Daniel Suárez paid tribute to his close friend Kyle Busch by winning the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday night. The victory, which ended an 82-race winless streak, was Suárez's third career Cup Series win and came in the first race since Busch's death at age 41.
Suárez used a two-tyre pit stop and took advantage of heavy rain to hold off Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin. After the race, an emotional Suárez was hugged on pit road by teammate Michael McDowell and four-time 600 winner Jimmie Johnson. “This one really means a lot,” Suárez said. “It’s been a very tough week. Kyle, he was special. We wanted to win this one for Kyle, Samantha, Brexton and Lennix and his family.”
Suárez credited Busch for his career, saying, “If it wasn’t for Kyle, I wasn’t going to be an Xfinity champion. I wasn’t going to have my shot in the Cup Series. To be able to win this race for him is unbelievable.” Busch, a two-time NASCAR champion, drove for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the truck series, where Suárez also drove the No. 51 truck part-time in 2015 and 2016.
Before the race, a ceremony honoured Busch with his family in attendance. Tyler Reddick led the 39-car field in a “missing man” formation, dropping back to leave an open spot where the polesitter would have lined up during warmup laps. Busch's family said he died after severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis.
In other racing news, British driver Katherine Legge wrecked early in the Indianapolis 500 and finished 31st in Charlotte, becoming the foreign-born female driver to attempt “The Double” of racing both the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.
