AVONDALE, Ariz. Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide race at Phoenix International Raceway turned out to be reflection of the season.
The driver with the most wins – Joey Logano – drove to Victory Lane and the driver who has been the most consistent – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – sits poised to claim the series championship for the second consecutive season.
Logano held off Brian Vickers in a two-lap overtime to win the Great Clips 200, his ninth win of the season with Joe Gibbs Racing.
“This car was good but those guys are catching up to us. Those restarts were definitely tight and you got to do what you’ve got to do,” said Logano. “Brian and I had one heck of a race there as I was trying to keep the lead.
“There were a lot more cautions than I wanted. We’ve still got one more left and we’re going to try to get No. 10.”
Stenhouse finished third and holds a 20-point advantage heading into next weekend’s season finale over Elliott Sadler, who was involved a three-car wreck late in the race that greatly changed his fortunes.
Sadler, driving a badly torn up car, crossed the finish line in 22nd place. He was running 12th on Lap 199 of the scheduled 200 laps when he got together with Brendan Gaughan and Cole Whitt.
“I did it to myself. I put my team in a hole,” Sadler said after the race. “I just got loose. It’s hard to put this into words. It’s been a long, great season and my guys deserve better effort from me than wrecking the car on the last lap.”
While Stenhouse appreciates the opportunity to win a second consecutive Nationwide title, he will looking for the race victory.
“I thought we were going to have a shot there (at the win) when the white flag came out and (Logano) and (Vickers) were side-by-side. It was going to be a lot of fun,” Stenhouse said.
“The lead makes me feel pretty good but we’ve given up 20 points in one race this season so it’s not over until it’s over.”
Kyle Busch finished fourth and Kasey Kahne was fifth.