Carl Edwards Wins the Kroger 200

The roar of power filled Saturday night in Indianapolis, Indiana this week as the thrill and energy of NASCAR once again brought thousands of fanatical fans to O’Reilly Raceway Park to witness the Nationwide Series Kroger 200.

They weren’t disappointed as Carl Edwards passed Kyle Busch on Lap 179 and then put his foot down and never looked back until he crossed the finish line. The race didn’t start as well for Edwards, who had to start from the rear of the grid because he wasn’t able to make qualifying due to participation in a practice session for Sunday’s Sprint Cup race. This didn’t seem to matter, his car was still the fastest car, and he was able to quickly make up the difference to take the lead. In fact, Edwards was able to take the lead twice and led for a total of 72 of the scheduled 200 laps in the Nationwide Series Kroger 200. He originally lost the lead on Lap 170 due to a mistake in pit row that allowed Busch to take the lead under caution. Busch was in the lead as the cars ran toward a green flag on Lap 174, but Edwards used his driving skill and faster car to take the lead on Lap 179, and then went on to take the win.

Kyle Busch did finish second, the eighth consecutive time he has finished first or second in a Nationwide Series race, one less than the current record holder Jack Ingram’s record set in 1983. Busch currently leads Edwards by 192 points on the Nationwide Series standings with just 15 races remaining in the schedule. Matt Kenseth finished third, Brad Keselowski had another good showing in a race by finishing fourth, and Steve Wallace was fifth, while Ron Hornaday moved from trucks for this race and took sixth. Pole-sitter Trevor Bayne was able to hang on for seventh, Jason Leffler took eighth, and Scott Wimmer was ninth, while Kenny Wallace rounded out the top ten in the Kroger 200.

“Image: Zuma Press”