Kurt Busch The Road Racing Diaries: Part Two

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The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races 39 times a year – 36 points-paying events and a trio of non-points events in the Budweiser Shootout, the Gatorade Duals and the All-Star Race. A variety of tracks comprise that 39-race schedule, from short tracks to intermediate tracks to superspeedways to road courses. The majority of those events, however, take place on tracks labeled as ovals. In fact, series competitors race on oval tracks 94.8 percent of the time. That means Sprint Cup Series regulars compete on road courses just 5.2 percent of the time or, to put it another way, a whopping twice in 39 events.

With so few road races, it would seem they’d be mere blips on the radar screen relative to the entire Sprint Cup schedule. But that just isn’t the case and, oftentimes, the road courses have been the setting for some of the most dramatic and exciting events in any given year, including the current one. 

The first chapter in the 2012 road racing story unfolded less than two months ago in California’s Napa Valley. It was a thrilling and ultimately emotional chapter for Kurt Busch and the No. 51 Phoenix Racing team. After qualifying eighth on the 1.99-mile road course in Sonoma, Calif., Busch charged toward the front of the field and competed in the top-five for the remainder of the 112-lap event. He was pressuring eventual race-winner Clint Bowyer for the lead in the closing laps before hitting a tire barrier that broke a piece of his rear suspension. Busch was able to keep his car on the track despite obvious handling issues and finished the day in third place.

The next chapter in the 2012 road racing story is set in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, on the 2.45-mile, 11-turn road circuit at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International. Busch has described Watkins Glen as more of a momentum track than the one in Sonoma because of the greater speed that can be carried around the course. Still, Busch and the No. 51 Chevrolet team will be looking for more of what they had in California in June during Sunday’s Finger Lakes 355k at The Glen.

Busch goes into this weekend’s race with one career top-five finish and four top-10s at Watkins Glen. He also qualified on the pole for the 2006 race at the track. While Busch is still looking for a win at Watkins Glen, he has found success in Nationwide Series competition at the track, winning two of the three races in which he’s competed, including last season’s race. In an effort to replicate its Sonoma success, the No. 51 team is bringing the same car that crossed the finish line third in the June road-course race.

While this weekend’s event marks the final chapter of the road racing diaries for the 2012 season, Busch and his teammates have high hopes of delivering a story just as thrilling and compelling as the first chapter. This time, however, they’re looking for a much better ending – one that has them arriving at the checkered flag first. 

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