NASCAR Sprint Cup Winner 2015: Kyle Busch Tops Final Chase Standings and Grid

Kyle Busch endured the most adversity-filled season of any driver in NASCAR, but the resilient 30-year-old culminated his 2015 campaign with his first Sprint Cup Series championship—a title that was a decade in the making.

Busch won Sunday’s one-race Championship Round at Homestead-Miami Speedway to win the Sprint Cup, ousting defending champion Kevin Harvick in the final laps after a caution flew for debris with 10 to go.

He finished the race 1.553 seconds before Harvick, while Chase drivers Jeff Gordon (sixth) and Martin Truex Jr. (12th) remained non-factors for most of the day.

Here is a look at the final standings:

Rank	Driver	Points (Behind)
1	Kyle Busch	5,043
2	Kevin Harvick	5,042 (-1)
3	Jeff Gordon	5,038 (-5)
4	Martin Truex Jr.	5,032 (-11)

Busch, known for epic burnouts, did not disappoint Sunday, courtesy of NASCAR:

Busch broke his right leg during the Xfinity Series season opener at Daytona and missed 11 races before returning three months later for the All-Star Race at Charlotte.

Had it not been for a waiver granted by NASCAR, Busch never would have qualified for the Chase. He needed to remain in the top 30 in the standings and win at least once before the playoffs began in order to qualify.

He went on to win five in 25 Sprint Cup events, tied for a remarkable second on the circuit. ESPN Stats & Info showed where he ranked in the NASCAR annals for his 2015 performance:

Busch relayed his emotions on the radio just after taking the checkered flag Sunday, per Jeff Gluck of USA Today:

Signing with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008 after a fractured relationship with Hendrick Motorsports, Busch went on to win eight races in his first year with his new team, entering the Chase as the No. 1 seed. But Busch averaged a 19.1-place finish in the playoffs—under the old format—and conceded the title to Jimmie Johnson.

His knock has always been his brazen behavior and inability to win it all. Busch broke into Sprint Cup full time in 2005 at 19 years old and found success early, but he was eventually pushed out at Hendrick to make room for Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the dollars he brought. At face value a financial decision, Busch’s departure was also caused by an internal rift with ownership and teammates Johnson and Gordon.

Busch found his home with Gibbs, winning 29 races and qualifying for the Chase six times in eight years.

Former driver Kenny Wallace compared Busch's topsy-turvy career to another polarizing athlete who found redemption after winning it all:

Perhaps NASCAR Nation will accept Busch now that he’ll forever be etched in the sport’s history. Some of the all-time greats—Cale Yarborough, Dale Earnhardt and even Gordon—all weathered some type of fan backlash early in their careers.

This could also be the first of many titles for Busch, who prior to Sunday had arguably been the best driver on the circuit without one. We could be witnessing the birth of a new era.