Despite a busy weekend full of hard work, NASCAR star Kyle Busch had nothing to show for it coming away from Iowa Speedway.

After displaying strong pace early in practice on Saturday, things quickly unravelled for the two-time Cup Series champion, crashing his No. 8 Chevrolet into the wall and causing so much damage that he was forced to use a backup car for Sunday’s race.

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Jumping in the backup also meant starting at the very rear of the field for the Iowa Corn 350, and although some great strategy calls saw him finish the second stage up in fifth, Busch eventually came home in 20th position.

Speaking post-race, Busch outlined some of the frustrating issues that he was having with his car throughout, admitting that despite ‘busting their behinds’ his team simply did not have enough.

“We started the weekend in a deficit after going to a backup car on Saturday, and spent most of the day Sunday just battling for track position in our Chevrolet,” the Richard Childress Racing driver explained.

“Crew chief Randall Burnett made some race strategy calls that got us into the top 10 and earned us some stage points, but we lost that track position in Stage 3 and struggled to return to the front.

“Our Chevy couldn’t turn in traffic, even with the freshest tires and dirty air didn’t help. We busted our behinds out there today, but didn’t have enough.”

READ MORE: NASCAR announce penalty for Joe Gibbs Racing at Iowa

Busch playoff hopes dwindling

As a result of his Sunday, Busch did make up small ground in his quest for a playoff spot in 2025.

However, the Richard Childress Racing driver still trails Chris Buescher, who occupies the last playoff spot at present, by 73 points, which, with three races to go, is a big deficit to overcome.

Of course, Busch can lock himself into the playoffs with a victory over those final three races, with events at Watkins Glen, Richmond and Daytona to come.

Here is how the full playoff picture looks at present:


Pos
Driver (Car No.)
Team
Wins
+/- to Cut Line
Playoff Points



1Denny Hamlin (No. 11)Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota4LOCKED IN24
2Kyle Larson (No. 5)Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet3LOCKED IN23
3Christopher Bell (No. 20)Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota3LOCKED IN17
4Shane van Gisbergen (No. 88)Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet3LOCKED IN17
5William Byron (No. 24)Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet2LOCKED IN17
6Chase Elliott (No. 9)Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet1LOCKED IN6
7Ryan Blaney (No. 12)Team Penske Ford1LOCKED IN10
8Chase Briscoe (No. 19)Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota1LOCKED IN7
9Bubba Wallace (No. 23)23XI Racing Toyota1LOCKED IN7
10Joey Logano (No. 22)Team Penske Ford1LOCKED IN7
11Ross Chastain (No. 1)Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet1LOCKED IN6
12Austin Cindric (No. 2)Team Penske Ford1LOCKED IN8
13Josh Berry (No. 21)Wood Brothers Racing Ford1LOCKED IN6
14Tyler Reddick (No. 45)23XI Racing Toyota0+1221
15Alex Bowman (No. 48)Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet0+630
16Chris Buescher (No. 17)RFK Racing Ford0+230
Playoff Cut Line
17Ryan Preece (No. 60)RFK Racing Ford0-232
18Kyle Busch (No. 8)Richard Childress Chevrolet0-730
19Ty Gibbs (No. 54)Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota0-870
20AJ Allmendinger (No. 16)Kaulig Racing Chevrolet0-1180
21Brad Keselowski (No. 6)RFK Racing Ford0-1212
22John H. Nemechek (No. 42)Legacy Motor Club Toyota0-1270
23Carson Hocevar (No. 77)Spire Motorsports Chevrolet0-1310
24Michael McDowell (No. 71)Front Row Motorsports Chevrolet0-1341
25Erik Jones (No. 43)Legacy Motor Club Toyota0-1380
26Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (No. 47)JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet0-1760
27Zane Smith (No. 38)Front Row Motorsports Ford0-1790
28Austin Dillon (No. 3)Richard Childress Chevrolet0-1900
29Justin Haley (No. 7)Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet0-1960
30Todd Gilliland (No. 34)Front Row Motorsports Ford0-2070
31Daniel Suárez (No. 99)Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet0-2110
32Ty Dillon (No. 10)Spire Motorsports Chevrolet0-2260
33Cole Custer (No. 41)Stewart-Haas Racing Ford0-2830
34Noah Gragson (No. 4)Stewart-Haas Racing Ford0-2910
35Riley Herbst (No. 35)Rick Ware Racing Toyota0-3050
36Cody Ware (No. 51)Rick Ware Racing Ford0-4200

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