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NASCAR teams pick car numbers, not drivers. Do they care?

In November, Kyle Busch reached a milestone he didn't expect to hit until his NASCAR Cup Series retirement: his last race in the No. 18. It was the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, and the car he had become synonymous with -- a yellow Toyota Camry sprinkled with M&M's -- would soon be gone for good. The weekend was full of tearful goodbyes, both to Busch's teammates and to the athlete he'd been for 15 years.

The night before the race, Busch thought about the gravity of it all.

"I'm like, 'Tomorrow's the last time I'm in the M&M's car.