Kurt Busch had several great highlights in his career. He won 34 Cup races, won the 2004 NASCAR Cup championship, and finished fourth in 2009. It\u2019s no wonder he\u2019ll be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame next January.<\/p>\n
The Las Vegas native had many great individual runs in his storied career, but few matched the drama and the outcome of Busch\u2019s performance at Sonoma in 2012.<\/p>\n
Having been released by Team Penske in December 2011, there were few opportunities left for Busch just two months before the 2012 season was slated to begin.<\/p>\n
As a result, he had no choice but to take an offer from the severely underfunded James Finch team.<\/p>\n
Sure, Busch ultimately finished 25th in the 2012 season, but for one moment, Finch\u2019s Phoenix Racing almost pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NASCAR history \u2013 and it was with Busch behind the wheel.<\/p>\n
Busch and the No. 51 Chevrolet were thorns in the side all race for eventual winner Clint Bowyer and runner-up Tony Stewart. In the final 10 laps, Busch almost caught Bowyer \u2013 but refused to wreck him \u2013 and ultimately settled for a third-place finish.<\/p>\n
But HOW Busch did it is a story in and of itself: he spent the last 10 laps driving with a broken trackbar. In most instances, that would mean a driver would retire due to mechanical failure, but not Busch.<\/p>\n
One of the greatest driving performances of Kurt Busch’s Hall of Fame career was at Sonoma in 2012.<\/p>\n
Carried the car to the front and was all over Clint Bowyer for the win when the trackbar broke. Finished third anyway with the rear end flopping around.@KurtBusch<\/a> | @RaceSonoma<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/j54q7avTGo<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Steven Taranto (@STaranto92) July 10, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n He kept digging and somehow managed to challenge Bowyer for the lead in the closing stages before making a late mistake \u2013 running into a tire wall in Turn 11 \u2013 that caused him to fall back to third and allow Stewart to take second place.<\/p>\n Busch: If Only He Had Another Extra Lap<\/p>\n If it wasn\u2019t for the broken trackbar and his late mistake, and if Busch had had one more lap, he very well may have been able to catch and pass Bowyer for the win.<\/p>\n \u201cI was watching him, and it was honestly, I don\u2019t know how he kept it on the racetrack with how much the rear end was moving around on that car,\u201d Stewart said of Busch<\/a>. \u201cI thought he did a really phenomenal job of just hanging on to what he had.\u201d<\/p>\n There was no shame for what Busch did. On the contrary, he was applauded by numerous peers. And Finch was in his glory. Having 251 starts in his career as a Cup team owner, Finch had just one win (with Brad Keselowski in 2009) and three other top-five finishes: third place in the 2002 Daytona 500 by Geoff Bodine, fourth in the 2007 Daytona 500 by Mike Wallace, and Busch\u2019s third-place showing in 2012.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you show up and you\u2019re on a third of the budget and you almost bring it to Victory Lane, you can\u2019t say that one guy does it out here,\u201d Busch said<\/a>. \u201cIt takes a full team effort. But I really wanted to deliver for my guys today, and being that close, and to make one mistake, it\u2019s a tough game. \u201d<\/p>\n Despite having retired from full-time racing heading into this weekend\u2019s showing at Sonoma, the former 23XI Racing<\/a> driver\u2019s showing of sheer grit and determination remains as one of the best performances the hills of Sonoma have seen.<\/p>\n