SONOMA, Calif. (AP) — After two practice sessions at Sonoma Raceway, Kyle Busch spent an evening icing his surgically repaired left foot.
He repeated the routine the night before Sunday’s race, all in an effort to minimize pain and give himself the best chance to pick up a much-needed victory.
Just five races after returning from a broken right leg and shattered left foot, Busch made his way to victory lane to continue what already has been an impressive comeback. He chased down Jimmie Johnson to win Sunday at Sonoma Raceway for his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win in 35 races.
The next goal for Busch? Cracking the top 30 in points to earn a berth in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
“Now I don’t have to bust my butt and overdrive the car every week in order to get wins,” Busch said. “Now I can just concentrate on running top-three, top-five, top-eight — just getting those finishes and points.
“If we can do that, the points have got to come and fall on the line.”
Kurt Busch finished second as the brothers notched their first 1-2 finish in Sprint Cup.
Clint Bowyer finished third and said once Kyle Busch got past him on the restart, his shot at the win was over. He still notched the first top-five of the season for Michael Waltrip Racing.
Kevin Harvick was fourth and followed by Joey Logano and finally Johnson, who dominated the race but faded to sixth.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. was seventh followed by Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne, while Ryan Newman and Sam Hornish Jr. rounded out the top 10.