CUP: Kyle Busch Wins Second Duel Race

Sprint Cup

CUP: Kyle Busch Wins Second Duel Race

Kyle Busch joins Kevin Harvick as Budweiser Duel winners…

Mike Hembree | Posted February 21, 2013 Daytona Beach, FL

Kyle Busch holds off Kasey Kahne to take the checkers in Duel 2.

Kyle Busch held off a line of challengers on the final lap and won the second race of the Budweiser Duel Thursday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway.

Chevrolet drivers Kasey Kahne and Austin Dillon pulled out of line on the final lap in an attempt to challenge Busch as they passed second-place Matt Kenseth, but their progress stalled. Busch led Kahne, Dillon, Clint Bowyer and Kenseth to the finish line.

The race helped to set the starting grid for Sunday’s Daytona 500. Busch earned the 500’s fourth starting spot with the victory.

The 60-lap race was run without a caution flag. Busch’s average speed of 193.945 miles per hour made the event the second fastest qualifying race in history.

“This is certainly a huge confidence booster for our team, being able to set the momentum in the right direction at the start of the season,” Busch said. “Today was one of those days when you had to be really patient and let things play out.”

Passing was difficult, particularly at the front.

“I was behind Jeff (Gordon) forever, and there was no way I was going to pass him,” Kahne said. “We’ll have to hope for bigger packs come Sunday if we want to pass.”

Kahne said the new style of racing at DIS will change the face of the closing laps and the approach to challenging for the lead.

“You need to be ready at any time to get to second or third and try to move up,” he said. “I don’t think waiting to the last lap is the ticket the way things are working right now.”

Gordon led the first 39 laps of the race as most of the field circled the track in a single-file line.

The leaders pitted on lap 40, and that was Gordon’s downfall. NASCAR clocked him as too fast entering pit road, forcing Gordon to serve a pass-through penalty. Also nailed for speeding during the pit sequence were Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Terry Labonte.

As pockets of drivers dropped off the track to enter pit road, Ryan Newman lost control of his car in the traffic and slid across the track. There was no caution.

After the pit stops and penalties, Kyle Busch and Bowyer were at the front of the pack. Busch held the top spot the rest of the way.

“Our car has good speed,” crew chief Dave Rogers said. “We’ll see if that carries over to Sunday and see what we can do with it.”

Mike Bliss was forced to the pits early in the race when his car’s window net fell, dropping him off the lead lap. He failed to qualify for the 500.

Dillon’s run earned him a spot in the 500 for the first time.

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEED.com and has been covering motorsports for 31 years. He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.

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