Kyle Busch punctuates comeback with impressive Sonoma win

Four months ago Kyle Busch laid in an emergency room of a Daytona Beach, Fla., hospital. A devastating crash that saw him slam nearly head-on into an unprotected concrete wall broke his right leg and left foot, putting not just his season in doubt, but also his career.

No one knew when Busch would return -- or even if he would return. At a minimum, he appeared out for a good chunk of the season. Perhaps he’d come back sometime in the fall, but any shot of winning the championship was certainly gone. That would have to wait for 2016.

In April, Busch himself said he hoped to return by the Fourth of July weekend race at Daytona -- the halfway point of the season -- but admitted that might be optimistic.

Showing no ill effects other than a limp, Busch remarkably resumed driving the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 car late last month. And while he missed 11 races recuperating, it was nowhere near the length of time originally thought, which meant a championship was still attainable as NASCAR granted him a waiver to qualify for a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup playoff -- provided Busch fulfilled two stipulations.

The first obligation was rather straightforward: Busch needed to win one of the remaining 15 regular season races. However, the second condition was more complex: He had to finish 30th or better in the standings. A difficult proposition considering the number of races he missed with a razor thin margin of error.

Busch checked off the first requirement Sunday, winning the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway. An accomplishment in and of itself, but more so because it was just his fifth race since returning and came on a twisty and technical road course that demanded heavy braking. And because Busch brakes with his left foot -- the same foot he broke -- that made the task all the more difficult.

“This is awesome. Just unbelievable,” Busch said in Victory Lane.

Here was a driver, who four months ago couldn’t even walk, winning on one of NASCAR’s toughest and physically taxing circuits. A driver, who two months ago wasn’t sure if he would even be back in the car this season.

“I know he’s been through quite a bit,” said second-place finisher Kurt Busch, Kyle’s older brother. “To have your leg broken, your foot shattered, to never be injured and out of the car, I don’t know what that feels like ... rehab is very difficult, and it is a mental challenge.

“I’m very proud of Kyle for what he’s done to get back in the car as soon as he did get back in the car. Then, to be competitive at a track with hard, hard braking and to use his left foot to drive to Victory Lane, I’m very proud of him.”

On Friday, following two sessions of practice, Busch described his pain level as a seven on a 1-to-10 scale. Icing his foot helped with the discomfort and the soreness was minimal after qualifying on Saturday. Sunday, though, was a challenge, as the race’s distance required 110 laps around the 1.99-mile 10-turn track.

“Made it through today -- that’s all that mattered,” Busch said following his 30th career win. “I knew it was going to get painful and I was going to have to power through it. It kind of started to cross my mind, but you know, when you’ve got fresh tires and seven laps to go and you see the checkered flag waiting for you, you know, you forget about all those things.”

Team owner Joe Gibbs called it a “real testimony” to Busch’s perseverance. Strong words from a man who won three Super Bowls as a head coach and earned enshrinement in the NFL Hall of Fame.

“The race that we were really worried about when he came back was this race,” Gibbs said. “It takes a lot of pressure on your foot. ... It’s a great sports story. I was thrilled to be a part of it.”

By winning, Busch rejuvenated his once bleak Chase prospects. Two crashes -- neither a fault of his own -- in his first four races back had sunk him further in the standings, making it doubtful he would be able to jump above the 30th position threshold NASCAR mandated he finish.

But with a victory to his credit, Busch and the No. 18 team no longer have to race aggressively and borderline recklessly to erase a sizable points deficit. Sonoma changes their collective approach going forward. Being conservative, taking a solid result and the accompanying points is now a viable option.

“We don’t have to put ourselves in a bad spot when we’re running third, fourth or fifth to try to get that victory,” Busch said. “We can run third, fourth or fifth and that’s a good day for us -- that’ll be just fine. We just need to be able to do that.”

Even if he utilizes a conservative game plan, Busch’s path to the Chase is still arduous. He trails 30th-ranked Cole Whitt by 136 points with 10 races remaining and will need to post an average finish of roughly 14th to erase the gap. Not impossible, just difficult considering Busch’s career average finish is 15.3

“Certainly it’s feasible,” Busch said. “There’s no reason why it shouldn’t be. This team is good enough to be that way and I should be good enough to be that way.”

But if there is a lesson in his sooner-than-expected comeback and Sunday’s impressive win, it’s not to dismiss Busch’s Chase chances. As thus far, he’s 2-for-2 in pulling off the seemingly improbable.