Kyle Busch’s gas tank did ‘stumble’ on the final lap on Sunday at Sonoma Raceway but the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion is not letting Ross Chastain off the hook for getting into him and sending hm out of the top-10.
It’s the latest in a series of disappointing results in an overall disappointing season that has Busch 15th in the standings and out of a playoff spot. The past month has seen him finish P27, P15, P35, and P12 alongside a much ballyhooed scuffle with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. after the All Star Race.
“I mean it stumbled getting into [Turn] Four but I’m not sure that made any difference. I was far enough off-line, I was a groove and a half out of the way and he just comes in barreling on in there and blows through my door,” Busch said on Saturday at Iowa Speedway. “Don’t know the significance, obviously, it hurt me being able to just have enough fuel to get back re-going and try to fend off the rest of the cars that were coming behind me.”
Busch didn’t mind losing that one spot coming to the finish line, which is why he left the room. Chastain said the contact was because Busch checked up.
Busch called it ‘dumb’ but didn’t offer much more.
“I don’t know,” said Busch. “It just is what it is. Forty guys fighting for some of the same real estate each week on the race track and you’re bound to run into one another. It’s just dumb when it happens like last week where I gave a whole groove to a faster car that was going to pass me anyways and I got wiped out.”