As the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway for Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400, the race marks the 26th and final race of the regular season for NASCAR’s top series.
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), has already secured his spot in the 2021 playoffs, currently sitting third in the driver standings with an eye on putting himself in the best possible position on the 16-driver playoff grid with a strong performance in Saturday night’s playoff primer at Daytona.
From the time the 2.5-mile Daytona oval opened in 1959 through 2018, the NASCAR Cup Series has competed on its high banks every Fourth of July weekend. From 1959 to 1997, the series competed on the morning of July 4, no matter what day of the week the holiday fell on. Starting in 1998, the event was moved to the first Saturday night in July after lights made their debut at the World Center of Racing that season. But when NASCAR’s July 4 Cup Series race moved to Indianapolis for a one-time run in 2020, Daytona moved its summer oval race to the regular-season finale in late August, and this year’s regular-season finale returns to Daytona for the second time this weekend.
Whether this race is in July or August, Busch – the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion – knows he will not only need to beat his fellow competitors, but also the Florida summer heat at Daytona. This part of the season is annually the hottest for Cup Series competitors, with select race venues seeing record temperatures this year, and also for those who are heading out on their late-summer road trips. Whether on the highway or the racetrack, the summer months can be taxing on both man and machine. Caring for the latter is one of the ways JGR founding partner Interstate Batteries – with whom JGR is celebrating its 30th anniversary together – leverages its NASCAR program, reminding consumers to have their batteries checked during the hot summer months at a local dealer prior to their summer road trips.
Busch is certainly no stranger to victory lane in the Coke Zero Sugar 400, having won the July 2008 race behind the wheel of – yes – the Interstate Batteries Toyota. The Las Vegas native has fared much better in his summer races at Daytona during his career, when the track is much more slick thanks to Florida’s summer heat. He has five top-five finishes in his 16 summertime starts at the track.
With all of that on his side, Busch hopes to have a strong car and track position in pack-style racing, where a driver not only has to be good, but must have good fortune to go along with it. He would like nothing more than to head into the playoffs in the best way possible – by bringing the Interstate Batteries green lightning paint scheme to victory lane Saturday night. With one final primer before the 2021 Cup Series playoffs begin, Busch and his Interstate Batteries team will not only look to beat the Florida heat, but finally recharge the batteries and get back to his favorite place – victory lane.
TSC PR
- IROC Returns July 19-20 at Lime Rock Park - April 19, 2024
- RCR Race Preview: Talladega Superspeedway - April 19, 2024
- The perfect sweep: Julien Rehberg makes an incredible debut in the Rookie Trophy - April 19, 2024