Kyle Busch has not been shy about wanting to race the Indy 500 before his racing career ends, and he may have the opportunity.
Kyle Busch has accomplished nearvly everything there is to do in NASCAR. He has won two Cup Series championships and one Xfinity Series championship, and he is the most successful driver in the Truck Series, Xfinity Series, and all three NASCAR national series. From 2010 until 2023, he won every Truck Series race with his own team,
Kyle Busch Motorsports. Aside from NASCAR, Busch has raced late model stock cars, winning the Snowball Derby, a famous late model race, in 2009. Aside from stock cars, Busch has competed in events like as the 24 Hours of Daytona and Nitro Rallycross races, which are hosted by Travis Pastrana.
Busch’s racing resume is one for the ages, but the one car Rowdy hasn’t been able to pilot is an open-wheel car. While Busch reportedly had an opportunity to join Formula 1 in 2009, it never came to fruition.
Busch has also not been shy about his desire to compete in the Indy 500, and he even had an offer to compete in the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” in 2017, only to have his then-NASCAR team owner Joe Gibbs prevent him from doing so.
Kyle Busch had a deal done to race in the Indy 500 in 2017 but Joe Gibbs wouldn’t approve it. Busch says the Indy 500 is still on his radar:
Busch left Joe Gibbs Racing for Richard Childress Racing in 2022, and it seems his current owner is more open to the idea of having him compete in the Indy 500.
When asked about having Busch compete in the 500, Childress had the following to say.
“The right opportunities, the right team, the right situation, we would do it and I’m sure Kyle would do it.”
Aside from Childress’ approval, the Las Vegas, Nevada native’s contract allows him to do so as long as he drives a Chevrolet.
Arrow McLaren allegedly expressed interest in Busch before signing Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson to participate in this year’s (and reportedly next year’s) Indy 500, so Busch is already on the IndyCar radar. Busch is 39 years old and will be 40 by next year’s race, but his age should not be a deal breaker.
Jean Alesi raced in the 2012 Indianapolis 500 at the age of 47, making him the series’ oldest rookie ever.
Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson became the second oldest Indy 500 rookie at the age of 46 in 2022. While neither driver finished the race, that should not discourage Busch.
Time will tell if Busch actually gets a chance to pilot an open-wheel car at the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Speedway, Indiana oval. But he already has one thing that he was never able to get in years past: approval from his team owner.
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