Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), was able to overcome some drafting errors and a slow pit stop late in the 58th Daytona 500 Sunday at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway to record a 10th-place finish.
Photo Credit: stewarthaasracing.com
“I thought it was a good first half of the race,” Busch said. “We seemed to have things where we wanted them, but the second half of the race things didn’t seem to go as smooth. I made a couple of drafting errors, and then one of the pit stops we had to wait on fuel. When you are at the tail end of the lead draft we just had to come in, put four tires on it, fill it up and then go after it. I was able to work my way back up. I fell to the back again. The bottom line was, surprisingly, where people would make up their time. I did what I could to gather the draft. I’m real proud of everybody not giving up and the spotter (Rick Carelli) helping me. We worked our way back up to 10th. To come out of Daytona with a top-10 finish and a clean Haas Automation/Monster Energy Chevrolet, we’ll take that and go on.”
While Busch’s position fluctuated every lap as a result of the multicar draft that kept the field bunched closely together, his Haas Automation/Monster Energy Chevrolet had the strength it needed to hold position at the front of the field for the majority of the race and keep the Las Vegas native inside the top-10.
Caution-free racing dominated much of the event, setting up for green-flag pit stops at the two-thirds point. Busch came to pit road for right-side tires and fuel, but a slow pit stop saw him lose valuable seconds sitting in his pit stall. By the time the cycle of stops was complete, Busch was scored 23rd. A handful of laps later, a single-car incident brought out the caution flag. With nothing to lose, Busch elected to come to pit road again to get four fresh tires. Over the closing laps, Busch’s position fluctuated as the field raced three wide, side by side, but he found himself unable to advance his position. As the field raced to the checkered flag, the No. 20 car got out of shape at the front of the field, causing drivers to react to the potential catastrophic situation. Busch held his line, stayed in the gas and was able to advance to 10th at the finish.
There were six caution periods for 31 laps, with five drivers failing to finish the 200-lap race.
With round one of 36 complete, Harvick leads SHR in the championship point standings. He is fourth with 37 points, eight points behind first-place Hamlin. Busch is 10th with 31 points, 14 points out of first. Vickers is 25th with 15 points, 30 points out of first. Patrick is 34th with six points, 39 out of first.
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the Folds of Honor 500 on Sunday, Feb. 28, at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race starts at 1 p.m. EST with live coverage provided by FOX.
