PHOENIX – Kyle Busch withheld challenges from the NASCAR Xfinity Series stars for the second consecutive week in Saturday’s iK9 Service Dog 200 and earned his record 11th win at ISM Raceway in the Xfinity Series.
“I can’t say enough about our guys at Joe Gibbs Racing,” Busch said. “Obviously they’ve built really fast Supras. I want to say thanks to iK9, since this is the iK9 Service Dog 200. So it’s really cool to be able to win for them again, and to be able to put them in victory lane back-to-back, and in their race here at ISM Raceway.”
Saturday’s race was the second win in a row at ISM Raceway for Busch, who won last November’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Can-Am 500. This was also Busch’s 15th NASCAR national series win at the one-mile oval in the desert.
Busch’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell earned the pole and led 69 laps, but was passed by Busch for the final time on lap 100. He had fallen back to third behind Justin Allgaier when, on lap 130, Stephen Leicht lost a motor. The fluid from Leicht’s car made the track slippery and caused both Bell and Allgaier to wreck. Allgaier was able to continue and finished 14th, but Bell had to retire to the garage and finished 30th.
That final caution gave Ryan Truex, driving the No. 8 for JR Motorsports, valuable track position. Truex restarted fourth with 68 laps to go and finished second, his career-best finish at ISM Raceway.
“I guess it’s good when you lose to Kyle Busch,” Truex said. “Taylor [Moyer, crew chief] and the guys worked really hard, and I’m really proud of them. They made the right changes, did everything they had to do to give me a good car. I got that restart behind Kyle, and I was able to just get a huge run between 1 and 2. Our car was just so good on the long runs.”
Rounding out the top five were Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer and Austin Cindric.
Sunday will feature the highly anticipated Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series TicketGuardian 500 at 12:30 p.m. Ryan Blaney will start from the pole.
Tickets and INfield access wristbands for the TicketGuardian 500 are available for purchase at ISMRaceway.com, by calling 1-866-408-RACE (7223) or in-person at the ISM Raceway ticket office. Adult and Junior prices are available.
About ISM Raceway
Since 1964, ISM Raceway has been the premier motorsports venue in the Southwest. As part of a $178 million modernization project, the track officially became ISM Raceway in 2018 as a result of a naming rights partnership with ISM Connect, a pioneer in smart venue technology bringing the digital fan engagement experience to Phoenix. Phoenix hosts two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series weekends each year. The 2019 season at ISM Raceway will begin with the TicketGuardian 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race weekend on March 8, 9 and 10. The schedule is anchored on Nov. 8, 9 and 10, with the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Semifinal Playoff Weekend after which the field is reduced to the final four championship contenders. For more information, visit www.ISMRaceway.com.
