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Kyle Busch's winning streak ends at Charlotte infield care center

Kyle Busch entered Charlotte Motor Speedway fresh off two consecutive victories but his post-race trip Sunday ended being to the infield care center rather than Victory Lane.

Injured Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota after the race

Injured Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota after the race

Tim Southers

Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Brad Keselowski, Team Penske Ford Kasey Kahne, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in the pits after hitting the wall
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Three times during Sunday’s Bank of America 500 Busch hit the outside wall and the initial impact on Lap 135 of 337 caused enough to damage to send him two laps down early in the race.

Yet, Busch’s No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team continued to work on his car and the driver soldiered on to the finish, ending up 29th.

With about 50 laps remaining, however, Busch radioed his team that he would need medical assistance after the race. The damage to his car’s crush panels had sent the temperature soaring in his Toyota.

“I’m alright, I’m better now. I got heat soaked and felt like I had heat stroke just from being inside the race car for 200 laps with the crush panels knocked out of it,” Busch said after being released from the infield care center.

“Obviously, it was my bad, just trying to get a little too much too early in the race and got too high out of the groove and got myself into the fence and tore the right side off of it. My guys did a great job trying to rebound and get it back together as much as we could throughout the day.”

Once he brought his car down pit road after the race, Busch gingerly got out and briefly laid on the ground while medical officials brought him ice bags. He eventually got in an ambulance under his own power and went to the care center for treatment.

Team owner Joe Gibbs met Busch at his car.

“He was hot, really hot. And he said that in the car towards the end of the race, I’m going to need some help,” Gibbs said. “The emergency group did a good job. I think he was fine. He stood up and said he felt OK.

“I hated that for him. With the three-race playoff, thank goodness we carry some points in but it will be tough now.”

Busch emerged from the care center about 30 minutes later looking no worse for wear.

“After I first tore it up, it was just a handful from there. Literally as soon as I did it, just coasting around under caution I could feel it being about 50 degrees hotter inside the car,” he said. “It just got so hot that you literally felt like you were going to puke.

“I was just trying to make it to the end of the race and luckily we did. From there, just trying to get cooled down and get body temperature back to normal.”

Busch took a hit in points with his finish. Thanks to his wins and Stage victories this season, however, he is not in much danger with two races remaining in Round 2 as he could have been.

He is now sixth in the series standings and 12 points above the cutoff. The four drivers lowest in points (without a win) among the 12 remaining in the playoffs will be eliminated from further title contention after the Kansas race.

“It stinks to give up points, we come in here and thought we had a good shot to run in the top-10 and we did and I threw it away,” Busch said. “We’re still above the cut line, but we don’t have that cushion that we’d like to have going to Talladega.”

 

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