The 2004 Cup Series champion Kurt Busch is set to be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. In the spotlight now, he has been getting waves of messages from everyone that he has impacted with his life and career thus far. One of the most important personalities to speak about him after the news came out was his former teammate Ross Chastain.
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The duo worked together while at Chip Ganassi Racing back in 2021. Chastain was yet to become a Cup Series race winner at the time and viewed Busch as a mentor figure.
He said about the icon at the Charlotte Motor Speedway last weekend, “He was really motivating for me when I came into the No. 42 car. I had trained with him and been around him for a couple of years.”
He mentioned how Busch was always busy at the time and now he understands why. He continued, “There were a lot of things I could ask him about and he’s like — well, I made that mistake, you know, 18 years ago or something. He’d had some story from way back in the day. It makes more sense now as I kind of step through my career.”
A driver for Trackhouse Racing now, Chastain fondly remembers all the conversations they had and their relatability to his current career standing. “He was nothing but good to me,” he concluded. He finished the 2021 Cup Series season 20th in the driver standings while Busch finished higher in 11th place.
Kurt Busch’s induction into the Hall of Fame
Busch has been elected alongside Harry Gant and Ray Hendrick to be inducted into the Hall of Fame next year. Busch and Gant were selected from the Modern Era Ballot and received 61% of the votes. Hendrick was selected in the Pioneer Ballot and received 31% of the votes with Bob Welborn finishing second to him.
Busch said about the honor, “Everyone that’s on the ballot is someone that can go into the Hall because of the impact that they made on the sport. And for me, just a blue-collar kid out of Vegas, I never would have imagined this.
“We were a family where it was just a hobby. It was like a hobby to race, it was just fun to go to the track as father-son. Dad had his car and he helped me build mine.”
One of the most impressive abilities that Busch displayed during his career was adaptability, racing for several organizations including Roush Racing and Stewart-Haas Racing. It is only befitting that his name be placed up high in NASCAR’s ranks.
