with a victory in the Camping World Truck Series race, but lost out on the opportunity to get out the broom when he struggled in Saturday’s XFINITY Series race.
The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran didn’t have a dominant No. 18 Toyota in Sunday’s Cup race, but he steadily rose into contention. Busch ended Stage 1 in ninth, rose to fifth by the end of Stage 2, and began a march to the front of the field during the final run to the finish.
For a time it appeared Busch would get to Harvick, but he stalled out after drawing within three seconds of the Californian’s No. 4 Ford.
“Just needed to be closer to the car to see if I had a chance to race him (Kevin Harvick) through traffic,” Busch said of the battle. “We were just so far back, by the time he’d get through traffic, I’d get the traffic and I’d get held up and he’d drive away. We were kind of accordioning back and forth that last two runs of the race.”
With his win on Sunday, Harvick has now dominated the past two Cup Series race. But while some have wondered if the 2014 Cup champ’s early dominance might be a sign of things to come, Busch thinks it’s too early to worry.
“It’s early, this is only race three,” he said. “We aren’t worried yet. Show me that race 26 through 36.”