Kyle Busch makes bold NASCAR claim: Petty, Dale Sr, and Jimmie Johnson’s championship wins were easier compared to current Cup fights

Kyle Busch is one of the most dominant racers of his generation, and his 2015 championship-winning campaign after returning from a career-threatening injury is ranked among the greatest of all time.


Kyle Busch makes bold NASCAR claim: Petty, Dale Sr, and Jimmie Johnson’s championship wins were easier compared to current Cup fights

Richard Petty, Kyle Busch Dale Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson

Motorsport evolution over the years has been so drastic and radical that comparing different generations of athletes has become one of the hardest things to do. The car, facilities, and technologies made the vehicles much faster, more reliable, and races more competitive. Premier Stock car racing series NASCAR has gone through the exact same path.

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Kyle Busch, the winningest NASCAR driver of all time, in a recent episode of The Residency Podcast, was asked to rank his Mount Rushmore of NASCAR. While naming his NASCAR GOATs, Busch claimed that It’s harder to win races and championships now than ever. His top three were obviously the record 7 times champions Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, and Jimmie Johnson.

Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty, and Jimmy Johnson, and I put all three of them on there because they all have seven championships. So, yeah, I don’t think the Championships are the same in this day and age as they once were there. Races are way harder to win, championships are way harder to win now, more than ever, my opinion; a few other guys also agree with that,” said Busch.

Busch gave to 4th spot of NASCAT Mount Rushmore to his and Jimmie Johnson’s former teammate Jeff Gordon, a 4 times Cup series champion. He added, “I want to say Jeff Gordon because he’s really high up, and he’s got four championships, so he would probably be another one,”.  

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Kyle Busch might potentially be in the GOAT tier of NASCAR if he wins a couple more championships

Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch

Rowdy Busch might not be the most liked driver on the Cup garage, but he definitely has been one of the consistent and productive drivers in the series since his debut with HMS. Busch and Joey Logano of Team Penske Racing are the only active multiple champions. Both have won the ultimate price twice. The RCR driver, though, has less number of Cup wins than the top 4; his exploits in all three divisions of the sport give him a unique place.

Busch ranked 9th in the all-time win list with 61 wins. Petty tops the list with a record 200, a record that will never be broken due to more than just one factor. Jeff Gordon has 93 race wins, while Jimmie Johnson has 83 wins. Dale Sr. is 15 wins ahead of Busch with 76. But unlike the other three, Rowdy’s exploits are not limited to the Cup series. He has 102 Xfinity series wins ( along with a championship), and 63 Truck series wins. He has a combined 226 race wins in NASCAR.

The 37-year-old has 10 more years to offer in his carer, and with his caliber, if Busch is given a championship-worthy car, he will bring home the golden trophy more than once. He also hasn’t shown any intention to stop running lower-tier races and will continue the get more race wins in the future.

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