This trend could bode well for Kyle Busch after first career winless season

To say Kyle Busch had a rough 2024 season would be an understatement. 

Not only did Busch miss the NASCAR playoffs for the first time since 2012, but he went winless for the first time over the course of a Cup Series season, breaking a record streak of 19 consecutive seasons with at least one victory. 

However, as the focus shifts to 2025, the trends show that Busch's poor showing in 2024 might not be the worst omen going forward, 

In 1997, Dale Earnhardt — who drove for Richard Childress Racing just as Busch does now — suffered his first winless season since 1981 and his worst points finish since 1992. The 1997 season was seen as an anomaly at the time for the 46-year-old Earnhardt, but also as a potential sign that 'The Intimidator' was slowing down. 

But on February 15, 1998, all of Earnhardt's struggles in 1997 were vindicated. After 20 years of trying, Earnhardt finally won the Daytona 500 for the first time and returned to victory lane for the first time since he won at Atlanta on March 10, 1996. 

But Earnhardt wasn't the only seven-time champion to suffer through a difficult season before bouncing back. In 1978, Richard Petty suffered through the first winless campaign of his full-time career. In a year plagued by injuries, Petty had his worst points finish since 1965, a year where he missed much of the NASCAR schedule to try his hand at drag racing.

While 1978 was a stumble for NASCAR's sovereign ruler, 'The King' bounced back in a big way that February. In one of the greatest races in NASCAR history, Petty scooted by Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison on the final lap after the two crashed entering Turn 3. 

Petty's Daytona triumph was his sixth win in the 'Great American Race', and his first since the 1977 Firecracker 400 on July 4. Not only did Petty break his long winless streak, but he maintained the momentum throughout the 1979 season, winning his seventh Winston Cup champion with five wins, 23 top fives and 27 top 10 finishes. 

Busch is Earnhardt's situation going into 2025 — he's a legendary driver driving for Richard Childress Racing searching for his first Daytona 500 win in what will be his 21st start in the race. 

A Petty-esque championship run seems unlikely for the 39-year-old Busch, but a Daytona 500 victory and a return to victory lane for the first time since June 2023 would be an excellent prize nonetheless.