Dominant Busch Finds Pain at Pump in Dover
Interstate Batteries Driver Leads Race-High 302 Laps, Settles for Seventh in Fuel Mileage Finish
Date: Sept. 30, 2012
Event: AAA 400 (Round 29 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Dover (Del.) International Speedway (1-mile concrete oval)
Start/Finish: 5th/7th (Running, completed 399 of 400 laps)
Winner: Brad Keselowski of Penske Racing (Dodge)
There’s no doubt that Kyle Busch had the car to beat in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series AAA 400 on Sunday at Dover (Del.) International Speedway.
Busch, the driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), led four times for a whopping, race-high 302 laps but was forced to pit road for fuel 10 laps short of the finish and had to settle for a disappointing seventh-place finish.
After qualifying a solid fifth, Busch jumped to third by lap 5 and past teammate Denny Hamlin to take the lead on lap 35.
Aside from green-flag pit stops, Las Vegas native Busch led much of the next 300 laps until the caution waved for an accident on lap 310. The following lap, the leaders pitted for tires and fuel as the No. 48 team of five-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson exited pit road ahead of Busch.
PhotosA late caution flag was the only hope for the Interstate Batteries team. But it never happened. Busch was forced to pit road for fuel only with 10 laps remaining. Several others were able to stretch their fuel tanks, so all Busch could do was get the best finish possible with his dominant racecar.
“It’s frustrating – really proud of everybody on this Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry,” said Rogers. “The car was strong all day. Kyle (Busch) did a phenomenal job, but our numbers just said we couldn’t make it. All race we’re scanning everybody, and every time the 2 (Brad Keselowski) or the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) would say they had to pit, it was five to six laps later than us. I knew they had better fuel mileage than us, and I knew if it came down to a fuel-mileage race that we were going to be in trouble. We played our best cards, and we came up short. There was no doubt that we had the fastest car today.
“We have options in our fuel maps so we can elect to run more fuel, less fuel – same as a carburetor. You can jet your carburetor to run lean or run rich. It’s the same choice as it was last year. We could have made some different choices. Every now and then you have a fuel-mileage race. I didn’t think this was going to come down to it, so we went full power. I’m not going to second guess our call – it was the right call. The car was fast.”
Busch’s JGR teammates – Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Toyota Camry and Joey Logano, driver of the No. 20 Toyota Camry – finished eighth and 10th, respectively, suffering from similar fuel-mileage woes as Busch.
Brad Keselowski won the AAA 400 to score his ninth career Sprint Cup victory, his fifth of the season and his first at Dover.
Jeff Gordon finished 1.078 seconds behind Keselowski in the runner-up spot, while Mark Martin, Johnson and Carl Edwards rounded out the top-five. Martin Truex Jr., Busch, Hamlin, Clint Bowyer and Logano comprised the remainder of the top-10.
There were five caution periods for 28 laps, with seven drivers failing to finish the 400-lap race. Only six cars were on the lead lap at the end of the event, while only 11 cars completed 398 or more laps.
Hamlin is representing JGR in this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup, and he left Dover third in the standings with 2,126 points, 16 points behind new Chase leader Keselowski.
Busch maintained 13th in the standings with 870 points, 34 ahead of 14th-place Edwards. Logano held his 18th position with 785 points, 85 points behind Busch in 13th. Since they are not Chase participants, Busch and Logano can finish no higher than 13th.
With seven races remaining before a champion is crowned following the season finale Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the top-12 drivers competing for the title rank as follows:
1. Brad Keselowski (2,142 points) +1 positions
2. Jimmie Johnson (2,137 points, -5) -1
3. Denny Hamlin (2,126 points, -16) +/-0
4. Clint Bowyer (2,117points -25) +2
5. Tony Stewart (2,110 points, -32) -1
6. Kasey Kahne (2,110 points, -32) -1
7. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2,103 points, -39) +/-0
8. Martin Truex Jr. (2,100 points, -42) +2
9. Kevin Harvick (2,096 points, -46) -1
10. Jeff Gordon (2,094 points, -48) +2
11. Greg Biffle (2,091 points, -51) -2
12. Matt Kenseth (2,070 points, -72) -1
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule – the fourth race of the 10-race Chase – is the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 on Oct. 7 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The race begins at 2 p.m. EDT, with live coverage provided by ESPN beginning with a pre-race show at 1 p.m.
