After out driving the top-two finishers in the closing laps, Kyle Larson scores his first career NASCAR Nationwide Series victory this afternoon at the Auto Club Speedway. He led a total of 17 laps of the event and led a total of four different times. It was Larson’s 38th career start in the series after running full-time last season. By Larson winning the TreatMyClot.com 400, it ends Joe Gibbs Racing’s nine consecutive win streak at Auto Club Speedway in the Nationwide Series.
Finishing in second was another Californian driver, Kevin Harvick. Harvick led eight total laps of the event as he tried to get around Larson while battling him for the lead but could not stick. After five races this year, this will be his third top-10 in the series leaving California. It also will be his 15th top-10 finish after making 18 starts in the series at the Auto Club Speedway. Harvick was just 0.342 seconds behind Larson when the checkers flew.
Coming home in third was Kyle Busch after also having a very strong day. Busch led the event a total of four different times to lead 25 laps combined. Today marked his 16th Nationwide Series race at the Auto Club Speedway and his 13th top-10 finish at the 2.0-mile oval. Busch finished 0.382 seconds behind the race leader this afternoon.
The point’s battle is heating up as the series will head to the Texas Motor Speedway in two weeks. Leaving Auto Club Speedway, Regan Smith and Trevor Bayne tied for the top spot in the points. Per the 2014 Nationwide Series rulebook, Smith will officially lead the standings for the tie breaker. The third and fourth positions are currently held by two top rookies of Ty Dillon and Chase Elliott. Dillon sits six points behind the two drivers upfront, while Chase Elliott finds himself eight points behind. Fifth is Elliott Sadler with three points behind before a 14 point separation with Brendan Gaughan in sixth.
The NASCAR Nationwide Series will take a weekend off next week to return on April 4th at the Texas Motor Speedway. You can watch it at 8:30 p.m. Et, live on ESPN2. The Performance Racing Network will carry the live radio broadcast of the event. You can listen on many radio stations around the country, TuneIn APP, PRN APP or by visiting GoPRN.com.
About Me: Brett has been following the sport of NASCAR since the beginning of the 2006 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Since Brett was 13, he has had a passion of chasing a job in sports that not many get the opportunity of doing. He has been in the NASCAR media since the middle of the 2010 season. Since then, he has been a part of many racing podcast shows to improve his talents. He has written for racingonfuel.com and theracingwheel.com. Currently, Brett writes for motorsportsnat.com and TracksideChatter.com. You can find him on twitter @NASCAR_Brett.
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