Pop Secret 400 * North Carolina Speedway * Sunday, November 9, 2003
Kurt Busch
Team: No. 97 Rubbermaid Ford Taurus
Sponsors: Rubbermaid
Owner: Jack Roush
Driver: Kurt Busch
Crew Chief: Jimmy Fennig
Chassis Number: 46 * won twice at Bristol this season
Kurt Busch on racing at Rockingham:
"We've had some great finishes the past couple of weeks, and we
really felt like we were in a position to win for a little while at
Phoenix. We're coming here ninth in points, and we really want to
continue that momentum to finish the season strong."
Crew Chief Jimmy Fennig on racing at Rockingham:
"The car we are bringing to this race is the same one we won with
twice this year already. It's been a great car for us at Bristol, and
we've had some good finishes here at Rockingham the past couple races,
so with the information we've got on the car we should be able to run
up front."
ROUSH RACING FAST FACTS:
Mark Martin's five poles ties for the most at Rockingham.
Martin raced to his first career victory at Rockingham in the
AC-Delco 500 on Oct. 22, 1989.
Martin has 24 top-10 starts,19 top-10 finishes and 12 top-five
finishes in 34 races at Rockingham.
Martin has finished eighth of better, including one victory, in
seven of the last 11 races at Rockingham.
Martin holds virtually every record in the Rockingham Busch
race, including 11 wins and six poles. Last spring he was named the
Grand Marshal of the Busch race there.
Matt Kenseth now has 24 top-10 finishes in 34 starts, a
league-leading statistic. Kenseth's 2003 Winston Cup point lead is
now 228 points over second place Dale Earnhardt, Jr. with just two
events remaining.
The DEWALT pit crew brings their back-to-back Pit Crew
Championship Titles into this weekend's Unocal 76/World Pit Crew
Competition. They won in 2001 and 2002.
If Kenseth finishes 30th or better in the remaining two events,
he will win the 2003 Winston Cup Championship. If he finishes 18th or
better at Rockingham, he will clinch right here at North Carolina
Speedway on Sunday.
Kurt Busch sits ninth in the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
point standings after 34 events, 516 points out of the fifth place and
845 points out of first.
If Busch's recent trend at Rockingham continues, a trip to
victory lane would be in order. He finished third at North Carolina
Speedway one year ago, and second in the fall event earlier this year.
Busch's crew chief Jimmy Fennig is tied for winningest active
crew chief in the Winston Cup Series with 24 wins.
Jeff Burton has won once at this track in the fall in 1999.
Burton has scored six top-10 finishes, including one victory and
five top-fives, in his last nine races at Rockingham.
Burton has completed 98.9% of his laps run at Rockingham.
Burton has led the second most laps at a total of 437, surpassed
only by Dale Jarrett who has led 495.
Burton holds the track race record; on 10-24-99 he ran the race
in just 3hr, 02 min, 55 sec at an average speed of 131.103 mph.
