Page 64 - 2019_NPPG_digital copy

KURT BUSCH

Birth Date: August 4, 1978 Hometown: Las Vegas, NV
Team: No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 / Chip Ganassi Racing
Kurt Busch knows what it feels like to hoist the Monster Energy NASCAR
Cup Series’ championship trophy, and the veteran racer from Las Vegas
would like to enjoy that feeling again.
2018 featured drivers For car owner Chip Ganassi, it’s a chance to finally add a Cup championship

trophy to his list of impressive racing credential.

Busch, 40, was the first competitor to win a championship under NASCAR’s
“Chase” – now Playoff – format, which debuted in 2004. In the years since,
he has been all over the place, literally and figuratively.

After spending the last three seasons with Stewart-Haas Racing, the road
seems to have become a bit smoother. The winner of 30 Cup races since
moving directly from the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) to
Winston Cup in 2001 as a 21-year-old, Busch won five pole positions in 2018
and qualified for the NASCAR Playoffs by winning the night race at the Bristol
Motor Speedway. FOLLOW ONLINE

It was the only victory for the sometimes-fiery but always-committed driver,
but it put him in the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. He made @KURTBUSCH /KURTBUSCH
it into the third round of playoff elimination races and eventually finished
seventh in points. Ganassi when it came down to it. So that’s how I looked forward. The decision
was made pretty early this year and once we got all the little stuff settled.”
Now he plans to build on that success with a new team – and a new
manufacturer. Busch and Ganassi said their plans were solidified long before the season
was completed, but Ganassi wanted Busch to concentrate solely on winning a
“Chip Ganassi said to me, ‘Kurt, I want you. I want you, as a champion, to championship during his final races with Stewart-Haas. Once the season was
come over to this team,’” Busch said. finished and Joey Logano was crowed as the newest champion, Busch and
Ganassi finally made it official.
The elder of two championship-winning brothers will join Kyle Larson on
Ganassi’s stock-car roster. He will be in a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as the Although they had just 10 weeks to get ready for the first race of the 2019
manufacturer builds its database, and momentum, after switching from the season, the Advance Auto Parts Clash on Feb. 10 at the Daytona International
Chevrolet SS to the Camaro last season. The Chevrolet camp is loaded Speedway. But for Busch, it will mark the return to a track where he won the
with young talent, so Busch’s experience will be imperative as the Camaro biggest race of the year – the 2017 Daytona 500.
continues its progression, especially since he showed speed at a variety of
tracks last year – two fast intermediate tracks (Texas and Michigan), a flat The Daytona 500 win gave Busch roughly two-thirds of what has long been
one-mile track (New Hampshire), a road course (Charlotte ROVAL) and considered NASCAR’s “Triple Crown” – no matter how you configure it
superspeedway (Talladega). between the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600, Southern 500 and the relative
newcomer, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis.
“Yes, there were a few moments of speed, but what we need to have is tons
more moments of speed to be in position to pick up the wins,” Busch said. “I Having won the 600, the series’ longest, most grueling event, in 2010, he says
think that’s what everybody at Ganassi wants to do and what everybody at he’d like to cross the Brickyard and Southern 500 races off the list as well to
Chevrolet wants to do.” complete the sweep.

A better-late-than-never contract signing in early December 2017 that put A Cup championship is the only missing puzzle piece in Ganassi’s trophy case.
Busch back behind the wheel at SHR. He waited until December – just two He has nine teams competing in five different series. His greatest success has
months ahead of the season-opening Daytona 500 – to announce his new been in Indy cars, where his teams have combined to win 11 championships
deal with Ganassi. He will bring longtime sponsor Monster Energy along for and five Indianapolis 500 races. His sports cars have eight wins in class –
the ride. including six overall victories – at the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

“I’ve been at the pros and cons intersection before,” Busch said. “I’d stay with All that’s missing is a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title. But that can
the team or I’d leave the team and this time around it was 99 percent pro- all change if Busch can enjoy that championship feeling again.

64 THE OFFICIAL NASCAR 2019 PREVIEW & PRESS GUIDE