Kyle Busch triumphs at RIR

Again, Denny Hamlin was the rabbit in a distance race.

Hamlin, as he did last year at Richmond International Raceway, showed the way last night in the Crown Royal Presents Russ Friedman 400.

In the end, Kyle Busch proved again he's fast becoming the premier Sprint Cup closer. Busch survived a record-tying 15 cautions to capture the Richmond trifecta -- Nationwide, Sprint Cup and the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown at Southside Speedway.

It was a jubilant 24th birthday celebration for Busch. He won for the third time this season in claiming his first Cup victory at RIR.

"We knew we had to get back on track somehow," Busch said. "It was an awesome night and another big win for the team. It's amazing. The car was good, but it wasn't perfect."

Busch, who picked the right time to change tires on his final pit stop, and the No. 18 Toyota were more than good enough.

Busch held off former Joe Gibbs Racing teammate and runner-up Tony Stewart over the final 20 laps before a less-than packed house at RIR. It's the second race in a row in which the racetrack has failed to sell out.

While Busch pulled away down the stretch, South Boston's Jeff Burton overcame a crash to charge to a third-place finish. Ryan Newman was fourth, followed by Mark Martin, Sam Hornish and Jamie McMurray.

"We were able to get a big enough lead, I didn't have to deal with the 14 [Stewart] and 31 [Burton]," Busch said. "I knew they were coming."

Stewart and Burton were surprised to find themselves in contention near the end. But multiple crashes, mostly in Turn 1, helped them pull even with the frontrunners.

"We kind of backed into this one," said Stewart, who matched his previous season-best second-place effort at Phoenix. "We got lucky, and we had that long green-light run at the end. It's the best we've finished as a team."

For Burton, RIR was his Houdini. He escaped a number of crashes, except one. He was pushed into the wall by Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Lap 213.

"It was a wild race," Burton said. "I was in the middle of a lot of stuff. I'm thankful my guys didn't quit.

"I don't think we had a third-place car. There were times in the race when we weren't very good."

For Hamlin, leading a race-high 148 laps is hardly consolation for another gut-wrenching defeat at RIR.

Hamlin seemed poised to deliver before a largely partisan crowd, leading for 148 laps mostly because of error-free pit stops.

Ultimately, the Manchester High School graduate was left with a 14th-place finish when his crew stumbled on pit road under caution on Lap 274.

All that slowed Hamlin was a caution for debris with 127 laps to go. But his chance for victory was dashed as he lost seven spots on pit road before the Lap 279 restart.

Hamlin's crew hurriedly adjusted the chassis of the No. 11 Toyota. However, they hung Hamlin out to dry when the jackman dropped the lug nut while replacing the right front tire.

Hamlin suffered a similar fate two years ago that kept him from challenging eventual winner Jimmie Johnson.

Jeff Gordon, who led 52 laps after overtaking pole-sitter Brian Vickers, appeared on his way to a third win here. But he slowed over the waning laps to finish eighth. Casey Mears was ninth and Juan Pablo Montoya was 10th.

Gordon gambled by twice staying on the track under caution. He fought his way back into contention after a series of crashes claimed several victims -- including three-time reigning Cup champion Johnson, Martin, Martin Truex Jr., Marcos Ambrose, Greg Biffle, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, David Stremme and David Reutimann.

Busch, though, finally got over the hump at RIR.

"I've been so close so many times, but never have been able to get a win," Busch said. "This is pretty cool."