Kyle Busch was the architect of his own downfall during last Sunday’s Cup Series race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The two and a-half-mile racetrack has served some memorable moments for Rowdy in the past. But just like his 2024 season, a return to one of the most hallowed racing grounds after three years, he failed to deliver the goods.

Well, this time around, the No. 8 RCR Chevy was running well, and there were no concerns regarding the racing package. So where exactly did things go south for Kyle Busch and the #8 team?

It came just one of the final few laps of the race where he tried to thread the needle and make a pass on Denny Hamlin. A low percentage move that resulted in Rowdy wrecking himself and finishing the race 25th. From a potential top-5 result to dropping the ball in the final moments of the race. A driver like Kyle Busch should’ve known better. While an argument could be made about how Hamlin raced him in the corner, Kevin Harvick wasn’t going to entertain himself with that idea. Rather, he held Busch accountable for digging a hole for himself with that aggressive move.

Rowdy’s 700th NASCAR Cup Series start ended on a sour note

With 3 laps to go in the race, Kyle Busch wanted to move up a position inside the top 5. Committed to his plans, he made a late entry into the corner and started to drift up the racetrack. The JGR driver just wasn’t going to concede his place late in the race; therefore, he stood strong in his lane and made contact with the #8 Chevy. This sent Busch spinning off the racetrack hard into the wall, a sight that has sort of become a recurring theme this season.

While Hamlin maintained his position, Busch certainly came the worst of the wreck, which again he ignited. Sharing his two cents on Rowdy’s last race muckup, Kevin Harvick said, “This is a loaded scenario because I feel like Kyle is driving way over his head … He’s been in some scenarios where it hasn’t been his fault, but this one is 100 percent on him. With the car that they ran in back with part of the day but wound up making in the front making a pass inside the top five.” Harvick said this on episode 45 of the Happy Hour podcast.

29 points adrift of the cutline, a top 5 or a top 10 result would close the gap on the 16th-place driver in the points standings. But a P25 finish was a missed opportunity where Kyle Busch could’ve gained momentum with four races to go in the regular season. “You gotta finish those; you gotta get those to the start-finish line and finish those days to stop the bleeding. Because right now, I mean he’s bleeding from every direction you can bleed from and I think in some of the situations, you just gotta take a deep breath and maybe let’s finish fifth instead of fourth or instead of third.” Harvick added.

In the aftermath of the race and when the dust settled, Busch was honest about his mistake at the Brickyard 400 that cost his team a solid finish. He even penned down an apology note via his X account.

Kyle Busch acknowledges a lost opportunity

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RCR has sunk to new lows ever since the start of the 2024 Cup Series season. More importantly, even with NASCAR’s active winningest driver, the team seems to fire blanks every weekend they step out to race. With just five races remaining in the regular season, Busch finally had a race car that could help put solid points on board. It was perhaps one of the brighter days for the No. 8 team, and with 3 laps to go, the points were in the bag. But it all snapped within a few seconds as Busch wrecked himself, trying to bite off more than he could chew.

Even the driver himself knew that it was a big blunder on his part and therefore owned up to his wrongdoings via a message on X. “Got right where we wanted to b w a good car and some really good pit calls. I’m really sorry to all my guys and RCR for crashing while trying to b aggressive and get them a top 5 finish. Ready for this two wk break. Really need it.”

A win is the only thing that could perhaps salvage the season for Kyle Busch and RCR. Although the prospect of winning looks like a far-fetched thought, a lot could change in those remaining four regular-season races.