NASCAR: Why do fans insist Kyle Busch can’t beat the ‘big boys’?

Despite Kyle Busch’s NASCAR Cup Series success, fans like to insist he can’t beat the “big boys” simply because of his success in the Xfinity Series and Truck Series.

Having just moved into a 10th place tie on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins list with his 54th career victory last Sunday, April 7 in the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch is undoubtedly one of the most successful drivers in Cup Series history. Add to that the fact that he is only 33 years old and has a great chance to continue climbing up this list.

Additionally, Busch has earned an all-time record 95 career Xfinity Series victories and an all-time record 55 career Truck Series victories, making him the winningest driver in NASCAR history with 204 career victories. He recently passed Richard Petty, who won 200 races, all Cup Series races, in his career, to claim this title.

But when NASCAR fans, particularly Busch haters, look at Busch’s success, they point to his 150 victories in the sport’s two lower national series and claim that he can’t beat the “big boys”.

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After all, his career win percentages in both of these series are higher than his career win percentage in the Cup Series, and his victories in these two series make up 73.53% of his career NASCAR victories.

This claim has been particularly highlighted this season, as Busch has won three of the four Xfinity Series races and all four of the Truck Series races that he has contested so far in 2019. In eight races, his only non-win in either of these two series is his second place finish in the Xfinity Series race at Auto Club Speedway.

Busch isn’t set to compete in another Truck Series race until Friday, May 17 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, and he isn’t set to compete in another Xfinity Series race until Saturday, August 3 at Watkins Glen International.

So with the 33-year-old Las Vegas, Nevada native out of the “little leagues” for quite some time, it’s a perfect time to ask the question: why do fans insist that Busch can’t beat the “big boys”?

Over the few seasons, there has not been a driver better than Busch. Since the 2015 season, which Busch didn’t compete in until the 12th race on the schedule, he has won 25 Cup Series races. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. rank second in terms of victories during this span with 17 each.

Additionally, Busch has earned 16 victories since the 20th race of the 2017 season. Harvick and Truex Jr. rank second in terms of victories during this span as well with nine each.

Last season, Busch and Harvick tied atop the wins list with eight victories each. Busch currently sits atop the championship standings having earned three victories through the first eight races of the 2019 season, which is more than any other driver in the field.

In fact, Busch has earned each of these three victories in the last five races, and he has not finished any race outside of the top 10 since late last season. In fact, his start to the 2019 season has been historic in this regard.

To those who think Busch can’t beat the “big boys” simply because he also wins Xfinity Series and Truck Series races left and right, what are you even watching?

It’s one thing to dislike the guy, even with a passion, but get real.

Then there are those who claim that NASCAR “gifted” Busch the 2015 Cup Series championship and therefore his lone Cup Series title isn’t even legitimate, as he missed the 36-race season’s first 11 races due to injuries he suffered in an Xfinity Series crash but was granted a playoff waiver and ended up winning the championship after competing in only 25 races.

But by that logic, Busch, not Joey Logano, would have been the 2018 Cup Series champion, as he scored the most points from the season opener to the season finale in the 2018 season. He would still have a championship to his name, so there goes that “argument”.

It is one thing to not appreciate the fact that Kyle Busch is competing in races in NASCAR‘s two lower national series and constantly winning races that he is expected to win over clearly inferior competition. I fully understand that and, to a certain degree, agree with it. But saying that he can’t beat the “big boys” solely because of this screams sheer ignorance when you look at what he has done over the course of his Cup Series career, especially recently.