Kyle Busch Needs to Win to Make Playoffs but Probably Won't
4 months agoKyle Busch needs to win tonight's Southern 500 to make the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs for a series-best twelfth consecutive time, but it seems rather unlikely. Busch has won at Darlington in the Cup Series, but it was way back in 2008. He has contended to win several other Cup Series races there, most recently the 2022 fall race when he blew an engine, but he has not significantly contended to win any races there since his move to Richard Childress Racing. In his last three starts, he has not led any laps and both his finishes and average running positions there have declined with each passing race. He was a total non-factor in the spring event with a 23rd place average running position. Since he only qualified 17th yesterday, it seems likely that this trend will continue. If anyone wins into the playoffs, it probably won't be him.
Source: Racing Reference
Source: Racing Reference