LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — Brexton Busch was just a preschooler when dad tossed him in the air in victory lane at Pocono.

Kyle Busch is ready to toss Brexton the keys — OK, fine, NASCAR vehicles don’t use keys — to his truck at Kyle Busch Motorsports and have his son replace him behind the wheel.

It just might take a few years.

The 38-year-old Busch mapped out a succession plan that started with his retirement from the elite Cup Series when Brexton is 15 years old and ends with his son taking the full-time ride in Trucks once dad completely calls it quits from NASCAR.

Busch, though, is still in his prime and proved it again Saturday at Pocono.

He passed Shane Heim on the last lap and won the Truck Series at Pocono Raceway. It marked the 100th career win for KBM, Busch’s 64th win in Trucks, and extended his record of 229 victories across the three major NASCAR series.

“We needed this 100th win to get it over with,” Busch said. “It’s a monumental day. It’s a century mark of being able to win 100 races. We’re just a small team. We found a home here in the Trucks.”

Brexton is just 8 years old and has carried on the family racing tradition — dad is a two-time Cup champion; uncle Kurt won the 2004 championship — and he already won races in various disciplines around the country.

Kyle’s plan goes like this: Brexton is allowed at age 15 per NASCAR rules to run Trucks races at tracks 1 1/2 miles and shorter and at road courses. Busch & Son would share a ride until Brexton turns 18 and can race the full slate.

Oh, and there’s this wrinkle. Busch, in his first season driving for Richard Childress Motorsports, would quit Cup once Brexton is 15 and try to win a Truck championship. It’s the one NASCAR title that has eluded him — he also was the second-tier Xfinity Series champ in 2009. He’d split the Trucks ride at KBM once Brexton turns 16 and Busch would retire by 50.

“It’s kind of been an idea of mine, but it’s not necessarily why KBM is still going,” Busch said at Pocono. “We obviously give back to the sport doing that and (with) all the drivers that have kind of come through there over the years. We’d like to continue to give back … as I get closer to hanging it up, and then obviously turning it over to Brex.”

Brexton was 5 when he began his racing career in 2020. He competed in the Beginner Box Stock Division at Millbridge Speedway, a 1/6-mile dirt track in Salisbury, North Carolina, and Mountain Creek Speedway, a 1/6-mile dirt track in Catawba, North Carolina. Just a month into his career, Brexton recorded his first win at Mountain Creek.

Busch, who discussed the idea this week on the “ Cars & Culture with Jason Stein ” podcast, founded his KBM Trucks team in 2010 and has won championships with drivers Erik Jones (2015) and Christopher Bell (2017).

LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — Denny Hamlin slid out of his winning Toyota and was instantly booed by a packed Pocono crowd unhappy with how the driver shoved Kyle Larson’s car into the wall over the final laps.

The boos were so loud because the crowd was so large — Pocono sold out the NASCAR race and boasted its largest crowd since 2010.

The increase was attributed in large part to the track losing one race weekend and a series of fan-friendly upgrades to a track that hosted its first NASCAR race in 1974.

NASCAR tracks do not usually release attendance numbers.

Pocono President Ben May said the track sold around 50,000 grandstand tickets and 3,300 camping spots.

“We can’t fit another car, another RV, another person in here today,” May said.

Pocono tore down the old victory tower — made out of a parking garage — and added new viewing decks, food trucks, increased fan access for driver introductions and a new victory lane. The decks were packed with fans standing shoulder-to-shoulder with a tremendous view of the start/finish line. The lines for driver autograph signings and Q&A sessions with drivers snaked through the garage hours before the green flag.

Pocono is one of just a few tracks not owned by NASCAR or Speedway Motorsports. May said part of the motivation for the makeover — he declined to reveal the cost — was to make sure Pocono was attractive enough to remain on the NASCAR schedule.

Pocono held two 500-mile races roughly six summer weeks apart for decades before losing a weekend in 2022.

“We think we deserve to be on the circuit, we’ve been on it for 50 years, so we’re going to continue to do more and more and better and better,” May said.

May, who has been president since 2017, said he wasn’t sure how the next phase of improvements for the 2 1/2-mile tri-oval track nestled in the mountains would shake out. He said plans would likely come to light once the new TV deal is signed.

“We’re a small fish in this big pond of NASCAR and we just take a ton of pride in delivering,” May said.

The track is still owned and run by the family of founder Joseph Mattioli. His grandson, Nick Igdalsky, is the Pocono CEO.

“I’m just happy that we came out of here with a stands packed, infield packed, campground absolutely full,” Hamlin said. “This has just been a fabulous weekend at Pocono. I think Nick and his team have done a phenomenal job continuing to invest in this facility. Hopefully, we continue to come back here every single year.”