Kyle Busch To Make 100th NASCAR Nextel Cup Start At Watkins Glen International
Aug 08, 2007
CIA Stock Photos
BUSCH MAKING 100TH CUP SERIES START: This weekend at Watkins Glen (N. Y.) International, Kyle Busch, 22, will make his 100th NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series start. At 18, Busch made his first Cup start on March 7, 2004 at his hometown Las Vegas Motor Speedway and has since racked up four wins, 24 top-five finishes and 42 top-10s. He also has earned two Cup poles.
MILESTONES: Busch has amassed an impressive résumé in his 99 career NEXTEL Cup starts, ranking as the youngest race winner, pole sitter and rookie of the year in Cup history. Earlier this season at Bristol, Tenn., he notched Chevrolet’s 600th victory and became the first driver to win a “Car of Tomorrow” event.
ROAD WARRIOR: Busch posted his best-ever road-course finish in a NEXTEL Cup event in June at Infineon Raceway, where he logged an eighth-place result. His previous best came with a ninth-place run at Watkins Glen last August. The 22-year-old driver has not finished worse than 11th in a Cup road-course event since 2005.
HENDRICK AT ‘THE GLEN’: Car owner Rick Hendrick has earned six NEXTEL Cup wins at Watkins Glen with three different drivers: Tim Richmond (1986), Ricky Rudd (1990) and Jeff Gordon (1997, 1998, 1999, 2001).
CAR SELECTION FOR WATKINS GLEN: Crew chief Alan Gustafson has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 430 for this weekend’s NEXTEL Cup event at Watkins Glen. It’s the same car that Busch drove to an eighth-place finish for the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST team earlier this season at Infineon Raceway.
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KYLE BUSCH, DRIVER OF THE NO. 5 CARQUEST/KELLOGG’S IMPALA SS: (ON HIS 100TH START. ) “I wish I had more wins for the amount of races I’ve run, but it’s gone really fast for me. I’m lucky to be this young and to have such a successful career. It would be awesome to celebrate my 100th start with my fifth win. “
BUSCH: (ON THE CHALLENGING COURSE AT WATKINS GLEN. ) “It’s a very challenging track. There are a lot of high-speed turns at the Glen. Because of the different elevations at Infineon (Raceway), we were able to shut the car off and roll down the hills to save on fuel. At Watkins Glen, the course is pretty flat and we will have 17.5-gallon fuel cells this time around. Last year, we had 22 gallons and we were able to make it on two stops. This year, we might need to go for three stops. Most of the course is uphill. “
BUSCH: (ON HANDLING AT THE GLEN. ) “The biggest thing about Watkins Glen is to handle well. There are some fast corners and you have to handle down the straightaways. It’s fast and it’s a right-hand road course so you have to get through the few left-handers to get some decent lap times. “
BUSCH: (ON TESTING AT ROAD ATLANTA. ) “Road course ace Max Papis did some testing for us this year. We went to Road Atlanta last week and tried to get a little bit more of a handle on things. It was a fine-tuning of sorts. I think the information we had from Infineon and the testing that’s been done at Hendrick Motorsports will help us get the edge we need. I expect a great run this weekend. “
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Driver Max Papis has tested road courses, including Virginia International Raceway and Road Atlanta, for Hendrick Motorsports this season. )
BUSCH: (ON THE FIVE LUCKY DOG PASSES HE RECEIVED LAST YEAR AT WATKINS GLEN. ) “We were the fastest car out there and we broke a rear track-bar mount while running third. We had to go to the garage and fix it. After that, we got five lucky dogs in a row, and drove through the field again to finish ninth. It was definitely an eventful day for us last year at Watkins Glen. I also think it’s the record for the most lucky dogs in one race. “
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ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF OF THE NO. 5 CARQUEST/KELLOGG’S IMPALA SS: (ON THE TESTING EFFORT AT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS. ) “I have to thank Max Papis and Rex Stump (Hendrick Motorsports engineer) for all the testing that went into the road-course events this year. I really think we have a great shot at it this weekend. Kyle ran well at Road Atlanta last week and we ran well at Infineon, so unless something crazy happens I think we’ll have a great run. We will have to see how the fuel mileage shakes out, but it’s sure to throw everyone for a loop on pit strategy. “
