NASCAR insiders in disbelief over Kyle Busch Turn 1 wreck at Charlotte: ‘Whole racing community feels bad’

Kyle Busch is in a rut, one that has spanned the last two NASCAR Cup Series seasons. This past Sunday’s race at the Charlotte ROVAL was a microcosm of a large part of his tenure with Richard Childress Racing.

Busch, who started 28th, went for a spin in Turn 1 on Lap 1 and crashed into the wall. The two-time Cup champion had significant damage to the right side of his car and immediately went to the garage for repairs. He came back only to finish 34th, eight laps down. Freddie Kraft, spotter for Bubba Wallace and the No. 23 team, was in disbelief when he saw that Busch was the only driver not to make the corner in Turn 1.

“I literally could not believe it when it was the first lap, it was behind us, so in your peripheral I see something happen,” Kraft said on Tuesday’s Door Bumper Clear podcast. “I look down, ‘There’s no f*cking way this guy’s crashed again.'”

Kyle Busch’s struggles continue at the ROVAL

Busch hit the wall, and he believed that Carson Hocevar wrecked him: “We’re junked. The 77 wrecked us.” At this point, Busch has to be counting down the minutes and seconds until the 2025 season comes to a close. The 2024 season was a struggle; 2025 has arguably been even worse.

Busch, who has missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, is 22nd in the points standings. He is winless since June 2023, having led just 62 laps this season. Tommy Baldwin, competition director for Rick Ware Racing, said that Busch’s struggles have been painful to watch.

“You’ve got to feel so bad for Kyle,” Baldwin said. “I know we can laugh, we can break his chops a little bit, but I think the whole racing community feels bad right now for Kyle Busch.”

Busch will be a first ballot Hall of Famer when he decides his full-time racing career is over. His career has been historic but right now, nothing is going right for him.

“We have fun with it on here, but the guy is literally one of the best race car drivers that ever lived and he’s just in, I don’t know what to call it,” Kraft said. “Like, every session you watch, practice, qualifying, something is going wrong.”