Five drivers that could give Rowdy fits at Richmond

Can anyone derail the Kyle Busch Express as it rolls into Richmond?

 

If Busch’s statistics this season weren’t enough of a barometer to gauge future success, how about his record of six wins—including the last two Monster Energy Cup Series races at the .75-mile oval—17 top fives and 20 top 10s in 27 starts?

 

Busch has completed all but one of his possible 10,829 laps races at Richmond Raceway. He has led 1,183 circuits and has a stellar career average finish of 6.9 at the Action Track. Not surprisingly, it’s one of Busch’s favorite tracks.

 

“I always looking forward to Richmond,” Busch said. “Obviously, last year was really good for us there. Even though we didn’t have the best car there in the spring, (crew chief) Adam (Stevens) and the pit crew guys were able to put me in a good position to win, and we capitalized on that, as well. 

 

“Certainly want to keep the momentum rolling from last week and really the start of the season for us, keep that top-10 streak going, too.”

 

Busch is eight-for-eight in top 10s to start the 2019 season after scoring his third win last weekend at Bristol. Busch had never amassed three wins this early in a season. Last year, when Busch recorded a career-high eight wins, his third victory came in Race 9—at Richmond.

 

But Busch has not accumulated the most points for a Cup driver at Richmond in the last two races—that honor belongs to Martin Truex Jr., who, ironically, has never won on a short track at the Cup level. Nor has Busch led the most laps among current drivers. That distinction belongs to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin. And though Busch has twice as many wins as the next active competitor, six other drivers have multiple wins at the track.

 

Here are five drivers capable of ending Busch’s winning streak this weekend at Richmond Raceway:

 

1) Denny Hamlin—Joe Gibbs Racing’s veteran driver has all of the same resources at his disposal as Busch. The Chesterfield, Va., native leads all current drivers in laps led with 1,659. He holds the tour’s second-best average finish (9.6) at his home track. Hamlin’s third and most recent Richmond victory came from the pole in 2016. He has posted only one finish worse than sixth in his last seven starts.

 

2) Joey Logano—Since joining Team Penske in 2013, Logano has turned his Richmond performance around. In 12 starts behind the wheel of the No. 22 Ford, Logano has posted two wins, five podiums, two poles and an average finish of 6.58. In his last 10 starts, the Penske driver’s only result outside of the top 10 was 14th in September.

 

3) Kevin Harvick—Harvick is still searching for his first win of the season—and Richmond could provide the perfect opportunity. He has collected more points than any other driver in the last 10 races at Richmond. Although his three Richmond wins came while driving at Richard Childress Racing, Harvick finished second to Busch in September after starting on the pole and leading 40 laps. 

 

4) Kurt Busch—If there’s a driver poised to win outside of the Toyota and Ford camps, it would be Busch. In the closing laps last week at Thunder Valley, Busch was the only driver capable of keeping up with his brother. He led 291 laps en route to his Toyota Owners 400 victory in 2015—his second at the Action Track. Busch ranks fifth in points accumulated by a driver over the last 10 Richmond races.

 

5) Clint Bowyer—Bowyer has two wins at Richmond. His first win came in River City with RCR in 2008. He wheeled the Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota to Victory Lane in 2012. But Bowyer has picked up his short track game of late. He won at Martinsville last spring. He finished seventh at both Martinsville and Bristol this year and led 24 laps last week at Thunder Valley. Bowyer led 45 laps in last spring’s Richmond race before finishing ninth and posted his 14th-career top-10 finish at the track in September.