While Kyle Busch didn’t love how his car was handling, he didn’t want to put it into the wall less than halfway through the first stage. The good news is Busch wasn’t the only one facing issues during the early going. NASCAR drivers felt that their cars were too tight.
In the first 40 laps or so, the only complaint you heard from drivers was that their cars were too tight. As Kyle Busch drove in the top eight of the field, he got into the wall. That caused a bit of a problem as the pit stops began to happen.
With some possible minor damage to the toe link, this car might not be so easy to drive the rest of the way. Busch did hit pit road and came out P11 as the race resumed.
Not a great start to Rowdy’s hometown race.
For Kyle Busch, an early mistake like this could be incredibly frustrating. Although it appears that after the pit stops, he found his groove again and went right back to moving up through the field. By the time lap 50 came around, Busch found himself in the top 10 once again.
Bad news for Richard Childress Racing is that Austin Dillon is nowhere near the front. He was trying to not get lapped as the leaders came around with 30 laps to go in the first stage.
Kyle Busch Will Try to Overcome Early Damage
Last season, any time we heard the words “toe link” it was always bad news. It almost always ended with a car and driver heading to the garage earlier than planned. Kyle Busch felt that his toe link was a little damaged, and could feel it in the steering.
However, on the FOX broadcast, he also noted that he couldn’t feel too much damage to the right side tires. It is going to be interesting to see if he can find the speed he needs to compete for a win. If not, he might have to count his blessings and try to get as high of a finish as he possibly can.
This Las Vegas weekend is major for Kyle Busch. He won the Truck Series race, finished P4 in the Xfinity Series race, and now he’s ready to finish his best in the Cup Series.
There could be some damage to the car that doesn’t show itself until later. However, it appears that Rowdy was able to more or less avoid disaster. Making contact with the wall can be a massive gamble, and not one that many drivers like to make.
