For the second time in as many weeks, Kyle Busch went to victory lane in the Camping World SRX Series. This time, the win came at Berlin Raceway on Thursday night.
Busch took the lead from Helio Castroneves with 25 laps to go in the main event, making the move around the outside of the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner. Busch maintained his lead from there, including holding off Brad Keselowski on a restart with eight laps to go.
Having won multiple Late Model races at Berlin in his career, Busch parlayed that experience into Thursday’s triumph.
“The restart was really good,” said Busch. “Being here before, knowing what to expect, all that sort of stuff. I thought about restarting in fourth, and then I was like don’t change it up now. Just stick with what I’ve been doing all night.”
With the win, Busch became the first driver to win consecutive SRX races since Tony Stewart won rounds two and three of the 2021 season at Knoxville Raceway and Eldora Raceway. While he is not scheduled to make any more SRX starts in 2023, Busch hopes to make more appearances in the future and add to his win total
“I’d love to come back. This is my two-for-two. I’m out for the year, but the rest of these guys can put on a show for you.”
Keselowski finished second, with Ryan Newman, Marco Andretti and Hailie Deegan rounding out the top five. Newman's points lead is now at 33 points over Keselowski, with Marco Andretti one point behind Keselowski in third.
Keselowski won the first heat, taking the lead from Busch in the final 10 laps after a battle between the two Cup champions. Former NASCAR Xfinity Series and Craftsman Truck Series champion Johnny Benson, making his SRX debut at his home track, finished third.
After a brief rain delay, the second heat race was shortened to 25 laps or 12 minutes. Using the outside line to his benefit, Newman charged to the win in the second heat ahead of Ken Schrader and Deegan.
With its four pavement races of the season complete, SRX will hit the dirt for the final two rounds of the year. Next week, the series heads to Eldora Speedway before closing out the year at Lucas Oil Speedway.
-Photo credit: Will Bellamy/Racing America
SRX at Berlin Main Event Results
| Fin | St | No. | Driver | Sponsor | Laps | Diff | Status | Points |
| 1 | 3 | 51 | Kyle Busch | Florida Panthers | 100 | -- | Running | -- |
| 2 | 2 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Camping World | 100 | 0.783 | Running | 22 |
| 3 | 1 | 39 | Ryan Newman | South Point | 100 | 1.262 | Running | 20 |
| 4 | 10 | 1 | Marco Andretti | Camping World | 100 | 2.137 | Running | 18 |
| 5 | 5 | 5 | Hailie Deegan | Good Sam | 100 | 2.401 | Running | 16 |
| 6 | 7 | 52 | Ken Schrader | Federated Auto Parts | 100 | 3.212 | Running | 14 |
| 7 | 12 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Bass Pro Shops | 100 | 3.572 | Running | 12 |
| 8 | 6 | 06 | Helio Castroneves | Purdue University | 100 | 4.641 | Running | -- |
| 9 | 9 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Sport Clips Haircuts | 100 | 5.246 | Running | 8 |
| 10 | 4 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | South Point | 100 | 5.369 | Running | -- |
| 11 | 11 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Caymus Vineyards | 100 | 5.535 | Running | -- |
| 12 | 8 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Berger Chevrolet | 100 | 12.416 | Running | -- |
Heat Race 1 Results
| Fin | St | No. | Driver | Sponsor | Laps | Diff | Status | Points |
| 1 | 3 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Camping World | 30 | -- | Running | 12 |
| 2 | 1 | 51 | Kyle Busch | Florida Panthers | 30 | 0.394 | Running | -- |
| 3 | 2 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Berger Chevrolet | 30 | 1.356 | Running | -- |
| 4 | 9 | 39 | Ryan Newman | South Point | 30 | 1.592 | Running | 9 |
| 5 | 8 | 06 | Helio Castroneves | Purdue University | 30 | 2.061 | Running | -- |
| 6 | 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | South Point | 30 | 2.805 | Running | -- |
| 7 | 4 | 1 | Marco Andretti | Camping World | 30 | 3.474 | Running | 6 |
| 8 | 10 | 5 | Hailie Deegan | Good Sam | 30 | 3.673 | Running | 5 |
| 9 | 6 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Sport Clips Haircuts | 30 | 3.965 | Running | 4 |
| 10 | 12 | 52 | Ken Schrader | Federated Auto Parts | 30 | 4.218 | Running | 3 |
| 11 | 11 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Caymus Vineyards | 30 | 4.652 | Running | -- |
| 12 | 7 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Bass Pro Shops | 30 | 5.356 | Running | 1 |
Heat Race 2 Results
| Fin | St | No. | Driver | Sponsor | Laps | Diff | Status | Points |
| 1 | 9 | 39 | Ryan Newman | South Point | 25 | -- | Running | 12 |
| 2 | 3 | 52 | Ken Schrader | Federated Auto Parts | 25 | 0.215 | Running | 11 |
| 3 | 5 | 5 | Hailie Deegan | Good Sam | 25 | 0.339 | Running | 10 |
| 4 | 7 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | South Point | 25 | 0.630 | Running | -- |
| 5 | 4 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Sport Clips Haircuts | 25 | 1.316 | Running | 8 |
| 6 | 12 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Camping World | 25 | 1.950 | Running | 7 |
| 7 | 8 | 06 | Helio Castroneves | Purdue University | 25 | 2.130 | Running | -- |
| 8 | 11 | 51 | Kyle Busch | Florida Panthers | 25 | 2.343 | Running | -- |
| 9 | 6 | 1 | Marco Andretti | Camping World | 25 | 2.491 | Running | 4 |
| 10 | 10 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Berger Chevrolet | 25 | 3.543 | Running | -- |
| 11 | 2 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Caymus Vineyards | 25 | 3.747 | Running | -- |
| 12 | 1 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Bass Pro Shops | 25 | 4.701 | Running | 1 |