Kyle Busch earns his first win with Richard Childress Racing at Auto Club Speedway

Kyle Busch got the chance to bow again.

The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion made it seem easy down the stretch on Sunday — passing Michael McDowell with 20 laps to go and then keeping Ross Chastain and Chase Elliott at a safe distance to take home his first win of the 2023 season at Auto Club Speedway.

The all-time great driver, after passing the start-finish line, fetched the checkered flag and did his signature move: waving the flag and bowing in front of a sold-out crowd.

“It’s just phenomenal,” Busch told the FOX broadcast, his chest out of breath, fresh off of doing a celebratory burnout.

This marks Busch’s first win in the No. 8 Chevrolet and his first win since moving from Joe Gibbs Racing to Richard Childress Racing last fall. It also marks his 61st career Cup Series win, his fifth win at Auto Club Speedway — and his first win in 54 starts on a paved track. (Busch won a race in 2022, but that was on Bristol’s dirt track.)

It also means that he’s now won a Cup race in each of the past 19 seasons, breaking a tie with Richard Petty for first-all time. And to do it at this particular racetrack is extra special: This was the final race on Auto Club Speedway’s two-mile oval before it gets reconfigured next year.

Busch had a legitimate chance at the Daytona 500 crown a week ago, but some late-race carnage — the kind of action that he’s so-long criticized at NASCAR’s biggest race — foiled his run.

But Sunday belonged to Busch, one of the most polarizing and recognizable drivers in NASCAR. It was the kind of performance that drew even the praise of his competitors — including Chastain (who finished third and notched two stage wins for the first time in his career Sunday) and Elliott (second).

“Congratulations to Kyle,” Elliott said post-race. “For him to leave and then go get the job done like that, it’s pretty cool. He’s always been really good to me, so happy for them, and looking forward to getting to Las Vegas (next weekend) and competing for some more wins.”

The first two stages on Sunday saw 16 lead changes, eight different leaders and six cautions for 28 laps. One of those cautions collected eight cars on a restart — and knocked out a good chunk of the field in the process. Among those who had to end their days early after that carnage: Aric Almirola, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Preece and Christopher Bell.

“I took off on the restart and went from second to third gear, and all of a sudden everybody in front of us just stopped,” Almirola said after he emerged from the infield care center. “I think the leader was just playing games, trying to prevent the runs coming from behind, and they stopped in the middle of the restart zone right about where they should have been accelerating. It was just a huge accordion effect.”

He added: “It’s disappointing to get wrecked out of the race like that on a silly Mickey Mouse restart, but I should have known better.”

It’s also worth noting that Kyle Larson, the race’s odds-on favorite coming into Sunday and last year’s winner at Auto Club Speedway, spent most of Sunday 15 laps down after a mechanical issue sent him down pit road 10 laps into the race.

Busch wasn’t the favorite this time. But after Sunday’s race — and after all he’s done to look rejuvenated in a new car, at a new home — perhaps it would be wise to not make that mistake again.

“I think this (win) ranks high,” Busch said. “Just because it (speaks) to the fact of, ‘Hey, I can do it.’ I never doubted myself, but sometimes you do, you know? Sometimes you wonder what’s going wrong... and then you put yourself in a different situation, and you’re able to come out here and reward your guys.”

Unofficial results from Auto Club 400

This story was originally published February 26, 2023 at 7:29 PM.

Alex Zietlow

The Charlotte Observer

Alex Zietlow writes about the Carolina Panthers and the ways in which sports intersect with life for The Charlotte Observer, where he has been a reporter since August 2022. Zietlow’s work has been honored by the Pro Football Writers Association, the N.C. and S.C. Press Associations, as well as the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) group. He’s earned six APSE Top 10 distinctions for his coverage on a variety of topics, from billion-dollar stadium renovations to the small moments of triumph that helped a Panthers kicker defy the steepest odds in sports. Zietlow previously wrote for The Herald in Rock Hill (S.C.) from 2019-22. Support my work with a digital subscription