2005 Sony HD 500: Kyle Busch Wins His First Nextel Cup Race at Fontana

Kyle Busch's first Nextel Cup win came at Fontana in a race settled under a green-white-checkered finish. The event was the 25th of 36 scheduled races in 2005, and several drivers needed strong results on the Labor Day weekend to secure places in the Chase for the Nextel Cup. Busch took the win with a late pit call, while Greg Biffle and Brian Vickers completed the podium.

Who won the 2005 Sony HD 500?

Kyle Busch won the 2005 Sony HD 500 at California Speedway on 4 September 2005, taking his first Nextel Cup victory at the age of 20. Greg Biffle finished second and Brian Vickers third. The race was extended from 250 laps to 254 so the field could complete a green-white-checkered finish.

The victory came in his 31st start, and it earned him $241,065 in prize money.

Kyle Busch's first Cup win came from a late pit call that left him on older tyres and still ahead at Fontana.

What was the championship picture going into the race?

Tony Stewart led the Drivers' Championship with 3,410 points, 213 ahead of Jimmie Johnson and 224 ahead of Greg Biffle. Stewart, Johnson and Biffle had already clinched places in the ten-race Chase, while Rusty Wallace and Mark Martin were close to securing theirs. Wallace needed only to start the race, but Martin had to finish no worse than fifth.

Chevrolet led the manufacturers' title with 176 points, ahead of Ford on 160 and Dodge on 120. Elliott Sadler was the defending winner, and Matt Kenseth arrived after his first win of the season in the preceding Sharpie 500.

The race was also the 25th of 36 scheduled Cup races, so every result carried weight. Stewart compared the track to Michigan because of its similar layout, although he noted it had less banking to help the cars through the turns.

How did practice and qualifying unfold?

Carl Edwards took the first pole of his career with a lap of 38.906 seconds. Mark Martin started alongside him on the front row, 0.048 seconds slower. Kurt Busch and Greg Biffle completed a top-four sweep for Roush Racing, a first for a team in the modern era of the Cup series.

A total of 45 cars were entered for qualifying, but only 43 could race under the procedure. Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, J. J. Yeley, Brian Vickers and Scott Riggs filled the top ten. P. J. Jones and John Andretti did not make the field, and Andretti was unable to qualify because of an issue on the day.

In practice, Jeff Gordon set the pace on Friday at 39.354 seconds and improved to 39.187 seconds on Saturday. Edwards was second quickest in the second session, with Kyle Busch third, Joe Nemechek fourth and Michael Waltrip fifth.

How did the race begin?

The race was broadcast live by NBC from 4:00 p.m. Pacific time, with Bill Weber, Benny Parsons and Wally Dallenbach Jr. in the booth. Tommy Lasorda waved the green flag at 5:10 p.m. in air temperatures of 93 degrees Fahrenheit (34 degrees Celsius), and the field rolled off under a warm afternoon sky.

Yeley was spun from behind by Kahne as the cars exited turn four, and the impact sent his car into the wall. That incident brought out the first caution on lap three. Martin led the field back to speed at the lap six restart, but Kurt Busch passed him almost immediately approaching turn one.

Kenseth had a rough early spell. He hit the wall earlier in the race when visibility became difficult with the sun setting, and he dropped to 26th by lap 20. A smoking car brought out the next caution, and every leader took a stop under that yellow flag.

Johnson's run showed how fragile the top group could be. Shortly after the lap 51 restart he hit the front-stretch wall, yet he kept his pace and moved past Stewart for second on the back stretch, only to lose that place to Stewart and Kyle Busch on the next lap. Casey Mears also made an unscheduled stop for a vibration in his car, and Jeff Gordon fell back through the field with a loose-handling car.

On the restart at lap 27, Edwards passed Biffle for the lead. He held it until lap 47, when a flat left-rear tyre sent him spinning in turn four. He avoided hitting anything, but the spin brought out the third caution and forced him to rejoin the race from 37th.

How did the lead change in the middle of the race?

