Kyle Busch’s Season Start Goes From Bad to Worse With an Unideal Start at COTA

Is Kyle Busch hitting another rough patch? Sure, it seems like it. The Richard Childress Racing star’s been wrestling with pit crew problems, swapping out his crew four times already in the five races. And just when you thought that was enough, there’s a new hurdle. Following some costly slip-ups on pit road last Sunday in Las Vegas, the team went all out, overhauling the #8 Chevy’s over-the-wall crew. And well, now it’s a new one. His car is having some technical troubles, dragging Kyle Busch back to the pit road right before the season’s first road course race.

Kyle Busch has hit a snag with his pit stall pick

Everyone was buzzing about Kyle Busch possibly repeating his stellar performance from last year, where he nailed a P2 finish on the 3.41-mile road course. But things aren’t kicking off as hoped. Fox’s Bob Pockrass just dropped the news that Busch’s ride didn’t make it through pre-race inspection in Austin until the third attempt. His car chief, Randall Burnett, was shown the door, and to add insult to injury, Busch lost his preferred pit stall pick and will have to start from the back of the grid.

Kyle Busch has had a rough start this season, finishing P26, P22, and P25 at Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Bristol, respectively. At Bristol, his right side tires took a beating, leading to a spin-out. To add to the drama, his No. 8 car was stuck in reverse during a caution right after spinning. The result? A letdown of 25th place.

Furthermore, #8 isn’t riding this storm alone. Ricky Stenhouse Jr also got dinged with his car flunking inspection twice, leading to his car chief Mike Kelley’s ejection. On top of that, Pockrass let slip that Timmy Hill, behind the wheel of the #66 Chevy, didn’t pass his first inspection and is waiting for round two, while most others cleared their checks on the first or second go.

Now, as Kyle Busch gears up for the road course, he’s already hit a bump with the pre-race inspection hiccup. While many might think it’s a long shot for Kyle Busch to pull off a win at COTA, it begs: If not Kyle Busch, then who’s poised to take the victory at COTA?

EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix favorites for 2024

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The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix is gearing up to be a highlight of 2024, marking the season’s first venture into road course racing as the NASCAR Cup Series hits Austin, Texas, for a showdown at the Circuit of the Americas. The track, with its 20 challenging turns, is no stranger to Cup Series action, hosting it for the fourth time. However, we can definitely expect a shift from last week’s tire-troubling drama at Bristol to a battle of car handling amid the circuit’s twists and turns.

While Kyle Busch boasts four road-course Cup victories, placing him alongside Kyle Larson for third among active drivers, his recent track record suggests he might be more of a dark horse this time around. With 53 road-course starts under his belt, Busch has landed in the top 10 a whopping 29 times, 20 of which were top-5 finishes.

Tyler Reddick, last year’s champ at COTA with three of his five career Cup victories on road courses, is definitely one to watch. Despite a mixed bag of results this season, including two top-10s and three 29th-or-worse finishes, with an average finish of 20.2, Reddick has the skills to make a strong bid for the win.

Read More: Kyle Busch Highlights a Phoenix-Esque Flaw in COTA Despite a Major Revamp

Then there’s Chase Elliott, who just nabbed his first top-10 finish of the season at Bristol and is showing solid form with three top-five starts, boasting an average season finish of 13.6. When it comes to COTA, Elliott’s track record is stellar, averaging a 2.5 finish in two races. He clinched fourth in 2022 and sat out last year due to an injury, but #9’s history suggests he’s a strong contender.

Ross Chastain is another racer you shouldn’t count out. He took the checkered flag at COTA in 2022 and snagged fourth place in both 2021 and ’23. With an average finish of 3.0 on this road course and having completed nearly all laps run this season, Chastain is looking like a solid choice. And last but not least, he is going to be the one who recently beat everyone’s favorite driver. It’ll be interesting to see if Hamlin can continue the momentum this weekend.

So, who’s your bet to take the victory at the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix?