Eight-time winner Busch can't be counted out yet

2008 Loop Data favorable at previously run Chase tracks

By Official Release
September 26, 2008
02:46 PM EDT

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Though the task seems daunting, Kyle Busch can still claw his way back into the championship hunt.

Busch, who has eight wins this season, is 12th in the Sprint Cup Series standings, 210 points out of first. Still, there's hope -- plenty of it.

He needs history to be his guide:

• In 2006, Jimmie Johnson rallied from 165 points down with seven races remaining to win the championship.

• In the history of the Chase, a driver has gained 100 points on the series leader in a single race four times -- the largest being a 148-point swing by Johnson at Atlanta in 2004.

Or, Busch can rely on his own past success:

• Busch can get white hot. Going into Talladega earlier this year, Busch trailed then-leader Jeff Burton by 80 points. Five races and three wins later, Busch led the standings by 142 points -- a 222-point swing.

• His ability to bounce back is uncanny.

True, this is Busch's worst stretch of the season -- it's the first time in 2008 he has finished outside the top 10 in three consecutive races. But prior to this stretch, he suffered back-to-back finishes outside the top 10 on three separate occasions. In the race immediately following each occasion, he won twice and finished third the other time:

• After finishes of 17th and 38th at Bristol and Martinsville, Busch finished third at Texas.

• After finishes of 43rd and 13th at Pocono and Michigan, Busch won at Infineon.

• After finishes of 15th and 36th at Indianapolis and Pocono, Busch won at Watkins Glen.

• The remaining schedule sets up nicely for Busch. Of the remaining eight races, six will be held at tracks that have already held events in 2008. In those six races in 2008, Busch has two wins, four top-fives and five top-10s. Check out his statistics from those six races:

Kyle Busch: 2008 results at remaining Chase tracks

Track	Fin.	High Pos.	Avg. Run Pos.	Fast Laps Run	Pct. Laps/Top 15	Led	Rating	Pts

Talladega	1	1	18.1	5	42.0	12	90.8	190
Charlotte	3	1	4.9	41	95.3	61	125	170
Martinsville	38	3	26.5	6	28.2	0	64.9	49
Atlanta	1	1	1.7	56	100.0	173	143.9	195
Texas	3	1	3.0	28	99.7	50	121.3	170
Phoenix	10	2	7.8	1	98.4	0	98.8	134
Total/Avg.	9.3	1.5	10.3	137	77.3	296	107.5	151.3

• Kyle Busch: Complete 2008 Season Results

The first step for Busch is an exceptional Kansas race, which hasn't happened yet in his career. In four career Kansas races, he has just one top-10 finish. The other three ended with finishes outside the top 20.

Then again, that could play to Busch's favor. All eight of his wins this season were career-firsts at those particular tracks. Maybe Kansas is the perfect spot for a Busch surge.

If so, he'll have to greatly improve on previous performances. Below are Busch's stats from the past three Kansas races: