Kyle Busch’s milestone 200th NASCAR win has been a major talking point, but it’s overlooking the remarkable possibility that he is just getting started.
Busch earned his 53rd win in the Cup series at Fontana and, combined with his 53 Truck Series and 94 Xfinity Series victories, his total is 200 wins across the three national series.
That has led to continued debate about Busch’s accomplishment and how it compares to the 200 wins Petty amassed in the Cup series alone.
Both are Hall of Fame-worthy accomplishments and should be judged on their own merits.
At the time each of them raced, they were the best in the business. But it still raises the question as to whether we have seen the best of Busch yet.
It may sound somewhat silly, but consider that Busch is just 33 years old.
Five of Petty’s record-tying seven Cup series championships came after he turned 30 years old. All of Jimmie Johnson’s seven titles came after his 30th birthday. Six of the late Dale Earnhardt’s seven titles came in his 30s.
Then also consider a driver like Kevin Harvick, who has had a distinguished NASCAR career, but had his only Cup title and 22 of his 45 career Cup wins come following his 38th birthday.
The point is, while many are stuck contemplating the significance of what Busch has already accomplished and where it ranks in NASCAR history, Busch’s future is arguably more relevant.
Should he want to and his health allow it, Busch could well have another decade or more of NASCAR competition ahead.
In his most recent 10 years, Busch collected 41 Cup wins, 73 victories in Xfinity and added another 44 in the Truck Series.
If he were actually to improve as a driver, as many of NASCAR greats have done as they have matured, aged and gained experience, what kind of statistics might an even more successful Busch accumulate?
Simply matching his previous 10 years of Cup wins over the next decade would put Busch very near the 100 win mark in that series.
If a number of series championships were to come as well, how would Busch be perceived among NASCAR’s greats then?
When asked about measuring the greatest of all time on Sunday, Busch said: “Jimmie Johnson, he should be the GOAT, the greatest of all time.
“He won the most championships in the most different ways of having to win a championship, in the most different cars he had to be able to drive to win races.”
Yes, Johnson has. The same could also be said for Busch considering he has spent far more time than Johnson in the other two other series, each of which has their own differences in competition.
A dramatic new aero package also debuted in the Cup series this season and Busch has already won two of the first four races that have utilised it.
Busch has a Hall of Fame list of achievements in his NASCAR career.
But where does he rank? How do we know? Although a scary thought to his competition, the best of Kyle Busch the race car driver may still be yet to come.
