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Kurt Busch through the years
By Staff Report | Published: 4 Aug, 2022 31
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Daniel Shirey | Getty Images
Kurt Busch, who has competed in the NASCAR Cup Series for more than two decades now, turns 44 today. Take a look at the 2004 champion's top career moments.
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Kurt Busch celebrates after winning a 1999 NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
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While running the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series full time for owner Jack Roush in 2000, Kurt Busch moved into Roush's John Deere Ford machine in the NASCAR Cup Series later that year, replacing Chad Little.
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In 2001, Kurt Busch continued to drive the No. 97 Roush Racing Rubbermaid/Sharpie Ford Taurus.
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Kurt Busch celebrated his first NASCAR Cup Series victory March 24, 2002, during the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
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Kurt Busch finished the 2002 season, just his second-full-time season in NASCAR's premier series, in third place. His win in the fall race at Martinsville Speedway was one of four victories, 12 top fives and 20 top-10 finishes that season.
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Ricky Craven edged Kurt Busch by .002 seconds, the closest finish in NASCAR premier series history, in 2003 at Darlington Raceway.
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Kurt Busch practically owned Bristol Motor Speedway from 2002-04, winning four of the six races there and finishing in the top 10 in the other two. He also had Bristol wins in 2006 and 2018.
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Kurt Busch made the inaugural playoff field in 2004. The first class was (L-R) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Elliott Sadler, Jeremy Mayfield, Busch, Ryan Newman and Mark Martin.
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Working with crew chief Jimmy Fennig, who also called the shots in the heartbreaking loss at Darlington Raceway, Kurt Busch won the 2004 championship.
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In 2006, Kurt Busch moved from Roush Fenway Racing to Team Penske, where he worked alongside teammate Ryan Newman.
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Taking over the No. 2 "Blue Deuce" after Rusty Wallace retired was a tall order for Kurt Busch, who took five races to put the No. 2 in Victory Lane -- March 26, 2006, at Bristol Motor Speedway.
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Kurt Busch finished fourth in the standings in 2009 -- his best finish since winning the championship in 2004. He had two wins that season -- at Atlanta Motor Speedway (seen here) and Texas Motor Speedway.
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For the 2011 season -- his final year with Team Penske -- Kurt Busch moved to the No. 22 and won two races. The victories came at Sonoma Raceway and Dover Motor Speedway.
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Kurt Busch moved to Furniture Row Racing in 2012, taking over for Regan Smith beginning at the 2012 Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Busch stayed with the organization through 2013.
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In 2014, Kurt Busch began his tenure with Stewart-Haas Racing, joining teammate/owner Tony Stewart.
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Kurt Busch's first win with Stewart-Haas Racing came at Martinsville Speedway in 2014. Here, his No. 41 team celebrates as he takes a victory drive-by after the race.
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The year 2015 was a very good for Kurt Busch, as he finished the season in eighth place -- his best finish since 2009 -- and got engaged to Ashley Van Metre.
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Kurt Busch helped brother Kyle celebrate the younger sibling's first premier series championship in 2015 -- a remarkable comeback from devastating injuries in the season-opening NASCAR Xfinity Series race.
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Kurt Busch scored his lone 2016 win at Pocono Raceway to lock himself into that year's playoffs. He would go on to finish seventh in the standings -- one of two such finishes in his last three years at SHR.
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The Stewart-Haas Racing wheelman earned his first Daytona 500 win -- and sole win at the 2.5-mile track -- by taking the lead on the final lap. This marked his first win in a restrictor-plate event.
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Kurt Busch set a record in qualifying on Nov. 3, 2017 at Texas Motor Speedway when he turned a lap in the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford at 200.915 mph, topping Tony Stewart's previous mark of 200.111 mph.
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Kurt Busch arrives at the 2017 NASCAR Awards in Las Vegas with wife Ashley Van Metre. The two married before the 2017 season.
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A win in the Bristol Night Race locked Kurt Busch into the NASCAR Playoffs in 2018. He made it through to the Round of 8 in his fifth and final season with Stewart-Haas Racing. Busch recorded six top-five and 22 top-10 finishes on the year, good for a 12.1 average finish. The win was the 30th of his NASCAR Cup Series career.
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Chip Ganassi Racing
After five seasons with Stewart-Haas Racing, Kurt Busch and Monster Energy made the move to Chip Ganassi Racing in 2019, replacing Jamie McMurray in the No. 1 Chevrolet. Busch earned six victories and made the playoffs all five years with SHR.
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Kurt Busch celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway. Busch finished 13th in the final standings.
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In his first year with Chip Ganassi Racing, Kurt Busch had one win, 18 top-10 finishes and qualified for the playoffs. The organization announced a multi-year extension with Busch near the end of 2019.
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Kurt Busch's 2020 season saw him win for the first time at his home track of Las Vegas Motor Speedway to extend his streak to seven seasons with at least one win. The victory also sent him into the Round of 8. For the year, Busch would finish 10th in the standings with seven top fives and 19 top 10s to go with his victory.
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Busch extended his consecutive season win streak to eight seasons with a victory in Atlanta that came just weeks after it was announced that Chip Ganassi Racing had sold its NASCAR assets to Trackhouse Racing Team. The win gave Busch a victory in 18 of his 21 full-time seasons.
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Busch took over the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota for the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series and drives for the Michael Jordan-Denny Hamlin co-owned organization. This is Busch's first time behind the wheel of a Toyota -- and given the alliance 23XI has with Joe Gibbs Racing -- he is quasi-teammates with his brother, Kyle.
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It only took 13 races for Busch to find Victory Lane with the new organization, putting on a show at Kansas Speedway. Busch led a race-high 116 laps and now has a win in 19 different NASCAR Cup Series seasons.