Busch, who moved from his longtime home at Joe Gibbs Racing to Richard Childress Racing in the offseason, grabbed the lead on Lap 143 of 200 and held on through a final round of green-flag pit stops to hold off Chase Elliott by 2.998 seconds.
Rowdy bow™️ pic.twitter.com/tWYZNPwpfj
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 27, 2023
The victory was significant in many respects.
Busch, 37, will be the final winner on the 2-mile track layout in Fontana, Calif., as it is scheduled to be transformed into a short track and will not be on the 2024 Cup schedule.
The victory also gives Busch at least one win in 19 consecutive Cup seasons, passing seven-line Cup champion Richard Petty for the record.
In addition, the last time Busch won a Cup race in a car not from Joe Gibbs Racing was March 25, 2007, nearly 16 years ago, when Busch drove the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports.
Busch also had to overcome a pit road speeding penalty and battle his way back to the front of the field.
“Could have, should have, would have last week. I think it’s just phenomenal,” Busch said. “I can’t thank Richard and Judy (Childress) enough, Austin (Dillon) for calling me and getting me talking and getting me the opportunity to come over here to RCR.
“The guys did a great job. Everybody that worked so hard in the offseason. We did a lot of sim stuff, a lot of testing in general just trying to get up to speed. There is nothing more rewarding than being able to go to Victory Lane.”
Asked where this win ranked for him, Busch said, “I think it ranks high to the fact of I can do it, I never doubted myself but sometimes you do. You get down and you wonder what’s going on, what’s happening.
“You put yourself in a different situation and you’re able to reward your guys. It’s not about me always winning, but about the guys. I’ve worked with a lot of great people who’ve given me a lot of great opportunities in my career. It’s awesome to be able to reward them.”
Ross Chastain led the most laps (91) but ended up third, his Trackhouse Racing teammate Daniel Suarez was fourth and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top-five.
Completing the top-10 were Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Alex Bowman, Austin Dillon and Joey Logano.
Stage 3
Following the caution between Stages 2 and 3, the lead-lap cars all pit with Harvick first off pit road. The race restarted on Lap 138 with Harvick followed by Busch, Logano and Chastain.
With a push from Chastain, Busch bolted to the lead on the restart.
NASCAR was forced to display a caution on Lap 142 after Ty Dillon’s No. 77 Chevrolet came to a stop off Turn 2. Martin Truex Jr. received the free pass and returned to the lead lap after his earlier two-lap penalty.
The lead-lap cars all pit with Busch first off pit road. On the restart on Lap 146, Busch was followed by Harvick, Suarez and Chastain.
Logano and Chastain split Harvick after the restart with Chastain finally reemerging with the lead, Busch in second and Logano third.
With 40 laps remaining, both Hamlin and Bubba Wallace reported they may be developing engine issues.
As Busch got around Chastain on Lap 167, Logano hit pit road for a final green-flag pit stop to take on tires and fuel to make it to the finish of the race.
Busch and Chastain hit pit road one lap later. Once the cycle of stops was completed with 20 laps remaining, Busch returned to the lead.
William Byron was forced to pit on Lap 182 with a flat tire. He then had to serve a pass-through penalty for speeding on pit road.
With 15 laps to go, Busch had opened up a nearly 4-second lead over Elliott as Chastain ran third.
With two laps to go, Busch’s lead remained at 3.8 seconds over Elliott while Chastain remained third.
Stage 2
Chastain cruised to the Stage 2 win over Busch by more than 6.6 seconds, his third stage win of the 2023 season.
Logano was third, Harvick fourth and Suarez rounded out the top-five.
Following the caution between Stages 1 and 2, all the lead-lap cars elected to pit with Chastain first off pit road. Suarez had to restart from the rear of the field after speeding on pit road.
When the race resumed on Lap 73, Chastain was followed by Hamlin, Byron and Bowman. Hamlin got a push from Logano to move into the lead on the restart.
Shortly after Logano got around Hamlin for the lead on Lap 75, Corey LaJoie got into A.J. Allmendinger to send him for a spin on the backstretch that ended with his No. 16 Chevrolet hitting the wall.
During the pit stops, Truex came off pit road with smoke billowing out of his No. 19 Toyota and a wheel came off the car once he made it on track. Truex was held for two-laps for losing a wheel on the track under caution.
On the restart on Lap 80, Austin Dillon was among those who stayed on the track and led the way. He was followed by Ryan Preece, Noah Gragson, Logano and Hamlin.
Tyler Reddick got into LaJoie on Lap 81 and sent him for a spin on the frontstretch to bring out the fifth caution of the race.
The race resumed on Lap 87 with Logano out front followed by Hamlin, Chastain and Byron.
As the field took the green, several cars backed up in line with Ty Dillon the first to spin and immediately bring out the caution. In all, nine cars were involved in the wreck with Christopher Bell, Preece and Aric Almirola all going to the garage.
Logano led the way on the restart on Lap 93 followed by Hamlin and Chastain. Hamlin quickly powered back to the lead.
Chastain powered around Hamlin on Lap 98 to reclaim the lead.
With 25 laps remaining in the stage, Busch had moved into second behind Chastain as Hamlin ran third.
With five laps to go, Chastain had built a 5.3-second lead over Busch as Logano ran third, Harvick fourth and Hamlin fifth.
Stage 1
Chastain held off Ryan Blaney to take the Stage 1 win, his second stage victory of the 2023 season.
Suarez finished third, Bowman fourth and Hamlin ended up fifth.
Bell, who started on the pole after qualifying was rained out Saturday, led the first lap but was quickly overtaken by Bowman on Lap 2.
On Lap 13, Kyle Larson pulled down pit road with an engine issue. He did return to the track.
NASCAR displayed a competition caution on Lap 17 to allow teams to check tire wear. Larson was never able to return to full speed and eventually took his No. 5 Chevrolet to the garage.
All the lead-lap cars elected to pit with Chastain the first off pit road. Truex had to restart from the rear of the field due to equipment interference during his pit stop.
When the race resumed on Lap 21, Chastain was followed by Bowman and Logano.
Logano powered around Chastain to take the lead on Lap 28 as Blaney moved into second behind him. Blaney went to the inside of Logano for the lead on Lap 30.
On Lap 42, Keselowski spun down the backstretch after contact with LaJoie to bring out the second caution of the race.
The lead-lap cars all pit with Blaney first off pit road. Busch had to restart from the rear of the field due to a speeding penalty on pit road.
Blaney led the way on the restart on Lap 47, followed by Chastain and Logano. Chastain quickly moved back into the lead on the restart.
With 10 laps remaining in the stage, Chastain maintained a small lead over Suarez with Blaney in third.
