The Battle of the Busch Brothers Ends with Kurt Besting Kyle at Atlanta

Nigel Kinrade Photography

HAMPTON, GA – RIS – Kurt Busch passed his brother Kyle with 24 laps to go, but it still was a duel between the two brothers until Kurt prevailed.  Kurt Busch raced to his first victory of the season, 33rd overall and the fourth of his career at Atlanta. He locked up a spot in the playoffs and possibly improved his chances of securing a new ride next season.

Kyle Busch reclaimed the lead with 47 laps remaining but couldn’t hold off his older brother on Lap 236. Kurt Busch took advantage of lapped traffic to pass his brother.  Kyle Busch pushed for the lead with eight laps remaining, but 42-year-old Kurt pulled away in the final laps to win by 1.237 seconds.

Kyle Busch won the Xfinity Series race Saturday, giving him five wins in his maximum five races in the series this season. He said he doesn’t plan to return to the Xfinity Series next season.

It was an important race for the driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet. Kurt Busch’s contract with Chip Ganassi Racing expires at the end of the year, and Ganassi sold the team to Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks this month.  That likely means Kurt may be looking for a ride in 2022, even though he admits he had been in touch with Trackhouse lately.

“Just going to put that much emphasis on winning that last one today because it will be that old nostalgic feel,” Kurt Busch said before the race.

It was the final race for the current surface on the Atlanta Motor Speedway track. It was installed in 1997 and is the oldest on the NASCAR circuit. Construction on a repaving and reprofile project will begin immediately.   Speedway president Brandon Hutchinson said the resurfacing was overdue. Proof of the poor condition of the old asphalt came holes which developed on the front straightaway had to be repaired following the second stage. The race was delayed for 19 minutes during a red-flag stoppage as a crew filled the gaps in the track with caulk.

Martin Truex Jr. finished third after starting at the back of the pack. Alex Bowman was fourth, followed by Ryan Blaney.

Pole-sitter Chase Elliott finished seventh. Elliott fell back after his brakes locked, causing him to miss his pit box, on a competition caution on Lap 27. Elliott struggled to make up ground and remained winless in seven starts at his Atlanta home track.

The final laps were dripping with drama as Kyle Busch continued to try to catch Kurt and claim his second win of the weekend.  Kyle was able to get close to passing Kurt and able to get side by side, but Kurt pulled away and on to victory.

Ron Fleshman with John Davison

RIS NASCAR Editor.  Has been with RIS since the middle 90's. Writes on each of the three main series of NASCAR.

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Volume 2021, Issue 7, Posted 7:58 PM, 07.11.2021