NASCAR News Updates: Matt Kenseth Claims Pocono Victory, Outraces Joey Logano & Kyle Busch

By Nens Bolilan| Aug 03, 2015

Despite leading only two laps, Matt Kenseth took home a surprising win at the Pocono Raceway on Sunday.

Rarely leading in fuel-strategy matches, Kenseth proved that he had what it take to bear race leaders Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch, according to USA Today.

It seemed that an unexpected problem on the part of Busch also aided in Kenseth's victory. Busch reportedly ran out of fuel near the end of the race.

"There have been a few races through the years where I thought we had it all figured out (in fuel-mileage finishes). But we'd catch an untimely caution or something. There have been other races where we dominated but ran out of gas. It was great to have a fast car and have fuel mileage good enough to win," Kenseth said in the USA Today report.

He added that his crew chief Jason Ratcliff instructed him to save his fuel.

"Jason told me I needed to save a little bit early on. I kept bugging him to see when we had saved enough. He told me, 'Never.' I couldn't catch the leaders, but I wanted to be as close to them as possible in case they ran out," added Kenseth.

In a similar Fox Sports reportm Kenseth said that his victory at Pocono was really unexpected.

"I'm really, really thankful to be with these guys and to get the win. I never thought I'd ever win at Pocono and I never, ever thought I'd win a fuel-mileage race. So we did both today," Kenseth said.

Nascar said Busch had no more fuel halfway through the final circuit of the race.

"Seeking his fourth straight victory in the series, Busch didn't save quite enough fuel on the last green-flag run to complete the 160-lap event, but he still gained 10 points toward his goal of reaching the top 30 in the series standings," the Nascar report read.

After the race, Busch was still 13 points behind David Gilliland, who was at the 30th place. For him to be eligible for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Busch needs to be part of the top 30 racers.

Asked for his side after the race, Busch told Fox Sports that he was not aware that he was already low on fuel.

"I didn't know we were that close (on fuel). Man, that was a bummer. I wish I would have saved a little more," Busch added.

Meanwhile, Logano said that he was not satisfied with the way he raced on Sunday. "We did everything right today," said Logano, who came into Pocono with six top fives but no wins in the prior seven races.

"We keep getting so close to these wins. It's so frustrating."

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