LOUDON, N.H. (AP) – Kyle Busch saw little but billowing white smoke that engulfed the track and blinded enough drivers that it caused a tremendous wreck that sunk his toughest competition.
In his No. 18 Toyota, the driver nicknamed “Rowdy” knew there was only one way to handle the sudden pollution: Drive through it!
Busch slinked through the smoke clouds formed in the multi-car crash on the backstretch and dominated the rest of the way to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motorspeedway.
“That was pretty intense,” Busch said. “That was some ‘Days of Thunder’ stuff over there. You couldn’t see anything.”
He held on and saw a victory lane celebration for the third time this season. Busch earned a berth in the second round of NASCAR’s playoffs and took his customary bow on the track. He even stuck a bag of M&M’s on the claws of Loudon the Lobster, the 18-pound crustacean given to the race winner.