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Keeping Pace

NNS Recap: Guitar Hero: Logano Wins At Nashville

Joey Logano celebrates in victory lane with the Sam Bass designed guitar trophy. (Photo Credit: John Sommers II/Getty Images for NASCAR) (John Ii / The Spokesman-Review)
Joey Logano celebrates in victory lane with the Sam Bass designed guitar trophy. (Photo Credit: John Sommers II/Getty Images for NASCAR) (John Ii / The Spokesman-Review)

Joey Logano picked up his first win of the season; coming in the Nashville 300 for the Nationwide Series' first stand alone event of 2009.

Courtesy: NASCAR

LEBANON, Tenn. -- Joe Gibbs Racing’s Joey Logano slipped past teammate Kyle Busch with nine laps to go and hung on to win the Nashville 300 Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway.
 
The victory was Logano’s first of the season and second of his young career. The 18-year-old also won last year at Kentucky Speedway.

“It’s been awhile,” a smiling Logano said after the race. “We had a really good run here the last time we were here and got caught up in a wreck. It was awesome to be able to get that win this time. Ever since I’ve been coming to Nashville … I’ve been wanting to that that guitar, and this is just awesome.”
 
The track awards a unique trophy to the race winner, a Sam Bass-painted Gibson Les Paul guitar, which Logano proudly carried home in a case after the race.
 
The race was a battle between the Gibbs teammates, and Busch and Logano led 172 of the race’s 225 laps.
 
“He had a better car on the short run, and we had a better car on the long run,” Busch said. “(The team) did a great job, and it was just a shame we weren’t able to get out there and win this thing. That’s kind of frustrating, but we finished second today.”
 
The victory was also the first of the season for JGR’s No. 20 team and crew chief Dave Rogers, and Rogers’ first since his suspension last year.
 
Busch completed the JGR 1-2 finish by coming home second. JR Motorsports’ Brad Keselowski was third, followed by Kevin Harvick Inc.’s Kelly Bires and Roush Fenway Racing’s Carl Edwards.
 
Sixth through 10th were Braun Racing’s Jason Leffler. Roush Fenway’s David Ragan, Phoenix Racing’s Mike Bliss, Rusty Wallace Racing’s Steve Wallace and CJM Racing’s Scott Lagasse Jr.
 
Busch cut into Edwards’ points lead and now trails by 23 after the sixth race of the season.



Keeping Pace

Motorsports correspondent Doug Pace keeps up with motorsports news and notes from around the region.