Racetrack Insider - News and Views of the Motorsports Industry from Insiders Drew Patey and Buddy Judy

Edwards Wins - Busch To Wait Another Week

Carl Edwards took his Ford to victory lane for the fifth time this season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series at Phoenix on Saturday while Kyle Busch could not muster enough points to clinch the championship. Busch finished in the top 10, but after having a 25 point penalty assessed earlier in the week by NASCAR for a technical violation in Texas, the championship will now be determined in Homestead next Saturday. All Busch has to do is show up and the 2009 Nationwide trophy goes home with him. Edwards did everything needed to keep any hope of the championship within sight. He led the most laps and won the race, but Busch has been consistent all year and deserves the championship. Safety-Kleen's Kevin Harvick finished second, coming close to scoring back to back wins after taking victory on Friday night in the Truck Series race, while Reed Sorenson had another good race finishing third for the Safety-Kleen backed Braun Racing. Another Safety-Kleen driver Clint Bowyer recovered from an early incident with Busch at the beginning of the race to finish fourth. Brad Keselowski rounded out the top five after having another run-in with Denny Hamlin. The two seem to always find each other on the track and tangle. Homestead will be interesting as Hamlin stated after the race that he will handle Brad in his own way next Saturday. One race to go - Busch will clinch the title and Edwards and Keselowski will battle for second. Tune in next week to see the results.