- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
-
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
Sprint Cup
CUP: Can Kyle Bounce Back At The Glen?
Kyle Busch has had a wildly erratic season so far...
Kyle Busch is a past winner at Watkins Glen. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Kyle Busch’s NASCAR Sprint Cup season appears to be suffering the on-track equivalent of bi-polar disorder.
PHOTOS: Past NASCAR Road Races
The pilot of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota has had an interesting year, one that’s seen him bounce back and forth from mediocrity to success and then back to mediocrity again.
To wit:
• In the first six Cup races of 2010, Busch had a best finish of ninth, and an average finish of 16.5.
• In the next eight races, Busch had two victories, five top-fives and eight top-10s. His average finish in those eight races was a tremendously impressive 4.25.
• But over the last seven events, he’s fallen back into the pack again, with only one top-10 finish, an eighth in the Brickyard 400, and an average finish of 19.75. Ouch.
So which Kyle Busch will show up at Watkins Glen International this weekend, Hot Kyle or Not So Hot Kyle?
While recent history might suggest Not So Hot Kyle, based on what he’s done at road courses throughout his Sprint Cup career, Busch should be fine this weekend at the high-speed, 2.45-mile circuit in the Finger Lakes region of New York.
After finishing 33rd at The Glen as a Sprint Cup rookie in 2005, Busch finished ninth, seventh, first and fourth here subsequently, his 2008 victory coming as part of a road course sweep that included a win at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.
Busch said he welcomes the opportunity to go road racing.
“I like both road courses,” Busch said. “They’re both fun. For me, road racing is enjoyable. You get a chance to turn right and turn left and do something different than what you typically do. For me, I’m excited about it. Hopefully, we have a good shot at running well there again this year with our M&M’s Camry. We won two years ago and finished fourth last year, so we’ve been decent and, hopefully this time around, we’ll do the same.”
Like most of his peers at the Cup level, Busch wasn’t an overnight sensation on the road courses, although it didn’t take him a long time to hone his craft.
“I think I really hit it probably in ‘07, when I was still at Hendrick,” said Busch. “I think I finished 10th out at Sonoma or something. We had an OK day. But then at Watkins Glen, I think I was running fifth or fourth, just passed Jeff Gordon, and that’s when my track bar broke and I went six laps down fixing that, got all the ‘Lucky Dogs’ to get back on the lead lap, and finished 12th. But we were really fast and we were good.”
And from there, Busch went on to his 2008 road course sweep, a period when his still-young career was at its absolute hottest, at least in the Cup Series.
“I took that experience from ‘07 into ‘08 with the M&M’s car and Joe Gibbs Racing and we swept both races and were pretty good at it,” said Busch. “I feel like I’m a relatively good road course racer. It took me a little bit to get used to it, to figure out how hard to charge the corners or how hard not to charge the corners, and different braking techniques.”
And if there was ever a time for Not So Hot Kyle to become Hot Kyle this is it. For what it’s worth, Busch said he’s looking forward to it.
“Watkins Glen (is) really fast and you have to maneuver the corners at a high rate of speed," he said. "This weekend will be a fun race. I always look forward to going up there and challenging the road course.”
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100 and e-mail him at Jensen is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of Speed,” and has appeared on numerous television and radio shows. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association and an NMPA Writer of the Year.
PHOTOS: Past NASCAR Road Races
The pilot of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota has had an interesting year, one that’s seen him bounce back and forth from mediocrity to success and then back to mediocrity again.
To wit:
• In the first six Cup races of 2010, Busch had a best finish of ninth, and an average finish of 16.5.
• In the next eight races, Busch had two victories, five top-fives and eight top-10s. His average finish in those eight races was a tremendously impressive 4.25.
• But over the last seven events, he’s fallen back into the pack again, with only one top-10 finish, an eighth in the Brickyard 400, and an average finish of 19.75. Ouch.
