Tensions rose at NASCAR’s Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis on Sunday, marking another difficult weekend for Chevrolet driver Kyle Busch. With only three laps remaining in the race, Busch, who was gunning for a top-five finish, lunged forward in an attempt to pass Denny Hamlin. The Las Vegas-born driver’s attempt to secure fifth position resulted in a costly mishap:
he entered Turn 3 too low, causing his vehicle to push up the track and contact with Hamlin’s, finally resulting to a disaster that finished his race early. Busch apologized to his team after reflecting about the event on X (previously Twitter).
He wrote (below): “Got right where we wanted to be with a good car and some really good pit calls. I’m really sorry to all my guys and RCR for crashing while trying to b aggressive and get them a top 5 finish. Ready for this two wk break. Really need it.”
This season has been notably difficult for Busch, who has not seen the checkered flag first in his last 43 races, the longest winless streak of his career. Recent performances have further affected his confidence, finishing with a DNF in six out of his last eight race starts. As of this weekend, Busch finds himself more than 110 points below the playoff qualification line – the remaining races will prove to be very important for the driver.
Denny Hamlin, speaking on the Actions Detrimental podcast, shared his view on Busch’s current struggles.
“What have you seen that makes you think he’s gonna win a race? Can he win a race? Yes, absolutely. But not like legitimately. He’s not gonna win one legitimately and that’s just a fact and I apologize to the Kyle Busch fans listening, but we have to be honest with ourselves,” said Hamlin. “I’m not putting this on Kyle, trust me I’ve been teammates with him, the guy is elite. He’s great. But you gotta show that you can at least consistently run in the top-five to even have a chance to win, and we haven’t seen that lately.”
With his last top-five finish on April 28 at Dover Motor Speedway now a distant memory, the upcoming race—the Cook Out 400 at Richmond on August 11—will be his chance at redemption.
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