Kurt Busch: The best plate racer yet to win a plate race?
By SceneDaily Staff
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
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Jason Smith / Getty Images
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series may have an enjoyed a rare off weekend last week, but Kurt Busch has been a busy man.
Busch and his Penske Racing team took their cars from the races on the 1.5-mile tracks at Atlanta and Texas to Nashville Superspeedway in an effort to gain more ground at these type of tracks. Then Busch participated in a tire test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this week.
Crew chief Pat Tryson said that the team took the same cars from the test at the 1.33-mile Nashville track to the 2.5-mile Indy oval.
“We think using the same cars at these different tracks makes sense,” he said. “We continue to add to our notes every time we hit the track. It’s a continuous learning process.”
Now Busch and Tryson turn their attention to a type of racing in which the Penske team was on top of its game earlier this season – a restrictor-plate track – for this weekend's Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. In the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway, Ryan Newman edged Busch at the line, giving Penske a sweep of the top two spots.
“The truth is that I really enjoy plate racing,” Busch said. “It’s a different kind of challenge than what we do during the other 32 races of the season. There’s a big mental demand, and it’ll wear you out, but the biggest thing about that type of racing is it truly is a total team effort.
“I’ve heard plate racing referred to as a high-speed chess match on wheels, and that’s a pretty good description, I think. But at the same time, I have enough experience at the track and respect for the other competitors that I realize it can also turn into a scene that could be depicted as 190-mile-per-hour Russian roulette.”
Now, he wants to win one of these showdowns. Busch may be winless in restrictor-plate races, but he’s performed well overall in them. Last season, he led 147 laps on the two restrictor-plate tracks, and he has 13 top-five and 18 top-10 finishes in 29 races at Talladega and Daytona.
The team certainly has enough faith in its driver. While Busch has never won a restrictor-plate race, Tryson thinks he is one of the best in the business on these drafting tracks.
“Without a doubt, Kurt is the best-ever restrictor-plate racer yet to win one of these things,” Tryson said. “I don’t think there’s anybody in the garage that would argue about that. Given an equal playing field, I’d put him up against anybody out there.
“Even if you come in with a slight disadvantage, Kurt is so good in these races that his talent can make up for a lot of what might be lacking elsewhere.”
- Mentioned Drivers:
- Kurt Busch
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