Kyle Busch was faster than Kyle Larson and had closed to the back bumper of the leading No. 42 Chevrolet in the waning laps of the rain-delayed Cup Series race Monday at Bristol Motor Speedway. Being faster, though, doesn’t ensure one can make a pass — especially when a win is on the line and especially on a tight short track that leaves drivers little room to maneuver.
Red hot Kyle Busch winning both on the track and off
From winning a NASCAR race to a well-received appearance on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s podcast, Kyle Busch has had quite the good week.
Given the circumstances, Busch had one of two options before the checkered flag waved: 1) He could wait and hope a golden opportunity presented itself to pass Larson, or 2) force his way by executing a patented bump-and-run move where Busch would use his bumper to nudge Larson up the track allowing him to go by. There were pros and cons to either choice with neither offering a surefire winning strategy.
Busch elected for the second option and with six laps left he put his front bumper to Larson’s car as they entered Turn 1, creating just enough of an opening to squeeze through. From there Busch never looked back, going on to win for a second consecutive week.
“When it comes down to the end, it’s crunch time, you’ve got to go,” Busch said. “I wasn’t sure if I made my move too soon, I thought so. But our car was fast enough that Larson never had a shot to get back to us to repay the favor.”
That Busch made the correct choice at the decisive moment is no surprise. Just about everything lately is working in the favor of the driver, who in addition to back-to-back wins, has finished no worse than third over the past six races and is comfortably atop the standings by 59 points over second-place Joey Logano.
A lot can transpire between now and mid-November when NASCAR crowns its 2018 Cup Series champion, but there is every indication Busch will again qualify for the Final Four as he has every season since 2015 and be in contention to capture his second title in four years.
In addition to owning a pair of wins that have virtually secured him a postseason berth, Busch has already accumulated 12 playoff points — tied with Kevin Harvick for series-best — and is well on his way to building up a cushion similar to what Martin Truex Jr. achieved during the regular season a year ago. Those bonus points proved critical as it propelled Truex into the Final Four where he then won the championship by outdueling Busch in a hotly contested battle.
There once was a period in Busch’s career where high-level success from year-to-year was not a given. One great year would be followed by inconsistency the following, and Busch’s repeated stumbles in the playoffs were almost an annual occurrence.
That time is long gone, given way to a driver whose 16 wins since 2015 are a series-best and can seemingly be penciled in every season to be among the four vying for the championship come the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. In part because of his maturation as a driver and person — he and wife Samantha welcomed their first child in 2015, the same season Busch remarkably returned from serious injury far sooner than expected — and in part due to strong rapport with crew chief Adam Stevens, who was paired with Busch prior to the 2015 season, the 32-year-old has never been better.
“It’s a true testament to our team, it’s just working phenomenally together,” Busch said. “Since Adam has been on board, this is the same group of guys — we’ve maybe lost one or two here or there. And so our group is pretty cool.
“I enjoy working with my guys an awful lot, and I just feel like we’re clicking on all eight cylinders right now. That’s just a great thing to have, and it gives you a lot of confidence when you can go to the racetrack with these guys.”
The good vibes are not just contained to the track. Busch was a guest this week on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s popular podcast where the two rehashed the dissolving of their once-friendship along with an incident between them 10 years ago where Busch spun Earnhardt out of the lead during the spring race at Richmond Raceway.
An astute Busch set the tone for the proverbial burying of the hatchet by bringing Dunkin’ Donuts and a case of Budweiser with him to the taping Tuesday morning at JR Motorsports, the Xfinity Series team Earnhardt co-owns. Assorted topics were discussed during the nearly 90-minute taping, including the resentment both drivers had for one another to the death threats Busch incurred in the aftermath of crashing Earnhardt at Richmond. Busch even divulged how one time he had to be whisked by police after winning an Xfinity race at Kentucky Speedway, a story that left Earnhardt astonished.
“As soon as I did the victory lane stuff they corralled me and got me and took me into a cop car and took me out of the race track in a cop car,” Busch said on The Dale Jr. Download. “I’m like ‘What are we doing boys? What’s going on?’ They were like, ‘We’ve had a tipoff that there’s a shooter on the loose. A guy’s coming to the race track with a shotgun.’”
Across social media, Busch’s guest appearance received rave reviews. He was personable, engaging, and candid, while the edge he often displays in public settings was noticeably absent.
And a byproduct is that the image of NASCAR’s chief villain may now be taking a turn for the positive, something that once may have been unheard of considering the schism that exists between him and his many detractors.
It has just been that kind of week for Busch, one where he is winning both on the track and off.
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