Kyle Busch wins Richmond

By Jim Utter

McClatchy Newspapers

RICHMOND, Va.

There is plenty of controversy back in NASCAR now. But it has nothing to do with wrecks.

Kyle Busch won his first Sprint Cup Series race of the season on Saturday night, holding off Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win the Capital City 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

It’s the fourth consecutive victory for Busch in the spring race at Richmond and snaps a 22-race winless streak for the driver.

Tony Stewart finished third, Denny Hamlin was fourth and Kasey Kahne was fifth.

The controversy concerns Carl Edwards, who mistakenly believed he was the leader on a restart on Lap 319 and passed Stewart before the restart line.

NASCAR, however, had Stewart listed as the leader and since Edwards passed him before the restart line, Edwards was black-flagged for jumping the restart.

Edwards was forced to make a pass-thru penalty under green and eventually fell a lap down.

Both Edwards and his crew chief, Bob Osborne, complained they were told they were the leader of the race on the restart.

Edwards was the leader when the caution was displayed during green-flag pit stops and had not yet pit. When he pit under the caution and Jimmie Johnson was assessed a penalty for a loose tire, Stewart was credited as the race leader.

Stewart looked like he was cruising to the win until a caution was displayed on Lap 387 for debris on the frontstretch.

All of the lead-lap cars pit for tires, with Kyle Busch coming off pit road first and taking the lead on the restart. He was followed by Stewart, Earnhardt, Kahne and Hamlin.

Busch got a good restart and quickly put distance between himself and Earnhardt and was not seriously threatened in the final laps.