The Samsung Mobile 500 Weekend featured a host of exciting activities. Carl Edwards (No. 60 Fastenal Ford) earned his second consecutive Nationwide Series victory at Texas Motor Speedway as he won the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300. Edwards, who won the Coors Light pole, led 169 laps and joined Kyle Busch as the only Nationwide Series drivers to win from the pole at TMS.
His win marked the third time a Nationwide Series driver has won consecutive events at Texas Motor Speedway, joining Mark Martin and Busch as the drivers to accomplish the feat. Edwards escaped trouble on Lap 88 when the lapped car of Tim Schendel blew a tire in front of the leaders. Edwards was able to avoid the collision but Busch, who was running second at the time and appeared to be Edwards’ biggest challenger of the evening, was unable to escape as he collided with Schendel sending both cars into the Turn 2 wall. The Friday event was historic for Texas Motor Speedway as it was the first NASCAR Nationwide Series race held at night.
The excitement continued on Saturday as the speedway hosted the No Limits Garage Party presented by WinStar World Casino, a new perk for Texas Motor Speedway’s PSL and Season-Ticket Holders in the LiftMaster Garage. The No Limits activities featured the Outwest Outlaws female roller derby team, a live concert by the disco band Le Freak, pig races and much more.
Texas Motor Speedway continued the No Limits attitude with a pre-race concert by modern American rockers, 3 Doors Down. 3 Doors Down performed a free concert on the frontstretch stage that highlighted the pre-race activities leading up to the start of the first-ever Saturday night NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. The Mississippi-based band had sold more than 16 million albums worldwide while also earning three Grammy nominations, two American Music Awards and five BMI Pop Awards for songwriting.
Once the sun set, the lights came on and Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Crown Royal Black Ford) snapped his 76-race winless streak by winning the Samsung Mobile 500. Kenseth was able to finally break through at “The Great American Speedway!”™ after finishing runner-up four times since his first victory at TMS in 2002. Kenseth led a race-high 169 laps to help him become the fourth Sprint Cup Series driver with multiple wins at “The Great American Speedway!”™
Kenseth’s victory capped off a night where all four of Roush Fenway Racing’s cars finished in the top 10 with Carl Edwards finishing third, Greg Biffle fourth and David Ragan in seventh. The Saturday event was historic for Texas Motor Speedway as it was the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held at night.
