TALLADEGA, Ala. — At Talladega, sometimes you just need to be lucky.
Kyle Busch echoed those sentiments after winning the NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega on Sunday as the lead driver, Bubba Wallace, was spun out on the race's final lap, allowing Busch to steal the victory.
"Sometimes you gotta be lucky. Some of these races come down to that," said Busch after the race to the media. "I had seen [Wallace] turn a little bit sideways and thought 'Just get out of the way, just miss it.'"
Busch grabbed the lead with two laps to go on a second NASCAR overtime restart but was passed by Wallace with pushes from Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney.
Blaney positioned himself behind Wallace on the last lap and looked to get around him but the two cars bumped and Wallace was sent into the wall, collecting about a half-dozen cars in the process. NASCAR called a caution and Busch was scored the winner.
The second overtime restart was forced by a hard wreck after the first overtime restart involving some other drivers seemingly in position to grab a win.
Noah Gragson was leading when he was pushed by Ross Chastain, who was in turn pushed by Kyle Larson. The impact led to Gragson spinning into the wall and Larson spinning into the grass. Larson was then hammered on the right side by Ryan Preece, who was trying to avoid the wreck.
"Definitely one of the hardest hits I've taken in my racing career," said Preece, who finished 34th.
"Thankfully I'm okay. My car is absolutely destroyed," said Larson, who finished 33rd. "Just a bummer. We put ourselves in position once again on a superspeedway and results don't show it."
The race ran double file for most of the event. A different group of drivers would occupy the top few spots throughout different parts of the race as the tight racing left little room for passing.
It did not take long for the first wreck to happen, with Michael McDowell spinning out after blowing a tire on lap two.
After that, though, cautions were few and far between. The only other major incidents in the first stage were Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe spinning while getting on pit road on laps 35 and 41, respectively. The latter driver was stranded on pit road after the spin flattened his tires, prompting the race's second caution.
That caution left Chevrolet drivers up front with Chase Elliott leading the way. Elliott stayed out front to capture the stage one win in just his second race back from missing six races due to a leg injury.
Stage two featured a wide array of drivers leading laps in typical restrictor plate race style. Elliott was in position to take the stage win again but Aric Almirola made a late move to take the stage victory.
Harrison Burton found his way to the lead with around 50 laps to go but became the first leader to be wrecked out of the race as he was spun off the nose of Gragson's car.
That wreck allowed Blaney, Wallace, and others to fight for the lead as the laps waned down.
With about five laps remaining, Joey Logano was pushed and spun by Corey LaJoie as the two drivers, along with others, were trying to form a third line of drivers in an effort to get to the front of the pack. That caution prompted an overtime finish that put leaders on edge as many were at the very end of a fuel cycle.
Drivers attempted to save fuel under caution. Gragson and Almirola were out front as the race restarted until Gragson was turned into the wall, ending multiple drivers' shots at the win.
That cleared Blaney, Busch, Wallace, and others to fight for the win. Busch pulled through his 62nd NASCAR Cup Series win and his second win with Richard Childress Racing.
Blaney finished second, Chris Buescher finished third, Briscoe finished fourth, and Keselowski wound up fifth.
The NASCAR Cup Series is back in action on Sunday, April 30 at Dover International Speedway.