BRISTOL, Tenn. — Kyle Busch saved his season Saturday night by winning a gutsy side-by-side sprint to the finish against Mark Martin at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Fighting hard for a berth in the Chase for the championship, Busch drove a steady and smooth race at one of the toughest tracks in NASCAR to climb off the ropes and keep his title hopes alive. His fourth win of the season — tied with Martin for most in the Sprint Cup Series — jumped him two spots in the standings to 13th.
With two races to go before the 12-driver field is set, Busch trails 12th-place Matt Kenseth by just 34 points.
"No pressure on us yet!" his team radioed after he crossed the finish line. "This 18 is not going down without a fight!"
Busch was silent for a few seconds before celebrating with a smokey burnout on the front stretch and his traditional bow to the crowd. He then grabbed the checkered flag from a NASCAR official, but gave it to a fan through a hole in the fence.
"I hope this just isn't a fluke to get in the Chase," he said in Victory Lane. "We need to run well at Atlanta and Richmond."
Martin, the pole-sitter, finished second in the 1,000th start of his career. Just like Busch, he improved his Chase chances and moved up two spots to 10th.
But he could have moved Busch out of his way several times over the final 50 laps, including the dramatic four-lap sprint to the finish.
Instead, he raced him clean and defended his decision not to use his bumper on Busch.
INDYCAR: At Sonoma, Calif., driver Will Power of Team Penske broke two vertebrae in his lower back and sustained a concussion Saturday after crashing into Nelson Philippe of Conquest Racing during a practice session for the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma.
Philippe also sustained a concussion along with an open fracture to his left foot that required surgery.
The 28-year-old Power, the former road course specialist who finished fifth in this year's Indianapolis 500, crashed into Philippe coming out of a blind corner at Infineon Raceway. He was scheduled for an MRI exam later Saturday, but IndyCar officials didn't expect updates on his status until Sunday.
Chase standings
1. T. Stewart 3,564
2. J. Johnson 3,344
3. J. Gordon 3,310
4. D. Hamlin 3,141
5. C. Edwards 3,110
6. Ku. Busch 3,103
7. R. Newman 2,995
8. G. Biffle 2,986
9. J. Montoya 2,975
10. M. Martin 2,971
11. K. Kahne 2,963
12. M. Kenseth 2,945
13. Ky. Busch 2,911
14. B. Vickers 2,906
15. C. Bowyer 2,833
16. D. Reutimann2,785
17. M. Ambrose2,639