Not only did the SMI track sign on for a second Monster Energy Cup Series date starting next season, but the finish of the Kobalt 400 was a good precursor of what's to come.
Martin Truex Jr. won the race, the first for Toyota on the young 2017 season. He swept all three stages -- the first driver to so under NASCAR's new scoring format -- and it wasn't looking likely as the laps wound down.
The No. 78 Bass Pro Shops car was passed by Brad Keselowski at lap 244, but fortune smiled down on Truex when Keselowski lost his momentum and the lead just two laps short of the finish.
Truex beat Kyle Larson by just over 1.6 seconds, but the real excitement came afterward when Kyle Busch took out his frustration for spinning out as he battled with Joey Logano for fourth place on the final lap.
Before Truex could finish wheeling his car -- which had steam pouring out of it -- into Victory Lane, Busch made a beeline for Logano's pit and tried to take a few good swings at him. None connected before Logano's pit crew pulled Busch away and several NASCAR officials finished the job.
My friend and fellow reporter Jeff Gluck was in the right place at the right time and got 50 seconds of video of the fight that TV wasn't able to show. According to conversations I heard later, the video was viewed 1 million times on YouTube within nine hours.
As of today (2 pm Mountain time), that number has grown to nearly 1.9 million. While it's good to be around for something that went viral, there's something else that I chose to focus on.
Martin Truex Jr. won the Kobalt 400. He almost didn't. That's got to be worth something, even if it ended up flying just under the radar in the big picture and collection of story lines.
And after further review, I'm pleased with how everything turned out. You, the reader, not only knew who won, but knew of the unlikely sidebar of the "fight" between Kyle Busch and Joey Logano.
My pictures weren't half-bad, either.
It's just like Brad Keselowski said after his finish in Las Vegas. You have to stick around until the end because you just never know what's going to happen.
Even if more than one thing happens at the exact same time.
Follow Tom Zulewski on Twitter @TommyZee81 or email tominator19@yahoo.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment