CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Kurt Busch mentioned Tuesday he stays “hopeful” he’ll recuperate from a concussion in time to race once more earlier than the tip of the NASCAR season.

The 2004 Cup champion has been sidelined since he crashed July 23 throughout qualifying at Pocono Raceway. He’s up to now missed 10 races — each Ty Gibbs and Bubba Wallace have pushed the No. 45 Toyota for 23XI since Busch was injured — and withdrew his eligibility to take part within the playoffs.

“I’m doing good. Every week is healthier progress and I really feel good and I don’t know after I will probably be again, however time has been the problem. Father Time is the one in cost on this one,“ Busch mentioned.

There are six races remaining this season and 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin mentioned the group has contingency plans for Busch’s restoration and isn’t pressuring the 44-year-old to get again within the automotive. Busch is below contract at 23XI by means of subsequent season with an choice for 2024.

Busch has attended quite a lot of occasions to stimulate his restoration and loved a night on the rodeo over the weekend. However his go to to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Tuesday for its tenth annual honoring of Breast Most cancers Consciousness Month was Busch’s first official look as a NASCAR driver since his damage.

He attended for the second consecutive yr as a part of his “Window of Hope” program through which all of the window nets on the Cup vehicles will probably be pink meshing in subsequent week’s race on The Roval at Charlotte. Busch credited the Toyota Efficiency Middle at TRD’s North Carolina headquarters for serving to his restoration and getting him out to occasions once more.

“I really feel hopeful. I do know I’ve extra physician visits and distance to go, and I preserve pushing every week,” Busch mentioned. “And TPC, Toyota Efficiency Middle, has been a bunch of angels with the exercises and the vestibular exercises, completely different vitamin as effectively and completely different dietary supplements and issues to assist every thing rebalance with my imaginative and prescient, my listening to. Simply my total stability typically.”

He mentioned his imaginative and prescient is almost 20/20 in a single eye, however his different eye has been lagging behind in restoration. Busch additionally mentioned he wasn’t positive why he was injured in what gave the impression to be a routine backing of his automotive into the wall throughout a spin in qualifying.

NASCAR this yr launched its Subsequent Gen automotive that was designed to chop prices and stage the taking part in subject, however the security of the spec automotive has been below hearth since Busch’s crash. Drivers have complained they really feel the impression far more in crashes than they did within the previous automotive, and a rash of blown tires and damaged elements has plagued the primary 4 races of the playoffs.

Busch mentioned his concussion “is one thing I by no means knew would occur, so far as damage” and likened his well being battle to that of the breast most cancers survivors who aided him in portray the pit highway partitions at Charlotte pink for subsequent week’s race.

“Every state of affairs is completely different. It’s just like a breast most cancers survivor. Not each story is similar, not each damage is similar,” Busch mentioned. “It’s not like a damaged arm and then you definately get the solid taken off and may go bench press 300 kilos. It’s a course of. I don’t know what journey I’m on, however I’m going to maintain pushing.”

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Extra AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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