Edwards muscles past Busch for the win

Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 60 Vitamin Water Ford, holds up the trophy in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series Kroger 200

Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR

Carl Edwards passed Kyle Busch with 22 laps to go Saturday night at O’Reilly Raceway Park and went on to win the NASCAR Nationwide Series Kroger 200.

Edwards had the dominant car after starting from the rear of the field because he missed qualifying to participate in a practice session for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at nearby Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Edwards led twice for 72 of the race’s 200 laps but lost the lead with 30 laps to go under caution. Edwards’ No. 60 Ford was pinned behind Scott Wimmer’s Chevrolet in the pits, and Edwards mistakenly put his car in the wrong gear.

Busch led coming to the green flag on Lap 174, but Edwards battled him hard and finally made the pass for the lead on Lap 179.

Busch finished second, with Matt Kenseth third as double-duty drivers swept the top-three positions. Brad Keselowski finished fourth, with Steve Wallace fifth.

Ron Hornaday Jr., who won Friday night’s Camping World Truck Series race at ORP, finished sixth. Polesitter Trevor Bayne, Jason Leffler, Wimmer and Kenny Wallace completed the top 10. Bayne, 18, won his first career pole in just his seventh series race.

Bayne and Steve Wallace, while running 1-2, were involved in a bizarre accident on Lap 36 after Michael Annett crashed in Turn 3. As Bayne and Wallace took the yellow flag and slowed into Turn 1, the pace car hit the track in the middle of the corner.

Bayne slowed to stay behind the caution car, but Wallace rammed him from the rear, spinning out both cars. NASCAR ruled that since they didn’t maintain caution speed, they took their positions from where they blended in.

Results

* Denotes Rookie