Back in 2003, a young Kurt Busch was in the form of his life. The Roush Fenway Racing driver battled with 1999 Cup Series champion Dale Jarrett to try and take a fifth career win. However, the veteran driver proved too much for him and he went on to win the race after a mighty duel.
With 11 laps to go, Busch’s #97 car led Jarrett’s #88 car. While passing the lapped car of Mike Skinner, Jarrett managed to sneak in between Skinner and Busch. The two of them were still side-by-side as they got alongside Jeff Gordon to him, a lap down as well. Finally, Dale Jarrett edged his nose ahead and led for the first time, though Gordon avoided getting lapped.
Dale Jarrett vs. Kurt Busch battle for the win during the 2003 Subway 400 @ Rockingham. pic.twitter.com/jou4uLJd3t
— Andrew (@Basso488) November 26, 2021
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Sadly for the Hendrick Motorsports driver, Jarrett and Busch soon got past him for good. From there, the new race leader tried his level best to get away and put lapped cars between himself and the younger driver. However, Busch soon had a new headache to deal with, a hard-charging Matt Kenseth, who was making inroads on him.
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How did the rest of the race pan out for Kurt Busch and Dale Jarrett?
On the bright side, Kenseth also had a lot of traffic to deal with. Hence, he was unable to make much ground on Kurt Busch. Back at the front, Jarrett came across more lapped cars, but they wouldn’t give way easily, as they were fighting for position. As a result of getting a little held up, Jarrett lost the lead to Busch, who took advantage of the traffic.
However, with three laps to go, the #88 driver was able to muscle his way back and reclaim the lead. Of course, the Roush Fenway Racing driver was unwilling to surrender so easily this time. The best part was that there were no more lapped cars to interfere in their dogfight. Sadly for Kurt Busch, Jarrett snatched the lead back and kept it until the chequered flag.
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READ MORE: Kurt Busch Wins Hearts With this Incredible Gesture for Fellow NASCAR Driver