3. Kyle Busch comes up short again after coming from the back of the pack
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_C_hs-WpYc
Kyle Busch might have come into Sunday's Penzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as the hometown favorite, but that doesn't mean Sin City was going to be kind to him. Furthermore, with the addition of the next-gen car and a plethora of talent looking to make a name for themselves, it became obvious that Rowdy would have the deck stacked against him from the beginning.
Unfortunately for Busch, things only got worse after he got loose and hit the wall during a practice session on Saturday. This forced Busch to go to a backup car and not be allowed to qualify. He wound up starting in the back of the pack and needing to work his way up to the front throughout the 267 circuits around the track. Busch would eventually grab the lead on a restart with about 40 laps to go, knocking young gun Ross Chastain off the point in the process. Chastain would then lose position to Martin Truex Jr, leaving the two Joe Gibbs Racing drivers to battle it out for the victory. Truex Jr would need to reel in Busch to accomplish that, though.
Despite taking ten laps to do it, Truex Jr would eventually get to Busch's bumper and start to utilize the inside line to get to his door. Busch responded by changing lanes in hopes of shaking off his teammate, forcing them both to try new strategies. The two would trade the lead for much of the race's closing laps, making it quite the show for Las Vegas fans.
An untimely caution came out with five laps to go after Erik Jones tried to stabilize his car on the bottom but ended up coasting back up the track. This forced the leaders to hit pit row, where Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson would move into the lead, and Busch was set back to fourth. He did get four tires though, giving him an advantage.
None of that mattered though, as the restart would be dominated by Kyle Larson and Alex Bowman, who pulled away from the pack. Bowman and Larson were caught in a drag race in the race's final lap, but Larson seemed to get loose and hand the leading position to Bowman on the final turn. This marks Bowman's first win of the year and guarantees him a spot in the playoffs. Busch eventually finished fourth in what had to be another disappointing day. His attention now must turn to the Phoenix International Raceway, where he will be searching for his first win of the year.
Fellow Las Vegas native Kurt Busch, also had a difficult day in front of him but recovered to finish 13th by the end of the afternoon. It was a slow slow finish for the 23XI Racing driver and could call into question what the organization does going forward.
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