Kurt Busch bails out Las Vegas sports books with Daytona 500 win

Kurt Busch, who was married in January, thanked his new bride for helping him harness his emotions Sunday during his first Daytona 500 victory.

If, like most married men, Busch has been told by his wife to be more careful when driving, he heeded that warning while eluding several wrecks in the crash-marred race and staying calm when his rearview mirror fell off with 30 laps left.

“It’s probably the most patient race I’ve ever watched Kurt Busch run,” said former NASCAR driver Tony Stewart, who owns Busch’s No. 41 Ford.

Busch, who closed as a 28-1 long shot after opening at 20-1 at William Hill, outlasted Chase Elliott — who appeared headed for the win until his car ran out of gas with three laps left — and Kyle Larson, who he passed on the final lap when he too ran out of gas. It was the only lap the Las Vegas native led.

Busch’s 29th career win helped bail out his hometown sports books, which would’ve taken a big hit had Elliott won. The pole-sitter closed at 7-1 odds after opening at 15-1 at William Hill.

“We only really had two (possible) losers in the race: Danica Patrick and Elliott. We had so much action on him, it was crazy,” William Hill sports book director Nick Bogdanovich said. “We really needed Elliott to collapse at the end. I’m glad Busch chased him down.”

Kyle Busch, Kurt’s younger brother, started one of the crashes when he lost control of his No. 18 Toyota after it blew a rear tire. The wreck took out Dale Earnhardt Jr., the 3-1 favorite.

Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan, the son of South Point owner Michael Gaughan who went off at 250-1, placed 11th in his second Daytona 500 appearance.

Bogdanovich said the handle was way up from last year’s Daytona 500, which he compared to the Masters in terms of betting interest.

“It’s an exact parallel. The Daytona odds are up for so long and the Masters are up forever and there’s a huge handle on it,” he said. “There’s so much fascination with those events. It’s like the regular Joe always has $10 on Daytona and the Masters.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.