Busch brothers’ Chase headed in opposite directions

[NickHolt]

Busch Brothers’ Chase Headed In Opposite Directions

 

Daytona Beach, FL (October 8, 2013) - Brothers Kurt and Kyle Busch are headed for a meeting in the middle – the middle of the Chase points standings that is.

 

The elevator’s going up for elder sibling Kurt, the 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion who finished second to Kansas winner Kevin Harvick and moved from ninth to seventh in the standings. Busch now trails leader Matt Kenseth by 47 points.

 

“We haven't quite had the start to the Chase that we wanted, but overall we have two top fives out of four races,” he said. “That's not bad.”

 

It’s a down car for Kyle, whose best career Chase start was stalled – for the moment, anyway – by a third consecutive DNF at Kansas Speedway. He’d entered the Chase’s fourth installment in third place, 12 markers behind Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kenseth and dropped two positions. The gap is now 35 points.

 

“We’ll just have to keep doing what we’ve done and getting us to this point all year long and that’s been consistency,” he said. “It certainly hinders (our championship chances) but we’ll just try to get back into it.”

 

Both competitors have solid histories at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Kurt Busch won the 2010 Coca-Cola 600. He drove the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet to a third-place finish in May behind Harvick and fellow Chase qualifier Kasey Kahne.

 

He finished fourth in Charlotte’s 2004 Chase race en route to the NASCAR Sprint Cup title.

 

Kyle Busch has yet to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Charlotte but he owns the track’s second-best Driver Rating (107.2), third most Fastest Laps Run (434) and eight top-five finishes including a fifth in last fall’s Bank of America 500. Busch led 65 laps in May’s race but finished 38th after the No. 18 JGR Toyota exited with engine failure.