Race weekend at Bristol is heating up, and NASCAR fans are buzzing with excitement as the Cup Series’ first elimination round unfolds. Richard Childress‘s star driver is looking for redemption after a recent lackluster performance. As the Nevada native has his sights set on securing a spot in the Championship 4 at Phoenix for the 6th time, Kyle Busch is gunning for the checkered flag at Bristol’s iconic track, where he’s no stranger to the victory lane. As this year marks the 16th playoff appearance for the seasoned driver, Busch boasts an impressive 63 career wins, out of which 8 were claimed at Bristol. 

Meanwhile, in the Truck Series, one of his proteges, formerly with Kyle Busch Motorsports, is already living the Phoenix dream. After claiming his third win of the season at Bristol, Corey Heim secured the coveted one out of four spots for the battle set to grace the Phoenix raceway.

Phoenix dream becomes reality for Kyle Busch protege 

With such a perfect launch into the season finale, Heim, during the SiriusXM NASCAR podcast, shared about the sweet situation he finds himself in and his lookout for the final three races left out of the 23-race schedule. 

Corey expressed his relief, saying, “Yeah, it’s unreal. I mean, I was really worried about this round, just with Bristol being, as I said, so hard to pass. And if you get behind, and all the wrecks that happen here, you get to Talladega and have another bad race, you are basically in a must-win at Homestead.”

“And when you cut the playoff field in half like that, it’s super important to be perfect. So, to just get that off of our chests, go to Talladega and have some fun, and then go to Homestead, have some fun, and then really just put all of our efforts forward and focus on Phoenix, is just awesome.”

Read more: “What the Fu*k Happened”- Furious Kyle Busch Blasted Off RCR on Radio After Former Controversial Manufacturer’s Daytona Surprise

Corey Heim graced the Truck Series paddock back in 2021, marking his debut race under Busch’s Truck Series team banner, KBM. It was a part-time stint in the cockpit of the No. 51 that witnessed Heim make three starts for the team. Fast forward to 2022. Leaving behind an impressive 2021 ARCA Menards campaign, Heim moved to a 15-race schedule in 2022 driving for KBM.

In his rookie season, the Georgia native claimed two wins and finished 14th in the standings. Heim’s mentorship under Cup Series legend Kyle Busch paid off, as he earned 2022 Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year honors.

Heim’s thrilling last-lap victory with a 218 gap

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The race at Bristol delivered an exhilarating spectacle that had fans on the edge of their seats. Christian Eckes, the Kansas winner, appeared poised for a consecutive victory as he secured stage 1 and stage 2 wins. However, the regular-season champion had other plans. On lap 195 out of 200, the No. 11 Toyota made a daring move beneath Eckes’ No. 19 Chevy, snatching the win by a mere 0.218 seconds.

After the race, an ecstatic Corey Heim couldn’t contain his excitement, saying, “This is insane. I feel like I’ve given so many away this year that to win that way is so special. I was in the zone trying to catch [Eckes]. I just focused forward. Just to know we’re going to race at Phoenix, that’s awesome.”

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With Heim having secured the Phoenix spot, can RCR’s Busch mirror his mentee’s steps and reach Phoenix too? What do you think?p