“This second stuff su**s,” Kyle Busch laments P2 finish at LA Clash, claims he would’ve won if the race lasted four more laps

Kyle Busch scored his third consecutive top-three finish at LA Clash on Saturday.

“This second stuff su**s,” Kyle Busch laments P2 finish at LA Clash, claims he would’ve won if the race lasted four more laps

Kyle Busch (Via IMAGO)

The 2024 NASCAR Cup season kick-off came early this year, as the sanctioning body was forced to postpone the LA Clash to Saturday due to the dangerous weather predicted for the next two days in the City of Los Angeles. Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin secured the win by holding off his former teammate Kyle Busch, who drove the No:8 Chevy Camaro ZL1 of RCR.

Hamlin was able to mark NASCAR history with the win, as he became the second most successful NASCAR Clash driver, with 2024 being his fourth win. For Busch, this was a third straight year of disappointment as he has finished inside the top 3 since the inaugural event in LA. He secured P2 in 2022, P3 in 2023, and P2 again this season.

YouTube video

Finishing second is often one of the most frustrating things for racers as it reminds them of how close they were to securing the win. While talking to the media, Busch was candid about his feelings and admitted it stings to continue this second-place finishing streak. He also recalled his past late model racing experience, which he had similar feelings.

FS Video
Second, third, second kind of hurts. I don’t know what it really is. It’s just tight nature, tight bullring kind of stuff, the things we all grow up doing with legends cars, late models, all that. Always kind of enjoy getting back to those every once in a while whenever I can. Last year I remember, I went up to New Hampshire and ran a late model race at a big quarter, small three-eighths mile race track and finished second there, too. This second stuff sucks.
Busch said, as reported by Motorsporst.com.

Kyle Busch claims he would’ve won if the race lasted a few more laps

Busch, while recalling his race, pointed out that he would’ve come out victorious if the race lasted a few more laps. He pointed out that he would have gotten a chance to take the race lead and redeem himself from the loss of momentum when he failed to capitalize on The No:11 Camry’s poor corner exit.

Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson
Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson (Credits: IMAGO)

I got to his side off of middle of (Turn) 2, but I just never had any acceleration off the corners. I could not get my forward momentum started. So that was kind of my hindrance. As bad as (Hamlin) was on entry, I was as bad on exit…If we could have had three, four more laps or whatever, I felt like I would have had enough to be able to get close enough to make a move.

Busch has started the 2024 season just like in 2023 and hopes to continue the impressive performance he showcased last season. He would also be hoping that he wouldn’t peak too early like last season, as they were plagued with inconsistency toward the end of the year.

Discover: