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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Busch Hopes To Rise With Phoenix
After a tumultuous season, Kurt Busch drives down a new avenue with Phoenix Racing…
Mike Hembree  |  Posted February 02, 2012   Spartanburg, SC
Phoenix Racing, based in Spartanburg, S.C., employees only 18 people. (Photo: Mike Hembree)
At Phoenix Racing, there’s an Elvis in the room, and there’s also an elephant in the room.

First, Elvis. Team owner James Finch is a big fan, so no one is surprised to see a statue of the king of rock and roll situated in a prime location in the team’s conference room. And many people see it. The statue basks in lights after dark and is clearly visible from cars passing on nearby Interstate 85.

Now, the elephant.

Kurt Busch joined the team Christmas week and will be its full-time Sprint Cup driver and part-time Nationwide driver this season. He has the talent to be the best driver in Finch’s history in NASCAR racing, but does he also have the baggage that was prominent in his departure from high-profile gigs at Roush Fenway Racing and Penske Racing?

That remains to the seen. Since Busch ended the season with a temper tantrum at Homestead-Miami Speedway, one that was splashed across the nation for all interested ears to hear, he has said all the right things.

He has endured long news media sessions in which he has been hammered with questions about his attitude, and he has patiently answered each one. He has made numerous visits to the Phoenix shop since early January to work with the team, fit seats into his race cars and generally hang with the guys he’ll work alongside for 38 race weekends.

Busch has talked for weeks about how much more “fun” racing will be for him this season, having removed himself from the pressure of the high ground. But one of the most closely watched stories of the new season will be how this team, highly regarded for a single-car operation with a limited staff and budget, can perform under more scrutiny and how Busch might react if things go poorly.

Steve Barkdoll, son of a racer (Phil), is the man in the middle. As general manager of Phoenix Racing and Busch’s spotter, he’ll both call the shots and attempt to limit the shots.

“Our crew chief (Nick Harrison) is a lot like Kurt,” Barkdoll said. “He wears his emotions on his sleeve. Being the ‘elder statesman’ at 49 and also being the spotter, I expect it to happen. Not because of his (Busch) past, because of his passion.

“I know there will be times when a pit stop will be messed up and the crew chief will be mad. That’s my part – being around the sport for 25 years, it’s my part to say, ‘OK guys, concentrate on the big picture.’

“We’re going to try to keep all that to a minimum, but I don’t think Kurt would be as good if he didn’t care as much. We know it’s not all going to be peaches and cream and roses. We continue to talk about it. When we see a little problem, we’re going to talk about it. I think we’ll be all right.”

Steve Barkdoll (Pictured) is the general manager of Phoenix Racing, and will serve as Kurt Busch’s spotter. (Photo: Mike Hembree)
Phoenix is in a different neighborhood from Penske and Roush – literally and figuratively. The shop, which once housed Buckshot Racing, is located about 90 miles from the Charlotte, N.C., area operations of most Cup teams. Within its walls work only 18 people, a payroll far smaller than those of the superteams that dominate the sport.

But Phoenix has its positives. It broke through with a win, scored by Brad Keselowski, in a wild finish at Talladega in 2009. Its engines and cars are supplied by Hendrick Motorsports, which also sends pit-crew members for the team on race weekends. Hendrick employees have been in the shop during the off-season helping with the fine-tuning.

“It has all the potential, with the Hendrick power and chassis and the bodies that are on these cars,” Busch said. “We just have to put it in place. James Finch wants to have fun. He’s a racer. He’s old school. That’s where this is a perfect fit.”

Still, it’s like a fly buzzing around the head of giants.

“It can go either way,” Busch said. “We can have the best Speedweeks ever and show up at Phoenix (for the second race) and be a lap down on lap 40. We have our work cut out for us. That’s the mental part I’m trying to get my arms around. It’s a matter of taking it one day at a time.”

Finch runs a construction business in Florida and has no obvious financial difficulties. He expanded the Spartanburg shop to provide more room for cars and equipment, and it’s clear that he doesn’t scrimp on the important things. But Busch will be stepping into a new world.

“James told Kurt, ‘I’ll do everything to give you what I can every race, but we’re not going to have the luxuries you had at Penske or Roush,’” Barkdoll said. “He understands and we understand that there will be some growing pains. We’re going to try to be smart while we’re learning each other.”

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEED.com and has been covering motorsports for 30 years. He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.
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