Kyle Busch dominated the field on Sunday afternoon and was able to drive his #18 M&Ms Toyota to victory lane in his fifth victory of the season in the Toyota / Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway. Busch started his day at the rear of the field, qualifying 30th on Friday night. Busch’s victory on Sunday is his first victory on a road course. He was able to capitalize on pit strategy and mistakes by other drivers, while avoiding making any mistakes of his own. For the fifth time this season, the race ended with a green white checkered finish. Busch’s victory marks the second time in a row that a driver won the race in Sonoma after starting 30th or worse.
The key to Busch’s victory in Toyota / Save Mart 350 was avoiding making the same mistakes the other drivers made throughout the day. After the restart on lap 32, Greg Biffle, who was leading at the time, spun his car, blocking Juan Pablo Montoya, and allowing Kyle Busch to capture the lead, and eventually, the victory. Busch was able to hit his marks, and have a solid run all day. Busch’s dominant car, along with the misfortune of the favorites to win, allowed Busch to capture the win.
After starting fourth on Sunday, Bobby Labonte got loose going into turn 11 on the third lap of the race, sending him to the back of the pack. Labonte would be unable to recover from the mistake early in the race and would finish in 39th place. The first caution of the day came out on lap 29, when David Ragan got into the rear of Joe Nemecheck going into turn eleven, sending Nemecheck into a pile of tires. Ragan suffered significant damage but was able to stay on the lead lap and finish in 24th place.
On lap 51, Denny Hamlin wheel hopped his car, and spun going into turn 11. That would not be the only time Hamlin would have problems during the race. On lap 107, Tony Stewart ran into the back of a pack going into a turn, sending Scott Pruett and Hamlin into the dirt. Hamlin would finish 27th on Sunday. A few laps later, Robby Gordon, who was competing for a victory, was spun when Max Papis got into the back of Kurt Busch, sending Busch into Gordon.
On lap 71, Marcos Ambrose spin Juan Pablo Montoya in turn 11, when Montoya cut down into the lane Ambrose was running. Ambrose would be forced out of the race a few laps later, when Elliot Sadler tapped Ambrose, sending the #21 spinning, damaging the car enough to knock it out of the race.
Not every driver that had a poor finish made a mistake on the track. Kasey Kahne, who began the day on the pole was having troubles with his clutch all day long. As a result, Kahne would finish 3rd. Brian Simo took his car to the garage soon after the race began because of mechanical trouble. Boris Said, one of the favorites to win the race on Sunday, finished 17 laps down in 41st place after having brake issues from the start of the race. Brakes are vital to perform well at any road course.