Kyle Busch became the first driver outside the Roush team to lead a lap, passing his older brother Kurt on lap 82. Matt Kenseth made consistently fast pit stops and reclaimed the lead under several cautions, but Busch repeatedly overtook him on restarts. The battle showed how much the pit stops and restarts could reshape the order.

Several cautions broke up the middle stint. Hermie Sadler parked his car sideways on the back stretch on lap 94, and debris between the first and second turns brought out another yellow on lap 99. Waltrip took the lead after changing only two tyres, but Stewart reclaimed it on the lap 119 restart.

Kurt Busch's spin on the front stretch on lap 145 brought out the sixth caution. Kenseth then beat Stewart off pit road to lead on lap 149, but he was passed back almost immediately. Kyle Busch reclaimed the top spot on lap 152 and built a near-second advantage by lap 160.

Why did Kyle Busch's late pit stop decide the race?

A debris caution on lap 242 gave the leaders their chance to refresh. Kyle Busch steered toward pit road as if to fake out his rivals, but when they followed him in he took a stop. He then chose to change only his right-side tyres, because his car had come in too close to the pit wall for his crew to change the left-side pair. Biffle and Vickers also took two-tyre stops.

That decision gave Busch the advantage on the restart at lap 244. He quickly passed Robby Gordon and Jeff Green, and the race appeared to be his to lose. Crew chief Alan Gustafson had initially planned to change all four tyres before settling on the right side alone.

How did the final laps play out?

Edwards worked his way up to second by lap 228 but fell to fourth behind Kenseth and Stewart six laps later. Busch had built a lead of around three seconds before the lap 242 caution. Once the race restarted, he was on older tyres than the drivers behind him, yet he still pulled clear.

On the 248th lap Sterling Marlin hit Scott Riggs from behind in turn two, and Riggs veered into Robby Gordon, who hit the wall. Riggs was then struck again by Scott Wimmer, and Jeff Burton also collided with the wall. With too little time to clear the debris, officials extended the race for a green-white-checkered finish.

Busch led the final two laps to win his first Nextel Cup race. He became the youngest winner in the series' history at 20 years, four months and two days, surpassing the record set by Donald Thomas in a 1952 race at Lakewood Speedway by four days. The margin of victory was 0.554 seconds.

What did the result mean for the Chase?

Stewart kept the Drivers' Championship lead with 3,570 points, a gap of 209 over Greg Biffle. Johnson dropped to third on 3,312 points as Biffle moved past him, and Wallace and Martin secured their Chase spots in fourth and fifth. Kurt Busch needed only to start the next race to lock in his place.

Mayfield, Edwards, Kenseth and McMurray took the final four Chase places. McMurray's result displaced Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon, who had hoped to make the cut, and Gordon's race ended in 21st place after a difficult afternoon with the handling of his car.

Joe Gibbs' No. 20 team kept its lead in the Owners' Championship. Chevrolet extended its lead in the manufacturers' title to 185 points, with Ford second on 166 and Dodge third on 124 with 11 races remaining.

What did the drivers say after the race?

Kyle Busch said his nerves had been tested during the final stop, and he added that the stop was the reason his team won. He announced he would donate his share of the winnings to Hurricane Katrina victims, following a similar gesture made by Carl Edwards after his Busch Series win the night before.

Greg Biffle said the team's run of consistent top-five finishes meant a great deal, pointing to a sixth at Michigan and a third at Bristol before this second-place result. Brian Vickers described a car that was loose for most of the race and tight after the last stop.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was annoyed by his engine. He said the motor finally broke after a long struggle on the straightaways and that his championship hopes had been over for at least 80 laps. Ryan Newman still felt his team was alive in the Chase race.

What were the final results?

Kyle Busch won, Greg Biffle was second, Brian Vickers third, Carl Edwards fourth and Tony Stewart fifth. The top-five finishers were joined by Kasey Kahne sixth, Matt Kenseth seventh and Jamie McMurray eighth, showing how close the finish had been for the chasing drivers.