“I’m the worst loser ever”- When Kyle Busch reflected on the ‘inevitable failure’ as a NASCAR driver 

Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch, talked about the struggles of racing and how he does not always handle losing well.

In February this year, Busch discussed the challenges of the sport with Greg Olsen and Dale Earnhardt Jr. during an episode of the "Undeniable" podcast. When asked about his approach to dealing with the 'inevitable failure' embedded in NASCAR, Busch responded by saying:

"I'm the worst loser ever. And I do my fair share of it. I'm not a great loser either. I'll be honest, I've had some bad moments. I'm not a good loser either. Yeah, so it's just, I don't know, like I've never really figured it out. Even today, we've gone through a tough stretch this year." (01:45 onwards)

Kyle Busch, who lost his 19-year streak of winning at least one race each season, had multiple close runs this year.

He talked about his early loss at Vegas this year, where he was leading but finished 26th after a penalty for pitting outside his box halfway through the final stage. Busch also had near misses when he ended up second at Darlington (by 0.361 seconds) and Daytona (by 0.047 seconds) in the second half of the season.

"There's always a comment on every single thing and it drives me bonkers" - Kyle Busch on criticism and exp

Kyle Busch (8) during the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway - Source: Imagn

Kyle Busch also talked about his struggles with handling criticism. In the same episode, the 39-year-old pointed out that not all wins feel the same to him.

Busch talked about a win at Bristol Dirt where he took advantage of a crash between the top two drivers and said:

"I was able to win the race. The front two guys got together, they crashed each other out, and I took the win. After the race was over, I just got out of the car, went up to get the checkered flag, and got back in the car. It was just like, 'Ho hum.' Like, I'm not all pumped up, not overly excited because we stole one."(02:30)

"I don't understand how people can tell you how to take your wins and how to take your losses. There's always a comment on every single thing, and it drives me bonkers," he added (03:11).

Busch further mentioned when he won his second championship in 2019, people thought he seemed indifferent. He compared it to his first championship, when he was so excited that he 'forgot the whole thing' and said that he tried to slow things down the second time around.