Kurt Busch wasn’t blaming NASCAR for putting a halt to Sunday’s racing at Daytona. He was blaming himself for not winning.
Busch, 35, has authored 25 Sprint Cup victories but none in points-paying restrictor plate races.
“Fifteen years into it,” lamented Busch, who finished third behind Aric Almirola and Brian Vickers when the Coke Zero 400 was halted after 112 of 160 scheduled laps. “I’ve won IROC races, won a (Budweiser) Shootout, won a qualifying race (at Daytona). I’ve won a Nationwide race here. But I haven’t broken through for a points-paying Cup win yet.
“I’ve got to go back to the videotape. I have to study more. When I’m the leader, I have to advance my game. I have to be better at blocking and strategically managing the race as the leader.”
Busch led a race-high 36 laps but not the ones that mattered most when the rains returned shortly after 2 p.m. ET. NASCAR waited nearly an hour before deeming the results final.
“It’s disappointing to finish third after leading the most laps,” Busch said. “We thought we were in good position. But when you’re racing, knowing that there’s weather in the area, it’s best to be in that lead position.
“I didn’t do my job as the race leader. We didn’t quite have those couple of solid restarts at the end that we needed to be the leader when the race was called.”
Busch said he understood NASCAR’s reasoning in calling the race when it did, especially given that fans had already sat through a postponement on Saturday night.
“There’s the network TV side of it versus the safety of the fans as well with thunder and lightning in the area,” he said. “It’s a tough call to make.”
Vickers, who started 30th and did not lead a lap, was less-understanding of NASCAR’s decision.
“I was hoping they would wait it out,” he said. “We’ve got lights. It’s Daytona. It’s only 2 (p.m. when racing was suspended). Knowing that we weren’t even supposed to start the race (Saturday) night until 7 p.m., I was shocked when they called it at 2-something in the afternoon.
“I know a lot of the fans tuned in to the TV and stuck around waiting to see a finish. I was expecting them to wait a little bit longer.”
Failing to hold off Almirola might not be the end of Busch’s saga at Daytona. NASCAR said it will analyze the track bar splits of his Haas Automation Chevrolet at its Research and Development Center and issue a report.
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