Indianapolis is a city where the NASCAR Xfinity Series has raced since the series began in 1982. But it is a relatively new home at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway where the series now races, in the Lilly Diabetes 250 on Saturday afternoon.
The dominant team coming into the weekend at Indy was Joe Gibbs Racing, and their dominance would continue in qualifying. All three cars for the team would qualify in the top three, with Kyle Busch (#54 Monster Energy Toyota) landing on pole.
As the race began, it was all Joe Gibbs Racing at the front. All three cars looked stout, and second place Daniel Suarez (#18 Arris Toyota) soon challenged and passed teammate Busch for the lead. However, strategy would be shuffled up at the first caution when Darrell Wallace Jr. (#6 Ford) would blow a tire.
Under caution, while most leaders would pit, Kyle Busch would have a miscommunication with his team and stay out on track. This would lead to a change in strategy for his team, and a few others who would stay out. At the second caution then, when teammates Blake Koch (#8 LeafFilter Toyota) and David Starr (#44 Zachry Toyota) crashed, Busch and others would pit, handing the lead to Ty Dillon (#3 Bass Pro Shops Chevy).
After the race was back under green, it wasn’t long before Dillon and second place Kyle Larson (#42 Chevy) would be on pit road once they were in their fuel windows. That would hand the lead back to Kyle Busch nearing halfway. Busch would work hard to build a strong lead and lap cars before he had to hit pit road again.
As the field sorted through pit stops, a caution would bunch the field back up as Erik Jones (#20 GameStop Toyota) slammed the wall in Turn 2. On the ensuing restart, Kyle Busch would then lose the lead to the hard-charging Ryan Blaney (#22 Discount Tire Ford). It would be an intense battle to the finish between Busch and Blaney, all the way to the final lap.
On the final lap, Ryan Blaney battled lapped traffic, allowing Kyle Busch to reel him in. Busch would close on the backstretch and pass Blaney, winning the Lilly Diabetes 250 on the final lap.
Meanwhile, two other races were happening on track at the finish as well. Regan Smith (#7 America’s Power Chevy) entered the race in the catbird’s seat to win the Dash 4 Cash after collecting $100,000 after being the top finish Xfinity Series regular at Dover. He continued that streak at Indy, collecting another $100,000 and remains in pursuit of the big one million dollar prize.
Finally, the biggest race was for the championship, where Chris Buescher (#60 Zest Ford), entered with a strong but dwindling lead. And while he was never in contention for the win, he held the points lead at the end of the day, only losing four points to second place Chase Elliott (#9 NAPA Chevy).
The NASCAR Xfinity Series rolls on to their second race at Iowa Speedway next Saturday, with the U.S. Cellular 250. It will also be the last race for NASCAR veteran Kenny Wallace, one of the drivers with the most starts in the series. Coverage can be seen on NBCSN.
Main Photo:
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JULY 25: Kyle Busch, driver of the #54 Monster Energy Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR XFINITY Series Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 25, 2015 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Sarah Crabill/NASCAR via Getty Images)
