Motorsport.com continues with this week’s edition of our ‘Kyle Busch Remembered’ series, looking back on his most iconic moments from Talladega Superspeedway.
Five of Busch’s record 234 career NASCAR national series wins came at Talladega. His final victory came just days before his tragic passing at the age of 41 this past May.
In honor of KB, we’ve been highlighting his most impressive, memorable, or even infamous moments at each upcoming track on the NASCAR Cup schedule.
Previously, we covered Atlanta, Sonoma, Nashville, Michigan, Pocono, Chicagoland, Indianapolis, Richmond, New Hampshire, Daytona, Darlington, Gateway, Bristol, Kansas, Las Vegas, Charlotte, and Phoenix — which you can find by clicking the names of each track as mentioned.
And now, here’s a look back at Rowdy’s most memorable Talladega moments.
Kyle Busch Talladega NASCAR Stats
NASCAR CUP: 42 starts / 2 wins / 0 poles / 8 top fives / 11 top tens / 311 laps led
O’REILLY: 9 starts / 1 wins / 0 poles / 4 top fives / 5 top tens / 114 laps led
TRUCKS: 6 starts / 2 wins / 0 poles / 3 top fives / 5 top tens / 38 laps led
Two Cup wins with two different teams, 15 years apart
In 2008, Busch restarted third with five laps to go, but after helping push Jimmie Johnson past Michael Waltrip, he got under Johnson and squeezed through to take the lead. He blocked attempts from Jeff Gordon and Juan Pablo Montoya, and held the lead when the race-ending caution flew. It was part of an impressive eight-win season with Joe Gibbs Racing in his very first year as the driver of the No. 18.
Fast forward 15 years, Busch hadn’t won another Cup race at Talladega since that 2008 race. He now drove for Richard Childress Racing in the No. 8. He was leading the 2023 race with two laps to go, but lost the top spot at the white flag as Bubba Wallace and Ryan Blaney drafted by. As they began to argue over the race lead, Wallace went spinning down the track after a failed block. Busch barely avoided slamming into him, sneaking by to re-take the lead just as the race-ending caution was displayed. This was the penultimate victory of Busch’s Cup Series career.
2010 NASCAR Truck photo finish
The second-closest finish in the history of the NASCAR Truck Series happened at Talladega in 2010. Busch was pushing Aric Almirola out in front of the pack. On their way through the tri-oval with the checkered flag in sight, Busch faded high before slicing low, getting sideways as he crossed the line and stole the win right out of Almirola’s hands. They were separated by just 0.002s, and only one finish in the entire 30+ history of the Truck Series was ever closer than that. It was also Busch’s second straight Truck win at Talladega, winning the 2009 race by just 0.057s … also beating Almirola as he pushed Busch to the win.
2007 NASCAR O’Reilly dramatic rollover crash
Early in this race, Busch was running second when he made a move for the lead that went very, very wrong. Tony Stewart tried to go with him but misjudged it, turning Busch into the race leader’s door. Busch’s car then hung to the right, immediately going upside down as it slammed the wall. The car skidded across the track on its roof with competitors scattering in every direction to avoid a collision. Once it hit the grass, Busch had to endure no fewer than six barrel rolls before the car finally tumbled to a stop, coming to rest on its wheels. It was one of the wildest accidents of Busch’s entire NASCAR career.
Lone NASCAR O’Reilly win at Talladega with three-wide pass
In 2011, Busch secured his one and only NASCAR O’Reilly Talladega win. In the era of the tandem draft, he charged from outside the top ten in the first overtime restart to put himself in position to win with teammate Joey Logano pushing. On the final lap, he found a small hole between the leading tandems, squeezing up the middle. As he battled to keep the lead after the daring pass, Mike Wallace crashed behind him, flipping over and immediately triggering a race-ending caution with Busch still leading.
Escaping the 2012 Big One and gaining a lot of positions
The end of the 2012 ‘Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500’ at Talladega remains one of the most memorable finishes in the track’s history. The pack was battling four-wide several rows deep in a jaw-dropping battle for the win. However, Busch was nowhere near the front. He entered Turn 3 on the white flag lap around 18th-20th, but he was one of the only drivers to come out the other end of the corner unscathed. As the leaders crashed spectacularly, he drove onto the apron and barely avoided being clipped by the spinning Dale Earnhardt Jr. as he raced by the carnage. Matt Kenseth won the race, Jeff Gordon second, and Kyle Busch was third with the rest of the field in tatters.
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