On his 36th birthday, Kyle Busch took a dramatic win in the NASCAR Cup Series Buschy McBusch Race 400 at Kansas Speedway. It was a total Busch day in terms of Busch winning on his birthday, the race being sponsored by Busch Beer and Kevin Harvick finishing runner-up in the Busch Beer No. 4 car.
“It’s cool to get everybody back into victory lane again, this early in the season,” Busch, who didn’t win a race in 2020 until the 34th race of the season. “To be able to get some of those points going our way now. Well, hell I just remembered, The Buschy McBusch Race, the Busch won it.”
Busch led just 20 laps on the day, but he led the final 11 circuits to take his first win of the 2021 NCS season. This marks Busch’s 58th-career NASCAR Cup Series win, and he is now the 10th different winner in the season’s opening 11 races.
It was a feel good moment for Busch, who experienced heartbreak earlier in the week with his wife Samantha, as they revealed their latest attempt at having a second baby did not succeed.
“Well, you talk about ups and downs of racing, it’s been a lot of downs of life for us,” Busch explained. “I have a great opportunity and a great job, no doubt. But struggling with infertility and stuff like that for Samantha.”
Behind Busch and Harvick was Brad Keselowski in the Verizon 5G Ford Mustang in third.
Matt DiBenedetto scored his third straight finish inside the top-10 with a fourth-place effort and Chase Elliott was fifth.
Martin Truex Jr., Tyler Reddick, Chris Buescher, William Byron and Austin Dillon rounded out the top-10 finishers on Sunday.
It looked like Kyle Larson’s race to lose, but a caution called by NASCAR for a stranded tire on lap 223 changed the complexion of the race. On the final restart, Larson was shuffled back after making contact with Ryan Blaney.
The driver who led 132 laps on the day, finished a disappointing 19th.
Denny Hamlin also looked like he could be heading toward a win on Sunday, as he had the lead with less than 30 laps to go. Then, with 24 to go, he lost control and slammed the outside wall while leading.
A lap later, Hamlin cut a tire to bring out the caution. Hamlin would soldier on to finish 12th.
