The University of Arizona’s pedigree for producing great athletes isn’t limited to the school’s 18 scholarship varsity sports.
NASCAR driver Kurt Busch may have never suited up in red and blue, but his time as a student at Arizona fueled his racing career. The 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion will be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame next January.
Busch recorded 34 wins and 339 top tens on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit, establishing himself as one of the best drivers of his generation. The Las Vegas native was named one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers in 2023.
Busch attended Arizona in the 1990s and was a student when the Wildcats men’s basketball team won the 1997 national championship.
Busch didn’t officially graduate from Arizona but remained connected to the school over the years. In March 2022, he returned to Tucson to take in an Arizona win over Stanford.
Wildcat for life! Thanks for having me back @ArizonaMBB. Coach Lloyd and Coach Murphy have the team lit #BearDown pic.twitter.com/K2f8xTTs9C
— Kurt Busch (@KurtBusch) March 4, 2022
Meeting with the media before the game, Busch talked about his experiences following Wildcats hoops during the legendary 1997 run.
I don’t remember going to class the entire month of March,” Busch said, as recounted by the Arizona Daily Star. “The excitement, it felt like the entire school took two weeks off when we won. … We were all over the place. We were at the frat house, the dorms, downtown and then came back. It was like we tried to conquer as many places as we could.
“That basketball frame of mind that I got here at the U of A, I carry it with me all the time.”
Busch has a personal connection with the current Arizona program, too, having gone to high school with Wildcats coach Jack Murphy.
With racing in the rearview mirror, Busch will have more time to attending Arizona games in the future.