With 17 laps left to run in the LifeLock.com NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet driver Jimmy Johnson passed Kyle Busch for the lead and appeared to be headed for victory. However, in the twilight stage of the 267-lap race, a caution flag was thrown — the ninth of the race — setting up an old school two-lap dash to the finish. Knowing that Johnson had the better car in Chicago, Kyle Busch devised a master plan for the restart: when the race went green, he was going to go the exact opposite direction that leader Johnson would.

“It didn’t matter which way he was going to go, I was going the other way,” said the 23 year old who also won Friday night’s Dollar General 300 NASCAR Nationwide race on the same track. “I pushed Jimmy to go and was like, ‘Let’s go man, here we go.’ I just had to go to the outside because he was going block the bottom in Turn 1 and 2.”

Busch made the pass and held on to win his seventh NASCAR Sprint Cup of the season. Still, he knew that a little luck was involved in winning this one. Busch explained: “Without that caution, the race was over: Jimmy was going to the checkered flag.”

Added a somewhat dejected Johnson upon climbing from his #48 Chevy: “I thought I had such a car; I thought I’d get away from him on the restart. He got a great start and was right there with me and just broke past that bumper plane through the center of one and two. And that was it. If I could do it over again I’d play more defense on the restart.”

Childress Racing Chevrolet driver Kevin Harvick placed third in the race, Greg Biffle was fourth and Tony Stewart, still winless in 2008, was fifth.

But the nigh was all Busch’s’.

“I don’t believe how good things are going,” the Joy Gibbs Racing Toyota wheelman beamed. “It’s just been a phenomenal year. Something just so special. It was a great car out front all night. I knew when Jimmie got us there that the clean air was going to be it. Luckily we got that caution and got back by him.”

Eric Johnson