Auto Club 500, California Speedway, 5/2/04
Kurt Busch
Team: No. 97 Sharpie IRWIN Ford Taurus
Owner: Jack Roush
Crew Chief: Jimmy Fennig
Chassis: #54 (won at California in 2003)
Kurt Busch on racing at California Speedway:
"I always enjoy heading out to the west coast and the track in California. We've had a lot of success the past couple of trips out here to this racetrack. We were able to pull off the win here at this race last year, and finished second the season before that, so it's definitely a welcome trip after last weekend's DNF at Talladega. Hopefully we'll be able to go out and compete and make up for some of the points we lost last week."
Crew Chief Jimmy Fennig on racing at California Speedway:
"We're brining the same chassis that Kurt took to victory lane at Fontana and Michigan last year, so we're happy about the car. This will be our first of two trips to this track this season, but we're not really approaching anything differently for this first race. We just want to go out and try to do what we did last year."
Fast Facts
Kurt Busch dropped to fourth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series point standings following his first DNF of the season at Talladega.
Busch has been situated among the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Top 10 for nine of the ten race weeks, and in the top five for five consecutive weeks.
The IRWIN Industrial Tools Racing team brings chassis #54 to California, the same car that won at Fontana and Michigan in 2003.
Busch is running the IRWIN Industrial Tools paint scheme for the sixth of 19 events in 2004.
Busch is the defending champion of the Auto Club 500, leading 102 laps in last years' event on the way to his second win of the season.
On Friday afternoon following qualifying, Busch will participate in a ceremony to have his name added to the Winner's Walk at the speedway.
