Photo: Kurt Busch and girlfriend Lyda Moore share a glimpse of their Australian getaway after the Race of Champions event

Former NASCAR driver Kurt Busch and his girlfriend, Lyda Moore, recently shared a picture on social media from their extended trip to Australia following the Race of Champions last week. The 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion returned to racing for the first time since his 2022 crash at Pocono Raceway. Busch teamed up with Travis Pastrana for the Race of Champions, which was held on March 7-8 at Sydney’s Accor Stadium.

On March 11, Busch reposted a picture of the two with the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House visible in the background.

Busch's Instagram story. Source: @kurtbusch on Instagram

Moore also shared pictures from their visit to the Sydney Zoo in a previous post on Instagram and wrote.

"When a Liger…..meets a Tiger. Visiting the @thesydneyzoo was one of the top highlights of our trip so far for me!❤️"

Kurt Busch last raced in the NASCAR for 23XI Racing. The 46-year-old stepped away from the sport due to concussion symptoms and discussed his return to the Cup Series in a recent interview.

"I'm not going to go run a Cup car right now at 500 miles side-by-side with all the boys, right? And so it’s just the steps that it takes, and this is the perfect one. And so a ripple effect from this, positive or negative, will open up more doors," Busch said (via Speedcafe).

"I poured my heart and soul into it for 23 years, won a bunch of stuff, wrecked a bunch of stuff, and all in all I was fulfilled. And so whether it ended there or I get back in the car later on, who knows? It was a good career that I can look back on and go, you know what? Two thumbs up," he added.

Busch collected 34 wins in the Cup Series over 24 years.

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"So proud of this guy" - Kurt Busch's girlfriend Lyda Moore post The Race of Champions

Kurt Busch competed at the Race of Champions for the third time this year. He raced alongside former F1 drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mick Schumacher. The event, which started in 1988, includes two competitions, one where countries race against each other and one for individual drivers.

Busch's girlfriend, Lyda Moore, who saw him race for the first time, wrote her thoughts on Instagram:

"I'm so proud of this guy for his fierce competitive spirit and kick ass attitude this weekend! It was the first time I got to see him race in person and was truly an honor to be there ❤️"

Kurt Busch previously participated in the Race of Champions in 2014 with IndyCar's Ryan Hunter-Reay. He also competed at the event with his younger brother Kyle Busch at the Marlins Park in Miami, Florida in 2017.