
Adam Stevens won two NASCAR Cup Series championships and 28 races while serving as Kyle Busch's crew chief, but his favorite memory of the late driver came in one of NASCAR's most iconic finishes.
At Chicagoland Speedway in 2018, Busch and Kyle Larson battled hard for the win in the closing laps. On the final circuit, Larson was clear of Busch going into turn 3 — until contact from Busch sent Larson spinning and cleared the way for Busch to win the race.
"That was incredible," Stevens said Thursday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. "And that was the epitome of Kyle Busch. We weren't very good that day. Pretty late in the race, we were [at the] tail end of the lead lap. Somehow, he kept it on the lead lap."
After a plethora of adjustments, Stevens got Busch's No. 18 Toyota good enough where Busch could fight for the win.
"He had a great restart and got a little clean air," Stevens said. "He just wheeled that thing to the front. KB got back to [Larson] and moved him out of the way and took it home. There was just no quit in him that day."
July 1, 2018. Kyle Busch & Kyle Larson fight hard for the win at Chicagoland! pic.twitter.com/R6fgfYntQP
— Racing Territory (@RacingTerritory) May 28, 2026
What may have been even more quintessential Busch than his driving was his post-race antics. Exiting his car to a chorus of boos from the Illinois crowd, Busch quipped, "If you don't like that kind of racing, don't even watch."
While the fans may have appeared to passionately dislike Busch, there's no denying that moments like that only ensured they'd keep watching.
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