Skip to content

KURT BUSCH – 2018 All-Star Race Report

Event:               Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race (non-points event)
Series:               Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format:            80 laps, broken into four stages (30 laps/20 laps/20 laps/10 laps)
Start/Finish:      15th/18th(Accident, completed 74 of 93 laps) 

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 3 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)

Stage 1 Recap:

  • Buschstarted 15th, but a spin on just the second lap sent him backward into the turn four wall. He finished the stage in 21st.
  • The impact caused minor rear-end damage to the No. 41 Monster Energy Ford Fusion.
  • Repairs were made on pit road during thesubsequent caution, allowing Busch to complete the stage.
  • Busch finished one lap down, but took the wave-around and earned his lap back before pitting.

Stage 2 Recap: 

  • Buschstarted 21stand finished 20th.
  • Busch radioed that his No. 41 Monster Energy Ford Fusion was “still pretty loose” as the stage drew to a close.
  • Crew chief Billy Scott called for significant changes during the four-tire pit stop at the end of the stage, one of which was a massive left-rear wedge adjustment. 

Stage 3 Recap: 

  • Buschstarted 20thand finished 18thafter getting collected in a multicar accident.
  • A caution period on lap 57 allowed Busch to pit for four tires and fuel with another series of chassis adjustments.
  • When the race returned to green on lap 59, Busch remained in 20th, but climbed to 12thbefore another caution flag waved.
  • While others used the caution to pit, Busch stayed out to gain track position. He was eighth for the restart.
  • The well-earned track position went for naught when Busch was collected in a crash three laps from the end of the stage.
  • With his No. 41 Monster Energy Ford Fusion too damaged to continue, Busch was forced to the garage. 

Notes:

  • This was Busch’s 17thcareer start in the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race. Harvick and Matt Kenseth are the only active drivers with more All-Star Race starts.
  • Busch won the All-Star Race in 2010.
  • Harvick’s victory in the All-Star Race marked the 50thoverall win for SHR. It was the organization’s third non-points victory in the NASCAR Cup Series to go along with its 45 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series wins and two NASCAR Xfinity Series wins.
  • This was SHR’s second All-Star Race win. SHR’s first All-Star Race victory came in 2009 when Tony Stewart took the first win of any kind for SHR along with his first win in the All-Star Race.
  • Twenty-one drivers comprised the field, which consisted of drivers who won a points-paying race in 2017 or 2018, fulltime drivers who have previously won the All-Star Race, fulltime drivers who have won a NASCAR Cup Series championship, and drivers who advanced from the undercard Monster Energy Open. 

Next Up: 

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning at 5:30 p.m.