HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) - Kyle Busch made it a double dose of celebration, winning the Nationwide Series championship before completing a lap and capping his night at Homestead-Miami Speedway with his ninth trip to Victory Lane.
Busch held off a hard-charging Carl Edwards to win the 300-mile race, fitting because the two NASCAR stars finished 1-2 in the final standings.
Team owner Joe Gibbs led the Joe Gibbs Racing team in a short prayer shortly after Busch won the race.
Busch only needed to start the race Saturday to win his first NASCAR title. When the green flag dropped on the race, Busch was the champ.
Busch finished with nine wins in the second-tier series and had 11 second-place finishes. He entered with a 190-point lead over polesitter Edwards. Busch had led 2,625 laps entering the race.
"I wanted to win this race badly," Edwards said.
His championship helped him get his swagger back and eased the sting from his failure to qualify for the Chase for the championship in the Sprint Cup series. - AP
