For all the wins Kyle Busch piled up in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, one race stood out above all others.
It was at Michigan International Speedway.
Busch, 41, died Thursday having won more races in the Xfinity series than any other driver. His cause of death has not been released.
Reflecting on his Xfinity Series career, Busch was asked which of his wins was most memorable.
It was not his first, which came in Richmond. Nor was it his record 50th victory in the series at Bristol. The 2004 Michigan race, he said in an interview with Frontstretch, stands apart.
“The one that was really, really cool that stood out to me the most,” Busch said, “it was Michigan. I think it was 2004, my rookie year. I beat Mark Martin. He was always stupid fast, right? But we were stupider fast that day.”
His victory in the 2004 Cabela’s 250 at Michigan felt like a breakthrough moment that confirmed to the young driver that he belonged among NASCAR’s elite, he said. The win came during Busch’s first full Busch Series season — now known as the Xfinity Series — and showcased the raw dominance that later helped make him the winningest driver in series history.
Driving the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, Busch started near the front and led 88 of the race’s 125 laps at Michigan International Speedway, beating future Hall of Famer Mark Martin by nearly four seconds.
“It was great to be able to come out and have a great run at Michigan Speedway,” Busch said afterward, crediting crew chief Lance McGrew and Hendrick horsepower for the dominant performance.
The victory was Busch’s fifth of the 2004 season and helped establish him as one of NASCAR’s emerging stars. At the time, he was battling drivers including Martin Truex Jr., Greg Biffle and Martin in a stacked Busch Series field.
The win also came during a period when Busch was rapidly building his reputation as one of NASCAR’s most naturally gifted young talents. Earlier that same season, he scored his first career Busch Series victory at Richmond and famously called that car “the best car” he had ever driven at the time.
Busch eventually amassed a record 102 Xfinity Series victories, toppling Martin’s record of 49 in the series, and more than 230 combined wins across NASCAR’s top three national series.
Even among all those triumphs, the 2004 Michigan race remained special — the afternoon when a teenage Busch fully announced himself at MIS.
“That was like the defining moment where, ‘Oh, I can do this,’” Busch said. “That one probably felt the best.”
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Kyle Busch ran his most memorable NASCAR Xfinity race at Michigan
Reporting by Gary Miles, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
