AUCTIONS
Autostock
Kyle and Kurt Busch enjoyed their homecoming, taking the top-two qualifying spots in Las Vegas.By the Numbers: Bristol
Busch brothers look to make it three in a row
type size: + -
March has been a good month to be a Busch.
It started on the first day of the month when Kyle Busch cruised to victory in Las Vegas. Then, for the second consecutive season, the brothers went back-to-back as Kyle's older brother, Kurt, was nearly perfect in his victory at Atlanta.
Now the series heads to Bristol Motor Speedway for 500 laps of short-track drama in the Food City 500 (1:30 p.m. ET, FOX) and we could see the Busches make it three in a row.
Kurt is clearly the favorite of the two, with five wins and nine top-10s -- but Kyle is catching up. In five of the last six races at Bristol, Kyle has finished in the top 10 with a win and two second-place finishes.
After his domination at Atlanta and past strong runs at Bristol, Kurt is ready to get behind the wheel and build on his strong start this season.
"I'm probably looking forward to this trip back to Bristol as much as any of my career," Busch said. "I could even say that I'm anticipating this Bristol race weekend more than any visit I've ever made to the track."
"We feel that the timing is right this weekend to come back in there and add to our success."
Inside the Data
Kurt and Kyle Busch in the Bristol spring race in the Chase era
2004This race only featured one Busch brother as Kyle wasn't yet in the Cup Series, but that didn't stop Kurt from dominating -- again. After sweeping Bristol in 2003, Kurt kept it going in '04 by leading 119 laps and holding off Rusty Wallace for the win.
2005Kyle's debut at the World's Fastest Half-Mile wasn't all that great. He started 39th and struggled to a 28th-place finish. Kurt didn't fair much better, crashing out on Lap 360 and finishing 35th.
2006Kyle started figuring out the track in '06, leading 34 laps and bringing home his first top-10, finishing eighth. After a three race hiatus, Kurt found his way back to Victory Lane, leading 33 laps and edging Kevin Harvick at the line.
2007After watching his brother win five times at the track, Kyle added his name to the winner's list by leading 29 laps and beating Jeff Burton in a green-white-checkered finish. Kurt struggled to a 29th-place finish after starting 42nd, his worst starting position at the track.
2008Mediocre races for both Kurt and Kyle, with Kyle finishing 17th due to power steering issues and Kurt coming home 12th.
Necessitous Numbers
1Believe it or not, there was one Bristol race that ran caution-free. The 1971 race in July went completely green, had seven lead changes and was won by Charlie Glotzbach.
5Five is Jeff Gordon's number at Bristol. He has five poles and five wins at the track.
7Owner Jack Roush has won at least one race at Bristol in the past seven seasons. Kurt Busch (2002 spring, '03 spring and fall, '04 spring), Matt Kenseth ('05 fall, '06 fall) and Carl Edwards ('07 fall, '08 fall) all visited Victory Lane for the owner.
10.5Average starting position of the past 10 winners at Bristol. Twice the winner has come from the pole (Matt Kenseth, '05 fall; Carl Edwards, '08 fall) and four of the 10 races have been won from a starting position of 13th or worse.
13Jimmie Johnson's current rank in the point standings. After four races last year, Johnson was 13th and went on to win the championship.
22Number of times a Bristol race has been won from the pole. Fifty-one of the 96 races have been won from a top-four starting position.
371Number of laps Jeremy Mayfield has led at Bristol without a win, tops among active drivers. He's been up front but hasn't finished there. In 26 races he has just two top-fives, five top-10s and an average finish of 20.3 with two DNFs.
630Number of points Kyle Busch has earned at Bristol in the last four races, leading all drivers. In those races, Busch has a win, a second, a ninth and a 17th. Clint Bowyer has earned the second-most points with 623.
Also
- Allgaier holds off teammate Keselowski to earn first career victory
- Johnson on the brink of a Bristol breakthrough
- Drivers ready to wave bye- bye to wings on Cup cars
- Waiting for Godot? No, just Edwards and Keselowski
- Today in History: March 20
- JRM's decision to run full ime provides great opportunity for Wimmer
| POPULAR ALERTS | ||||
|
Bristol Motor Speedway
Drivers with multiple wins at track
| Driver | Starts | Wins | Top-fives | Top-10s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darrell Waltrip | 52 | 12 | 26 | 32 |
| Rusty Wallace | 44 | 9 | 22 | 29 |
| Cale Yarborough | 29 | 9 | 16 | 16 |
| Dale Earnhardt | 43 | 9 | 20 | 30 |
| Kurt Busch | 16 | 5 | 5 | 9 |
| David Pearson | 20 | 5 | 8 | 10 |
| Jeff Gordon | 32 | 5 | 13 | 19 |
| Bobby Allison | 44 | 4 | 23 | 28 |
| Fred Lorenzen | 12 | 3 | 5 | 5 |
| Richard Petty | 60 | 3 | 26 | 37 |
| Alan Kulwicki | 14 | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| Terry Labonte | 55 | 2 | 19 | 33 |
| Matt Kenseth | 18 | 2 | 7 | 11 |
| Carl Edwards | 9 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Mark Martin | 40 | 2 | 15 | 21 |
• Bold: Active Drivers
Cup Series News
- Johnson on the brink of a Bristol breakthrough
- Drivers ready to wave bye- bye to wings on Cup cars
- Logano blitzes Bristol to earn first pole of career
- Menard, Speed enjoying their time in the top 12
- Edwards, Keselowski to meet with NASCAR brass
- Drivers rekindling rivalry with fervor of fifth-graders
Remember To Check Out
|
All External sites will open in a new browser window. NASCAR.COM does not endorse external sites. |
|
© 2001-2010 NASCAR | Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
|
Turner Entertainment Digital Network NASCAR.COM is part of the Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital Network. |
