NASCAR has declared August 18 as Kyle Busch Day, celebrating the two numbers (8/18) with which he built the legend of his racing career. Across the sport, Busch’s fans and fellow drivers alike are sharing memories of Rowdy and telling stories of how he impacted their lives in the racing world.
Kyle Larson took part in the remembrances in a video shared by Hendrick Motorsports, telling the story of how Busch gave him a bit of a “Welcome to the league” moment early in his career.
“The first would be running the [Truck Series] at Homestead in 2012,” Larson said. “I thought I was running the top, and Kyle caught me and passed me and pointing up for me to get higher. Really taught me how to run the wall I felt like there, from following him. That was a cool memory, just being a nobody at that point.”
The idea of Busch offering a lesson, but only after making the pass, feels exactly correct.
Larson went on to go through some of his favorite moments racing against Busch in the Cup Series, noting that “They’re all of me losing to him.”
Chase Elliott also had fond memories of Busch, especially racing outside of the Cup Series early in his career.
“I raced against him in Berlin, Michigan a long time ago. One of my first super late model races I ran,” Elliott said. “I just thought it was really cool. He was coming down and racing a lot of those shows. I was probably 14-ish, and to have a chance to race against a guy who was dominant on Sundays. He and I had a great battle for the win. He got the upper-hand, but it was a lot of great lessons for me.”
Busch was a racer’s racer, driving across several series throughout his entire career. Just days before his passing, he had won the 69th Truck Series race of his career at Dover. Today, Larson is one of several drivers that hops around the racing world, getting behind whatever wheel he can to put on a show for fans.
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