Busch wins Xfinity race, pole for Brickyard 400

All that work finally got him back to a pretty cool spot in victory lane — and some ice-cold water.

After claiming two poles Saturday afternoon, Busch returned to the track and led all but one lap to win his second straight NASCAR Xfinity Series victory at the track by 0.415 seconds over hard-charging Kevin Harvick.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star held off two former Brickyard 400 winners and one, Harvick, couldn’t even catch the leader after taking new tires during the final caution period, which extended the race to 63 laps.

“New tires for those guys were good for them, not so much for us,” Busch said after completing the final 36 laps without a stop.

In Brickyard 400 qualifying, Busch posted a fast lap of 184.634 mph, just ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Carl Edwards at 184.547.

Three-time Cup champion and two-time Brickyard winner Tony Stewart, who is retiring after the season, will start third in his final race at Indy after posting a speed of 184.328.

Qualifying on Saturday was hampered by heavy rainfall, which delayed the start by 20 minutes and also led to several interruptions and crashes, including by Felipe Massa of Williams and Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson.