Despite a number of handling issues with his No. 78 Chevrolet, Kurt Busch managed to salvage a 20th-place finish in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
“We just never got up to speed,” said Busch. “The Furniture Row/Serta Chevrolet was loose then it was snug and no matter what adjustments were made we never could find the right balance for this track. We needed one more caution at the end to get back on the lead lap, which would have given us a good opportunity to pick up additional positions. It wasn’t our day.”
With qualifying rained out Friday and the lineup based on 2012 owner points, Busch started the 267-lap, Kobalt Tools 400 from the 24th position.
He stayed in or near the low 20s for the majority of the race and was lapped by Lap 52.
“It was a battle all day, but we kept fighting, hoping to find the setup that could get us going,” explained Busch, a Las Vegas native. “We haven’t had a lot to show in the first three races of the season, but we’ll get better. I am looking forward to Bristol next week.”
Busch always looks forward to Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, the world fastest half-mile oval. His career record at Bristol includes five wins, six top-fives and 13 top-10s.
The Las Vegas race winner was Matt Kenseth. Rounding out the top-10 in order were: Kasey Kahne, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick and Paul Menard.
The race had 22 lead changes among eight drivers and there were five cautions for 25 laps.
FRR PR
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