Kyle Busch 2016 Preview
By Richard Tix
No NASCAR Sprint Cup driver'S season started worse or ended better then Kyle Busch's in 2015. His season started at Daytona in his Xfinity ride by careening down the track towards an infield wall that had no SAFER Barrier. The wreck left Kyle with a broken leg and a broke bone in his opposite foot.
It seemed like his season was over at that very moment. But, Kyle Busch never gave up and he worked his way back by the 12th race of the season at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He ran an alright race and finished 11th, but everyone knew he would need more (including a win) to get into the Chase.
Then came Sonoma where he finally broke through and got his first win of 2015. The win did not lock him into the Chase as he still needed to get into the top 30 in points.
That win started a run where he would head to Victory Lane a total of four times in five races (Kentucky, Loudon, and Indy). Just two races later he broke into the top 30 with a 2nd place finish at Watkins Glen. After that it was smooth sailing and all he had to do was keep his 30th place spot (which was a walk in the park).
The first two rounds he had a one race hiccup both times (37th at Loudon and 20th at Charlotte), but those were easy to overcome with 16 and 12 drivers left. He turned on the consistency after those two rounds and made his way to Miami after three straight top 5's. He went head to head with some of the season's best and came out on top of Harvick to win Homestead and win the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.
People try and tarnish his Championship by saying he only ran 25 of the 36 races, but he played by all the rules NASCAR gave him. They offered him the waiver and he ran with it finishing the season with 5 win's (tied for second), 12 top 5's (tied for 6th), and 16 top 10's (10th most). His 64% rate of finishing in the top 10 was actually good for 3rd most, so over a whole season he would have been one of the best drivers of 2015.
All of this was done in just 35 races. He ran away from guys and teams that had all season to get ready for the Chase and the Championship.
Now we head into 2016 and Kyle Busch gets a bill of good health. This time he can go out and prove everyone wrong about it being a "cheap" title. All the old school fan's who just want a points Championship have another reason to boo him, but at the end of the day Kyle is a Cup Champion and no "fan" can take that away from him. So what does 2016 have in store?
Bold Predictions/2016 Season Expectations:
- Once you win one title the expectation is always to win another Championship. Every season has been a let down for BK, his team, and his fans since 2012 and the same light will be on Kyle now that he won this past season. I think Busch will be one of the better drivers statistically of 2016, but will come up just short of making the final four again. I expect 3-4 wins, 15-17 top 5's, and 21-23 top 10's in 2016.
