Kurt Busch saved enough fuel not only to win, but to perform a celebratory burnout after it was over at Pocono Monday. Busch took the lead from rookie Chase Elliott with 32 laps to go and played the fuel mileage game to perfection winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Axalta ‘We Paint Winners’ 400 at Pocono Raceway. It was his 28th career win and his third at the Pennsylvania track.
The win from Busch came under the direction of team engineer John Klausmeier who was serving as interim crew chief for the Stewart-Haas Racing team after regular crew chief Tony Gibson had been suspended for one race by NASCAR for lug nut violations at Charlotte. Klausmeier continually warned Busch to aggressively save fuel in the final laps telling his driver that they would be two laps short. The former champion delivered saving enough fuel for the win.
“It’s tough to balance everything and when you have a fast car and an interim crew chief,” Busch said.
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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