Kyle Busch saw his winless streak grow longer on Sunday as chaos shaped the NASCAR Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway, with top contenders falling victim to dramatic late-race incidents. The turbulent event, held during the Würth 400, was stretched into overtime for a total of 271 laps, and ended with Joey Logano celebrating his first win of the 2025 season. Busch, despite an ambitious charge from deep in the field and a strong showing late, ultimately finished 20th, as the hopes for ending his drought slipped away amidst multiple crashes and relentless cautions.
With scorching temperatures and fickle track conditions, the Texas oval became a true test of survival and strategy. The race featured twelve cautions scattered across 73 laps, and saw twenty separate lead changes, highlighting the unpredictability and intensity of the competition. Only two drivers who started within the first five rows managed to claim top-20 finishes, emphasizing just how difficult it was to stay at the front as the chaos unfolded. For Kyle Busch, who began the race from the 26th position, progress seemed inevitable when he quickly broke into the top 20 and concluded Stage 2 inside the top ten.
Busch’s charge into contention offered fans a burst of hope that the driver, who last won at Gateway in June 2023, might finally reclaim his place atop the podium. By lap 224, he had surged into the top five, appearing poised to capitalize on the misfortunes befalling other favorites. As the field bunched up after a series of late cautions, Busch’s crew and strategy seemed to set him up for a dramatic finish, but fate had other ideas. On lap 228, while vying for third place, Kyle Busch lost control and spun into the Turn 4 wall, a costly mistake that dropped him from contention at a crucial moment.
The incident quickly compounded, as Busch became tangled in yet another multi-car confrontation with Brad Keselowski and Austin Cindric in the laps that followed. Repeated contact and damage forced Busch to limp across the finish line, extending his winless streak to an agonizing 68 races.
We had speed, the guys did a good job recovering after those cautions, but it wasn’t our day,
Busch said, his frustration evident. The disappointment was shared by his Richard Childress Racing team, who have worked to return him to victory lane, only to see hopes dashed in the final laps time and again.
While Kyle Busch faced mounting frustration, other strong contenders suffered equally disastrous outcomes. Michael McDowell, who started fifth and played an early strategic masterstroke with a two-tire stop, briefly led the race in the late stages. However, a failed block allowed Logano to slip past with just four laps remaining, and an ensuing collision with Ryan Blaney relegated McDowell to a disappointing 26th-place finish. Josh Berry’s promising campaign ended even earlier, after leading forty-one laps, when he lost control on the infamous Turn 4 bump and crashed out in 32nd, marking his third DNF of the year.
Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin, both veterans with high expectations for Texas, endured days to forget as well. Keselowski advanced from 30th to the top twenty, only to be ensnared in the same chaotic melee that involved Busch and Cindric, forcing him to retire the car in 28th. Hamlin’s misfortune struck far sooner, as a pit stop miscommunication and a subsequent mechanical failure ended his day on lap 78 after an oil fire, abruptly halting his streak of 21 consecutive lead-lap finishes.
For Kyle Busch, the Texas race added yet another chapter of disappointment to a season marked by close calls and what-ifs. Each week the pressure mounts, with fans and analysts alike questioning when—and if—he will be able to break through the adversity and secure a long-awaited win. The emotional atmosphere around the Busch camp is charged, the desire for redemption clear, even as unpredictability continues to rule the track.
This latest result shapes the ongoing storyline of the NASCAR Cup season, as established stars like Busch and Hamlin struggle to regain their edge, while rising talents and strategic gamblers seize fleeting opportunities. With every race, the challenge becomes more intense, and the stakes for Kyle Busch grow heavier. All eyes now turn toward the upcoming events, where the urgency to end his winless run grows with every checkered flag that passes him by.
