JOLIET, Ill. – It’s a finish that will be replayed for years to come.
Even runner-up Kyle Larson knew that as he stood on pit road Sunday while Kyle Busch celebrated on the front stretch at Chicagoland Speedway under a mixed chorus of cheers and (mostly) boos.
“That’s got to be one of the best NASCAR finishes of all time,” Larson said after watching the replay. “I know I’m on the short end of the stick again, but it was fun.”
WATCH: See Larson and Busch battle
Lapped traffic caused enough interference to allow Larson to catch up to the leader, Busch, by the final lap, causing No. 18 crew chief Adam Stevens to start “biting (his) nails, saying prayers, just waiting for the race to be over.”
But it wasn’t. The last lap is when the beating and banging began. Attempting to slide job Busch, Larson hit the side of Busch’s No. 18 Toyota — sending Busch into the wall and snatching the lead in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet.
That hit, Larson said, “opened the door” for Busch to retaliate.
Busch came charging back, putting the bumper to Larson and causing the No. 42 to slide across the track in the final turn. Busch held onto the lead for the checkered flag, as Larson came up second.
WATCH: Busch discusses closing lap, Chicago finish
“Oh man, I’m not upset,” Larson said on Busch’s move. “I had an opportunity there to slide in front of him and I figured I wouldn’t clear him or I would allow him to drive back underneath me. So, I tried to get to his door and you know I opened the door for him to retaliate into (Turn) 3. I thought it was free game. I ran into him first, he got me after that, maybe a little bit worse than I got him, but that’s all right.
“I love racing Kyle (Busch). I know all these fans are probably mad at him, but hey, we put on a hell of a show for you guys and that was a blast. …
“We both got our elbows up there, we ran into each other a couple of times and he came out the winner,” he said later.
After Busch’s hit on Larson, the 25-year-old driver was still hopeful for a chance at the checkered flag.
“I did think I could save it,” he said. “I was hoping I was could just slide a little bit less and then grab third gear and get going, but just started spinning a little too much. … It would have been awesome to grab gears like that and win.”
After the race, Larson gave Busch a thumbs-up during the cool-down lap and made a point to visit Busch in Victory Lane before his media obligations. The two smiled, chatted about the finish and shook hands.
“I have a lot respect for Kyle Busch,” Larson said.
That respect is reciprocated by the 2015 champion.
“We’ve always raced each other super hard and super clean,” Busch said. “We’ve never had issues. We’ve been back and forth with each other at Bristol multiple times, whatnot. It was Bristol this spring maybe, I kind of gave him a bump‑and‑run for the win on that one. …
“Once contact is made in a race, it’s kind of like, ‘OK, every man for himself.’ Even me, when we had that race at Bristol, I got into him with five to go, I thought I did that too early because he could get back to me. He never was able to get back to me.”
The finish marks Larson’s 10th top-10 finish of the season — but still leaves him without a victory. There’s a sense of disappointment, but looking at the big picture, he’s in good spirits. He ran up front with the “Big Three” of Busch, Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. — and nearly beat them.
His strong run – and impressive ability to run close to the wall – reflected Larson and his team’s hard effort.
“Obviously, I’m disappointed I didn’t win, but at the same time, the fun factor kind of takes over and that was a blast,” Larson said. “I feel like I get a really good job today running next to the wall as long as I did and only getting into it once. So, I stayed pretty disciplined, feel like I did a good job, team did a good job. …
“I think I showed that I tried everything I could to win and our team did good … I’ve been saying it every week. We’ve just got to get a little bit better and it will pay off and we’ll get a win. We’re getting closer and closer.”