Kurt Busch said on Thursday at the NASCAR championship preview event that he will not race in the IndyCar season finale at Auto Club Speedway on Oct. 19.
Deadline passes for Kurt Busch to run IndyCar finale at Auto Club Speedway
The 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion will not compete in the IndyCar Series finale at Auto Club Speedway next month. He still hopes to race in the Indianapolis 500 next season.
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Busch explained that the deadline has passed that he and Andretti Autosport agreed on to notify Chevrolet that they would need an engine for the event. Busch had been exploring the possibility of running the event as a possible warm-up for next year’s Indianapolis 500.
That option is still very much on the table.
“I was just hoping to have more of my homework done, more experience and more of an education, which would have meant to race Fontana this year and to be better prepared for Indianapolis next year,” Busch said.
Busch made the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship this season -- NASCAR’s version of the playoffs -- while driving for single-car operation, Furniture Row Racing.
Competing for a Chase spot and ultimately making it likely attributed to Busch not meeting his deadline with Chevrolet and Andretti. Busch can now divert all of his energy towards winning a championship in his last season with the team. The 2004 champion will move to Stewart-Haas Racing next season.
Busch will also need to find a sponsorship package in order to run the entire month of May next year.
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