So which Kyle Busch will show up at Watkins Glen International this weekend, Hot Kyle or Not So Hot Kyle?
While recent history might suggest Not So Hot Kyle, based on what he’s done at road courses throughout his Sprint Cup career, Busch should be fine this weekend at the high-speed, 2.45-mile circuit in the Finger Lakes region of New York.
After finishing 33rd at The Glen as a Sprint Cup rookie in 2005, Busch finished ninth, seventh, first and fourth here subsequently, his 2008 victory coming as part of a road course sweep that included a win at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.
Busch said he welcomes the opportunity to go road racing.
“I like both road courses,” Busch said. “They’re both fun. For me, road racing is enjoyable. You get a chance to turn right and turn left and do something different than what you typically do. For me, I’m excited about it. Hopefully, we have a good shot at running well there again this year with our M&M’s Camry. We won two years ago and finished fourth last year, so we’ve been decent and, hopefully this time around, we’ll do the same.”
Like most of his peers at the Cup level, Busch wasn’t an overnight sensation on the road courses, although it didn’t take him a long time to hone his craft.
“I think I really hit it probably in ‘07, when I was still at Hendrick,” said Busch. “I think I finished 10th out at Sonoma or something. We had an OK day. But then at Watkins Glen, I think I was running fifth or fourth, just passed Jeff Gordon, and that’s when my track bar broke and I went six laps down fixing that, got all the ‘Lucky Dogs’ to get back on the lead lap, and finished 12th. But we were really fast and we were good.”
And from there, Busch went on to his 2008 road course sweep, a period when his still-young career was at its absolute hottest, at least in the Cup Series.
“I took that experience from ‘07 into ‘08 with the M&M’s car and Joe Gibbs Racing and we swept both races and were pretty good at it,” said Busch. “I feel like I’m a relatively good road course racer. It took me a little bit to get used to it, to figure out how hard to charge the corners or how hard not to charge the corners, and different braking techniques.”
And if there was ever a time for Not So Hot Kyle to become Hot Kyle this is it. For what it’s worth, Busch said he’s looking forward to it.
“Watkins Glen (is) really fast and you have to maneuver the corners at a high rate of speed," he said. "This weekend will be a fun race. I always look forward to going up there and challenging the road course.”
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100 and e-mail him at Jensen is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of Speed,” and has appeared on numerous television and radio shows. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association and an NMPA Writer of the Year.
Shake and Bake: Recent Posts
-
ICYMI: The Biff Stands By Decision To Not Help Edwards »
-
Blowout Blame Game: Is It The Tire Or The Crew Chief? »
-
Biffle Loves It When The #48 Crashes Trying To Catch Him »
-
Rubbin' Is ... Amazing? Think You Can "Finish That Phrase"? »
-
Harvick And Labonte Toss First Pitch, Mocked By Stenhouse, Jr. »
-
Last Lap: Déjà vu ... Mike Harmon Has Turned Himself In »
-
Ricky Vs. Danica: Michigan Edition »
-
Feud Of The Week: Junior Nation Vs. The Racing Gods »
Latest Gallery
LATEST HEADLINES: NASCAR
-
Winged Sprint-Car Wreck Claims Jason Leffler
Jason Leffler lost his life Wednesday night in a winged sprint-car… -
MCREYNOLDS: Dover Showed Gen-6 Car Is Strong
The biggest storyline of the year is the introduction of the Generation… -
CUP: Richard Petty Motorsports Expands Development Program
Young drivers join new Petty program... -
CUP: Monster Mile Gets Toyotas
Toyota teams find setbacks at Dover... -
CUP: Kez Is On The Down-Low
Bard Keselowski's car too low after race... -
CUP: Dover Power Rankings
Despite a rare and costly mistake, Jimmie Johnson holds onto the… -
CUP: Montoya Edges Closer To Oval Win
Juan Pablo Montoya loses shot at first victory on oval… - More News
