Kurt Busch, the hottest driver in NASCAR’s Nextel Cup series over the last two months, is holding down the final spot in the 12-man Chase with two races remaining until the start of the playoff.
“We’re just thinking big picture now,” Busch said Friday after winning the pole for the Sharp Aquos 500 at California Speedway, his first pole since October 2006 at Martinsville.
Busch goes into Sunday’s race with a solid 157-point lead over 13th-place Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Busch turned a fast lap of 182.399 m.p.h.
*While Joe Gibbs Racing officials remained mum Friday on the anticipated switch from Chevrolet to Toyota, Kyle Busch was happy to talk about it.
Busch, who will leave Hendrick Motorsports to drive for JGR in 2008, said he had gotten a call from the team earlier this week confirming the change.
“We were just always kept in the loop on what exactly was going to happen with that and, when they finally made their decision, they went ahead and called us,” Busch said.
