Most Rated Stories

Related Podcasts

 
View All Podcasts

2 Kurt Busch

 
  • POLES

    0
  • WINS

    0
  • RANK

    22
  • POINTS

    1072
  • BEHIND

    -618
 

Penske Racing’s Kurt Busch closed the 2007 season strongly. He gave up his points position to teammate Sam Hornish Jr. prior to the start of the 2008 season, certain that he could still return to the top of the sport.

Career Highlights

  • 2004 Nextel Cup Series champion
  • Tied with Jeff Gordon for distinction of being third-youngest champion in series history at 26 years, 3 months, 27 days (Gordon’s age when he won title in '97)
  • Eight-point margin over runner-up Jimmie Johnson in 2004 is closest championship finish in NASCAR history

Driver Details

  • Ht: 71     Wt: 150
  • Born: 08/4/1978
  • Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada

Related Links

2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season Summary
Starts Poles Rank Wins Top 5 Top 10 Points Winnings
11 0 22 0 1 1 1072 1,912,250

Year-by-Year Sprint Cup Series Recap

  • 2007 Finished seventh in series points … Had two wins, six top-five and 14 top-10 finishes … Earned one pole … Has won at least one race in six consecutive seasons … Led the most miles in the series with 1,691.8.

  • 2006 Finished 16th in series points in debut season with Penske Racing South and with crew chief Roy McCauley … Won at Bristol Motor Speedway in the spring and earned seven top-five and 12 top-10 finishes. Also earned six poles to qualify for the 2007 Budweiser Shootout … Busch was in the top 15 for most of the second half of the season, but a last-place finish in the season-ending race dropped him to his final spot … Busch still posted $5.6 million in winnings.

  • 2005 Finished 10th in series points. ... Ended season with three victories (Phoenix, Pocono and Richmond). ... Recorded nine top-fives and 18 top-10s. ... Finished as runnerup in the Daytona 500. ... Finished in the top three in the season's first three races. ... Has won at least one race for four consecutive years. ... Missed the final two races of the season after being suspended by car owner Jack Roush. ... More than $30 million in career winnings already has him in 16th place on the all-time money list.

  • 2004 Won the series championship. ... Finished with three wins, one pole, 10 top-fives, 21 top-10s and a career-low three DNFs in 36 starts. ... Earned 1,506 points during the inaugural 10-race Chase For The Nextel Cup, eight points more than runner-up Jimmie Johnson. ... Was 16th in the point standings following the Daytona 500, but spent remaining 35 weeks in the top 10. ... Was seventh following race No. 26 at Richmond on Sept. 11, the cutoff point for the Chase. ... Took the standings lead with eight races remaining in the 10-race Chase and never relinquished it despite a blown engine at Atlanta and a detached right front wheel early in the season finale at Homestead. ... Finished with one win, six top-fives and nine top-10s in the final 10 races. ... Won both 2004 events at New Hampshire International Speedway. Also won the spring event at Bristol Motor Speedway.

  • 2003 Finished 11th in series points. ... Early accident in season finale at Homestead-Miami cost him a chance to finish in the NASCAR top 10. ... Experienced an up-and-down year with four wins, nine top fives, 14 top-10s and a career-high eight DNFs. ... Briefly led the points for a week following back-to-back second-place finishes at Daytona and Rockingham in the season's opening events. ... Won both Bristol races, plus the race at California and the first race at Michigan.

  • 2002 Finished third in series points. ... Had a breakthrough season with four wins (Bristol, Martinsville, Atlanta and Homestead). ... Had three wins in the final five weeks of the season. ... Won from the pole at Homestead. ... $3,723,650 in race winnings pushed his career total to over $6,200,000 in just two full seasons.

  • 2001 Finished 27th in series points. ... Finished 3rd in Talladega 500, fourth in Harrah's 400 at Texas and fifth at Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis. ... Earned first career pole, at Darlington, and led 74 laps before encountering mechanical problems. ... Won more than $2.1 million despite seven DNFs in his rookie season.

  • 2000 Finished 48th in series points. ... Made series debut with seven starts for Roush Racing. ... Best finish 13th at Lowe's Motor Speedway in October.