Ever had one of those weeks where you meant to do something and just can’t seem to do it? Mainly because your to busy. Due to recently moving, I’ve had a ton of work to do around the place. And unfortunately, that gets in the way of writing. And I had some family business on Sunday, so I had to watch the replay of the race at 6 in the morning on Monday, The struggle to not see who won while in a restaurant with TVs everywhere is painstaking. However, I was rewarded with an amazing race, one which will easily be remembered for years to come.

When Kyle Busch, aka Rowdy, starts on the pole, you know a show is on the way. And indeed, he put on a Kyle Busch show for most of the race, leading well over half of it, and collecting the first stage win.

Challenging him were Kyle Larson (Stage 2, and Kevin Harvick. The irony is, neither of these three have a win at Pocono. Now, Larson is still in his young years, so no shock there. However, Harvick and Busch are each amazing drivers, and each has won a championship in the past three years. Bit of a surprising stat.

Well, with Busch in the lead late, and no one in sight, it seemed quite apparent that he would win his first race at Pocono, and of the year while he was at it. But, who would see a late caution coming out?

Well, I may seem like I’m rushing through this, but I need some time for the finish. Because a late caution always means one heck of strategy war. Tires, or no tires? Track position or not? Hard choice.

And frustrating when it goes wrong. Like it did for Busch.  Crew chief Adam Stevens made the call to stay on the track. Which no one else did, other than Brad Keslowski, who’d pitted before the caution for fresh tires. In the mean times, Harvick, Larson, and even Ryan Blaney, who was not very close to the front all day, came to pit road for tires.

However, on the restart Busch actually did get going, while Keslowski looked like a rock in water: sunk. Busch may have gone quickly, but he wasn’t alone. Blaney, who had been no one all day long, was hot on Busch’s tail.

Blaney drove to his bumper, went high, low, and even hit Busch, desperately trying to pass ‘Rowdy.’ Busch, for his part, blocked with an expertise only earned through long and grueling experience, staving off Blaney’s charge with masterful moves. However, one can only hold off a faster car for so long, and Blaney proved this when he powered his way inside of Busch, and passed him through turns 2 and 3. However, Harvick, who had steadily gained on the two dueling at the front, blew by Busch just after Blaney, and began to hunt the young driver of the 21.

Once again, the car in second was faster than the leader. However, Harvick had one weakness. All day, his brake pedals had been touchy, causing him to lose ground going into the corner. Blaney managed to take advantage of this, just barely gaping himself from Harvick on the exit of corners. However, he knew that one mistake was all Kevin needed to get by him.

Have you ever been in that position? You have the win. It’s yours to lose. But one mistake, and that could be the end. Now picture that, but for ten laps, 30 corners, around a 2.5 mile track. That’s thirty chances to mess up over 25 miles! And Blaney knew this the whole time. Well, it didn’t faze him. Blaney drove perfectly, and when the checkered flag waved, he was just ahead of Harvick.

Ryan Blaney, the second generation driver in the family, had won his first race. Not only was it his first win, but it was the first in five years for the famed Wood Brothers Racing team, along with it being the team’s 99th win. And, he did the whole thing without a working radio. His crew could talk to him, but they had no idea what he was saying, and thus had to communicate through sign-language. And… on top of all that, he had to over come a loose wheel early in the race. All that, and Blaney still won the race! I don’t know about you, but this guy is one I’m keeping an eye on during the Chase. A young man, in a legendary car, and he took it to victory lane. Blaney is here, and he’s bringing the Wood Brothers with him. Like he said in victory lane, let’s go get no. 100!