7 storylines that emerged from deep in the heart of Texas
If all you saw was the finishing order from Saturday night's Duck Commander 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, you might not think much about it one way or the other.
Yeah, Kyle Busch won.
Again.
For the seventh time in the last 32 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
Right now, Busch is so hot he could probably win a demolition derby, an open-wheel race or a sack race at the family picnic.
Everything he does is working out perfectly right now, and congratulations to him and to his Joe Gibbs Racing team for their success.
But look beyond Busch's dominance and there were a lot of intriguing storylines at TMS Saturday night and -- thanks to a two-hour rain delay -- into Sunday morning.
Here are seven storylines from the Duck Commander 500:
7. CHASING TOYOTA -- Five Toyota drivers from three different teams combined to lead 320 of 334 laps at Texas, with only one non-Toyota driver leading more than one lap (Trevor Bayne led 12 laps in his Ford). Chevrolet teams led exactly two laps, one each by Chase Elliott and Kevin Harvick.
And how's this for a stat: Jimmie Johnson has 14 victories combined at Texas and Martinsville, where the Cup teams raced last week. This time around, Johnson didn't lead a single lap at either track.
6. ONE OF THOSE NIGHTS -- In 2014, his first year with Stewart-Haas Racing, Kevin Harvick won his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title. Last year, he finished in the top two in 16 of 36 races which is remarkable.
At Texas, Harvick finished 10th and struggled mightily to make it that high. For sure, this team will rebound. They're too good not to. But the Texas race was a reminder that even champions sometimes get humbled. That's how hard this sport is.
5. MOST IMPROVED DRIVERS -- Neither man got quite the finish he deserved, thanks to a big late-race pileup, but Austin Dillon and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. continue to show impressive improvements over the last two years. Maybe it's as simple as having cars that are faster, but they are both running a lot better so far in 2016.
4. HENDRICK CHOSE WISELY -- Last year, Chase Elliott made five Sprint Cup starts and had an average finish of 26.2, leading some to wonder if Rick Hendrick was rushing him into the big leagues too soon.
Not to worry. Elliott is already earning his spot. At Texas, Elliott scored his first top-five finish and fourth top 10 of 2016. He's the real deal, folks, which is why he's in the top 15 in points.
3. KASEY KAHNE NOT MAKING FRIENDS -- Although he wound up finishing in the top 10, Kahne made contact with Greg Biffle and put him hard into the Turn 2 wall on Lap 288. Afterward, Biffle was miffed and Kahne said he "should have lifted sooner instead of being that close to him (Biffle)."
Coming on the heels of his dust up with Danica Patrick, the Biffle incident was not a good moment for Kahne.
2 MARTIN TRUEX JR. WILL WIN THIS YEAR -- Furniture Row Racing has done an impressive job switching from Chevrolet to Toyota. Truex nearly won the Daytona 500 and had the fastest car this weekend. Pit strategy bit him, but that team is poised to win. It's only a matter of time.
1. DRIVERS LOVE THE NEW PACKAGE -- NASCAR's new for 2016 aero package is producing better racing, something the drivers definitely appreciate. Check out this Twitter exchange between second-place finisher Dale Earnhardt Jr. and third-place Joey Logano.
That was a great time! I love that we can pass now!! I never thought I'd see the day. https://t.co/JEFFEVDVY6
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) April 10, 2016
