NASCAR: The Five Greatest Drivers To Never Win The Daytona 500
Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch has been in our sport for over a decade now, and he just as much as any other driver yearns for the Great American Race. Having won over 150 races in NASCAR’s top three series’, it is somewhat hard to believe that Kyle has never won the 500. He has had chances in the ten races that he has run in the 500, but he will remain on this list until he finally achieves this feat, which very well may be this year.
Kyle has been one of the sports best for years now, constantly racking up victories and controversy as each season passes. He has somewhat mellowed out over the past couple of seasons, especially in light of his first child being born last year.
In the Daytona 500, Kyle Busch has had some poor luck despite fantastic runs. In particular, from 2007 to 2009 were perhaps Kyle’s best chances at winning the Harley J. Earl Trophy. In the ’07 running, Kyle was running in third place with a shot at victory on the final lap before getting loose in front of the field and starting a huge wreck as Kevin Harvick and Mark Martin battled to the finish line. Kyle led the most laps in the 2008 Daytona 500 and was in contention when brother Kurt pushed Penske teammate Ryan Newman to victory on the final lap. Kyle also led the most laps in the 2009 500 before being caught up in a wreck that put him out of the race before the rains came and Matt Kenseth was declared the winner. His best finish in the 500 since then has been an eighth place finish in 2011.
It would be quite a humbling win for Kyle Busch if he were to able to pull of a 2017 Daytona 500 victory. He was unable to participate in the first eleven races of 2015, including the 500, because of an injury that occurred in the Xfinity Series race less than 24 hours before the Great American Race. In 2016 Busch was unable to start his title defense with a win at Daytona but he could start his quest for title number two that way in 2017.
Next: Greatest Driver to Never Win a Title or the 500