Earlier this year, Denny Hamlin claimed that NASCAR has a “physics problem” with Next-Gen cars. His former Joe Gibbs Racing teammate may have briefly forgotten about that last weekend at Talladega. From mechanical failures to plain bad luck, Kyle Busch has faced a multitude of problems in the 2024 Cup Series season. However, the Next-Gen issue stood out this time – along with dwindling support for the two-time champ.

Chaotic events peppered the Yellawood 500 race. The largest ‘Big One’ unfolded on lap 183 of the race – but Busch steered clear of that. His chaotic moment came right at the end and in a silent, heartbreaking manner. As he broke away from the main file and attempted to form another line, nobody gave him a push. A NASCAR insider points out that this is because no heroic element exists in the sport anymore.

Kyle Busch’s lonely treatment is a symptom of the times

Gone are those days when drivers could slice their way from the back of the field to the front by the end of a race. In the days of Dale Earnhardt Sr., maneuvering cars to pass your rivals was a cakewalk. However, things took a turn for the worse when NASCAR debuted the Next-Gen car in 2022. With parts procured from single-source suppliers, lower horsepower (670 hp), and aerodynamic problems, this car thwarted passing dreams – and also heroes like Dale Earnhardt Sr. known for their racing prowess. Kyle Busch fell prey to this excessive parity at Talladega.

So watching the 63-time Cup Series race winner destroy his reputation on the final lap hurt Rowdy fans. Xfinity veteran Kenny Wallace also could not help but lament about it on an episode of the Dale Jr. Download. As co-host Andrew asked if Busch’s timing was off, Wallace replied: “No. Because you’ve already got two lines that don’t have any energy. They’re tied.” He added that Busch does not carry that heroic charm anymore. “I know times have changed and I know I’m old. But if that would have been Dale Jr. or Dale Sr., the whole line would have went with them.” 

The Next-Gen car’s twin purposes were to lower expenditure for teams and to raise parity at the racetrack. While the former was a failure, the latter achieved unprecedented success. So Wallace continued that while Kyle Busch is not a hero, the Cup Series garage hardly has one. Denny Hamlin’s superspeedway success may make him one, but it is a parched field. “Everybody would have definitely went with Kyle Busch…But nowadays, we’re so far removed from the old days, I’m not even sure that we have a hero. Do we have a hero? …Denny’s won three Daytona 500s. Who else would we have gone with? I’m not so sure.”

To think that the same Kyle Busch turned a lapped car into a Victory Lane one 16 years ago on the same track.

Busch breathed fire earlier

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Maybe the Next-Gen car is at fault. Because Rowdy was a phenomenon to watch before its arrival. Even as we lament his dilemma at Talladega Superspeedway, it would be hard to believe what he achieved at the 2.66-mile drafting track in 2008. In six previous Cup races before the Aaron’s 499 race that year, Busch failed to finish four times and wrecked out twice. Kyle Busch even wrecked his head-and-neck restraint in 2007. But in 2008, he was determined against all odds. He fell a lap down midway through the race when he missed his pit during a stop.

Busch had to circle back to try again on the next lap. But then he became the ‘lucky dog’ on the next caution, and it put him in a position to drive back to the front in his Toyota. Busch also overcame a 12-car accident that brought out the yellow flag on the final lap. Kyle Busch won the Talladega race for the first time that year, unable to believe he had finally achieved it. “I don’t think I’ve finished one here without wrecking, or at least without a torn-up car,” said Busch. The victory marked his second Sprint Cup victory of the year and seventh spanning all three of NASCAR’s top series.

Now as he stands at the threshold of his much-awaited 64th race win, Kyle Busch is in agony. Hopefully, he will be able to claw out of his misery soon enough and keep the 19-year winning streak alive.