Kyle Busch Accepts Harsh Reality as Denny Hamlin’s Late Career Surge Threatens His NASCAR Legacy
Mar 21, 2026 | 7:21 PM EDT
Kyle Busch Accepts Harsh Reality as Denny Hamlin’s Late Career Surge Threatens His NASCAR Legacy
Mar 21, 2026 | 7:21 PM EDT
Kyle Busch fans are not going to like this weekend at Darlington. Busch’s 2026 season is off to another poor start with zero top-10 finishes in five races. To top it off, he does not even look close enough to the front row in terms of race pace. So it’s no wonder that Busch has no option but to accept the fact that his former teammate might end up surpassing his Cup Series legacy.
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Kyle Busch makes tragic admission about his performance
Back in 2015, Kyle Busch was a menace to the entire field. He missed the first 11 races of the season and took nearly half the regular season to post his first victory. Yet all those setbacks could not stop him from claiming the championship victory.
Yet, the very same man had a somber look in his eye when he answered the reporters about his current situation in the Cup Series. When asked about Hamlin being close to his own victory tally with 61 wins, Busch replied,
“Yeah, I have seen publications for that, and if I had any way of being able to rebut it, I certainly would, but I don’t. So, he will top it this year, I bet. And hopefully I get a few more opportunities in the future to be able to do something with that, but I am 63, and he will soon eclipse it.”
His fans are already giving up on a later career surge from him. Because there is a haunting comparison of his career when compared to his former teammate’s. Back when the two drivers were at Joe Gibbs Racing, Hamlin was overshadowed heavily by Kyle Busch. He had been with them since 2006, but he had not won a championship.
Then came Kyle Busch, who steamrolled his way to the title in 2015. And in 2019, he would go on to do it again. Only this time, he would shut down Hamlin’s hopes during the Championship Four race. What followed after that is a completely different story.
Hamlin got a chance to revisit the Championship Four in 2020. But for the first time in five years, Kyle Busch was not contending for the championship title. That statistic kept dropping lower each year, while his teammate kept rising. In a way, Denny Hamlin successfully turned around his career, while Busch’s went downhill uncontrollably.
I asked @KyleBusch if there was concern that @dennyhamlin would catch him in the Cup win count
“He’ll top it this year. … I don’t feel like I’ve been able to rise as high as I wanted to. I was hoping to get into the 70, 75 range, and we’ve stalled out at 63”#NASCAR… pic.twitter.com/PRSUrr31xv
— Dalton Hopkins (@PitLaneCPT) March 21, 2026
As he continues his interview, perhaps he realizes the same when he makes the admission.
“No, I mean, as a driver you want to continue to add to your total and just keep rising and rising, right? And I don’t feel like I have been able to rise as high as I wanted to. I was hoping to get into the 70-75 range, and that was sort of my goal that I had set.
“And we have sold out at 63, so that’s my own problem. Not that Denny shouldn’t be successful and overachieving. He is obviously a great racecar driver and has many years and opportunities to get to where he is at. So, when he does get there, he takes that spot.”
The way things are progressing, Kyle Busch is far away from the goal he set for himself. Meanwhile, Hamlin is rapidly improving and utilizing the superior JGR machinery to his advantage to stage yet another championship-contending campaign.
Although the loyal Kyle Busch fans would be glad to know their JGR counterpart’s opinions. While they are on-track rivals, it seems like the former teammates support each other quite well.
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Denny Hamlin hands off iconic achievement to Kyle Busch
The way Denny Hamlin has been running lately has everyone wondering. Will he reach Dale Earnhardt‘s Cup total of 76 wins in no time? While fans are betting on it and critics are analyzing it furiously, Hamlin’s opinion is slightly different.
In his eyes, Kyle Busch is still the one who has what it takes to claim that spot. “I think it’s pie in the sky, realistically. I think that, given the runway, Kyle’s career—he’s still got more years to go than I will. He’s capable of running and winning long after I’m gone. I think I’m kind of where I’m at and where I think I will be, but you just never know.”
It is quite logical that while comparing himself to a guy who has two championships, even though he joined Joe Gibbs Racing after Hamlin, the No. 11 driver’s first priority is getting the trophy home. He can deal with the victories and other tallies later.
“It’s just now. Can we get the big prize at the end of the year? That’s the only goal left to have, other than the Brickyard (400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway), which is certainly one that is still meaningful for me personally.”
It is nice to see that at least someone believes in the capacity of Kyle Busch without too much of a doubt.
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