NASCAR Head-2-Head: Kyle Busch vs. Brad Keselowski
Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
In this week’s edition of NASCAR Head-2-Head (H2H,) we compare former champions Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski and summarize their seasons to date along with our opinion on who has the competitive edge right now.
Each week, we’ll pick two NASCAR drivers in similar circumstances – i.e. at a similar point in their careers, similar backgrounds, held in a similar regard among fans or who have developed a rivalry between them. Statistics from their careers-to-date and season-to-date will be analyzed, as will driver ratings, current streaks / slumps and fan sentiment. We’ll put them head-to-head and give you our winner.
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Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Driver: Kyle Busch
Car / Team: No. 18, Joe Gibbs Racing
Season: 14th (12th full-time)
Wins: 38
2016 Top 5 Finishes: 12
2016 Top 10 Finishes: 18
2016 Number of DNFs: 5
2016 Average Start: 9.3
2016 Average Finish: 12.6
Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 105.6
Career Highlights:
Next: This Week's Driver #2: Brad Keselowski
Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
Driver: Brad Keselowski
Car / Team: No. 2, Team Penske
Season: 9th (7th full-time)
Wins: 21
2016 Top 5 Finishes: 14
2016 Top 10 Finishes: 19
2016 Number of DNFs: 0
2016 Average Start: 9.8
2016 Average Finish: 9.3
Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 101.0
Career Highlights:
Next: Making The Case For Busch
Busch’s 2016 Summary
2016 Regular Season – First Half
The defending Sprint Cup Champion served notice early and often in 2016 that he would again be a contender for the Championship. Busch recorded three wins (Martinsville, Texas and Kansas) and nine Top-10 finishes in the first 13 races. In fact, all of the Top-10 finishes could correctly be classified as Top-5’s. In the four races where he did not record a Top-5, he crashed at Bristol, Dover and Charlotte and was still on the lead lap at Fontana, where he finished 25th.
2016 Regular Season – Second Half
During the summer stretch beginning with Pocono and continuing through Richmond, Bush cooled off a bit, but still recorded seven Top-10 finishes in those 13 races. His lone win during this stretch came with a repeat win at Indianapolis. An engine problem at Michigan and another crash at Bristol were his only DNF’s. In all of the other 11 races, he completed all but one lap.
2016 Chase
Coming into the 2016 Chase tied with Keselowski as the #1 seed, Busch has gotten off to a solid start, finishing 8th at Chicago and 3rd at Loudon. He also won the pole at Chicago. He is 28 points ahead of the cut line entering Dover and, barring disaster, should comfortably advance to the Round of 12, but Dover is sometimes wildly unpredictable, and nothing can be taken for granted.
Keselowski’s 2016 Summary
2016 Regular Season – First Half
The 2012 Sprint Cup Champion remarkably completed all but eight laps in the season’s first 13 races, and recorded eight Top-10 finishes. He netted wins at Las Vegas and Talladega, and proved his versatility on all of the different track configurations at which the series competes. The wins were on a 1.5-mile oval and a superspeedway, and strong finishes were recorded at a short track (5th at Martinsville) and on a high-banked concrete facility (6th at Dover.)
2016 Regular Season – Second Half
Keselowski balanced his win total in the second half of the regular season by winning back-to-back at Daytona and Kentucky in early July. The win at Daytona was his second on a superspeedway in 2016, and gives him an average finish of 7.3 on superspeedway tracks this year… so he’s probably a good bet when we get back to Talladega next month. He also continued to show his versatility by scoring a 3rd-place finish on the road course at Watkins Glen.
2016 Chase
Brad has an average finish of 4.5 in the first two Chase races this season, and holds the points lead among the non-winners in the Round of 16 heading to Dover. He is 35 points above the cut line. While not mathematically eligible for the Round of 12, one would have to believe that the Penske preparation combined with his strong run at Dover in May will allow him to advance with ease.
Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The Winner: Kyle Busch
Each of this week’s featured drivers has had a terrific 2016 season to date – four wins apiece, great momentum and teamwork going into the Chase and two very strong performances so far in the Chase races at Chicago and New Hampshire.
Each driver has both a Nationwide or Xfinity Championship and each is also a former Sprint Cup Champion. Each can be fiercely aggressive while at the same time serving as a model ambassador for the sport as a Champion. Each will be one of the recipients of the proverbial leader’s torch after the likes of Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. have moved on.
Because of his higher season-to-date driver’s rating, a win in one of the four marquee events on the schedule (Indianapolis) and a list of career accomplishments that is just a bit longer than his competitor’s, Kyle Busch is this week’s Head-2-Head winner.
Be sure to follow all of this weekend’s action here at Beyond The Flag! The Camping World Truck race is Saturday night from Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 8:30PM Eastern on Fox Sports 1, the Xfinity Series is in Dover on Saturday afternoon at 3:00PM Eastern on NBCSN and the Cup Series races at 2:00PM Eastern on Sunday, also on NBCSN.
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