KYLE BUSCH
NO. 5 LOWE'S/HITACHI CHEVROLET
PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY PREVIEW
BUSCH AT PHOENIX:
Kyle Busch put on quite a show in his lone NASCAR Busch Series start at Phoenix International Raceway. The race came in November 2004, at the end of his rookie year, when he started from the pole position and finished a close runner-up to winner Jamie McMurray. Driving a No. 5 Chevrolet, Busch led 151 of 205 laps that day.
TRACK RECORD:
Busch still holds the Busch Series track record at PIR, which he set in November 2004 with a blistering qualifying lap of 26.902 seconds (133.819 mph).
LAP LEADER:
Although he has just one start at Phoenix, Busch is second in career Busch Series laps led (151) at the one-mile track. He trails only Greg Biffle, who has led 409 laps in six Phoenix appearances.
TEAM LOWE'S BRINGING 'OLD FAITHFUL' TO PIR:
Crew chief Chad Walter has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 229 as the primary option for Friday evening's Busch Series event at Phoenix. Dubbed "Old Faithful," the car started second and went to Victory Lane at Kentucky Speedway in June 2004. It was tested at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway earlier this month.
TALLADEGA LOOMING:
Following Phoenix, the Busch Series will visit Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, where Busch has experienced both highs and lows. He finished fourth in his rookie season of 2004, leading laps at the 2.66-mile restrictor-plate track, but settled for 40th last season after an accident ended the team's day.
KYLE BUSCH, DRIVER OF THE NO. 5 LOWE'S/HITACHI CHEVROLET:
(ON HIS SECOND-PLACE FINISH AT PHOENIX IN 2004.) "The last time I raced at Phoenix in the Lowe's car was a heartbreaker. We won the pole, broke the track record and led a ton of laps. I badly wanted to win that race for so many reasons, and we led pretty much the entire thing. It was getting down to the wire in the championship battle between Martin Truex Jr. and I, and we really had the best car there. Jamie (McMurray) passed me to the outside with 12 to go and I tried every corner of every lap to get back to the front, but it didn't happen. I was devastated not to get that win."
BUSCH: (AS A DRIVER, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT RACING AT PHOENIX?)
"We've run well at Phoenix in both Busch and Cup. There's something about the track that just suits my driving style. We have points to make up from last week at Nashville, so this is the weekend to do that. Next week it's Talladega and anything can happen there."
CHAD WALTER, CREW CHIEF OF THE NO. 5 LOWE'S/HITACHI CHEVROLET:
(WITH THIS BEING YOUR FIRST RACE AT PHOENIX AS A CREW CHIEF, HOW WILL YOU APPROACH IT?) "Going to a track for the first time as a crew chief, I tend to rely on two things: old notes I took as an engineer and driver feedback. Kyle gives incredible feedback as a driver. The kid's amazing. He gives more feedback than any other driver I've worked with, so that helps us make the changes he needs."
WALTER:
(ON NASHVILLE.) Last weekend at Nashville was a tough race for us. We bounced back from an early incident and then had another issue. We had a top-five car, but it wasn't meant to be. Kyle wants to win in the Lowe's car at PIR, so he'll definitely be up on the wheel this weekend."
