Kyle Busch’s eventful weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway came to an early end Monday with a crash at the end of the first stage.
Busch was running 27th when he lost control of his Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, slid through Turn 1 and hit the wall. The car suffered significant damage to the right rear and the right front, which the team determined was not fixable and forced Busch to the garage.
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“I’ve been lacking right rear grip the whole time we’ve been here,” Busch said of the crash. “I just couldn’t get the right rear feel in the racetrack. You’re just going along, trying to keep it under you as much as you can. It was getting late in the run, and I was trying a different line, and it was just too high.
Trouble for Kyle Busch AND Corey LaJoie!#NASCAR | @USANetwork pic.twitter.com/34XtUkkEWk
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 17, 2023
“I didn’t like to be that high on entry. I couldn’t give it wheel and have the right rear stick with the lateral grip that you need. Hate it for our No. 8 Lenovo Chevy team. Our Chevy stuff was a little off this week, at least for us, anyways. We’ll get back to it at Pocono.”
Busch will finish last, 36th. He was the first driver to retire from the Crayon 301.
The incident was his third of the weekend. On Saturday, he smacked the wall off Turn 2 with the right side of his car in practice. The team was able to make repairs and get Busch back on track ahead of qualifying.
But in qualifying, Busch, who was the first driver on track in the final round, got loose in Turn 1 and hit the wall with the rear end. Because the team had to make repairs, he started at the rear of the field.
The short-track aero package has been a struggle for Busch and the No. 8 team. Hde has finished 14th or worse in three of the four short-track races, and his best finish was eighth at Phoenix Raceway at the beginning of the season. Across those four races (Phoenix, Richmond, Martinsville, New Hampshire), Busch has led one lap.