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Busch still has a chance at winning the Sprint Cup title
Johnson on the pole for the Camping World RV 400 race
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Published: September 28, 2008
KANSAS CITY, Kan. - Are you writing off Kyle Busch in this year's Sprint Cup championship?
Stick a fork in him, he's done?
Maybe so. But Busch is one of the most dangerous drivers on the tour, and Jimmie Johnson easily remembers how he felt about this time two years ago, after crashing out of the October Talladega race.
That incident left Johnson 156 points out of the chase lead, with six races to go.
"I thought I was done after Talladega," Johnson said, when considering Busch's rebound chances this season, beginning with today's Camping World RV 400. "When we left Talladega, we'd lost a lot of points. I thought I was done. I knew it was out of my control, for sure.
"So I certainly can relate to Kyle and what he's going through."
Busch, after problems in the first two Chase races, is 210 points down and in last place among the 12 playoff drivers.
"I left New Hampshire way behind," Johnson said of that 2006 season, when he rallied to win his first Cup championship. "We picked up some ground at Dover. But when we got to Talladega, we were sawed off at the legs again.
"So I understand where he's at.
"And from being in that position before, I know we can't count him out.
"But I don't think it's in his control. If the rest of the field has problems, he'll be back in it. And that's the last thing any of us want, because that team is so strong
"Kyle is always giving 100 percent; in most cases probably 120 percent; and creating some problems from that.
"But as he's matured, especially through this year, he's found that spot where he needs to be. And if those guys get on a roll, they can do it."
Johnson, going for his third straight title this year, is on the pole for today's race: "This is the best start to the chase we've ever had. So I feel very good about where we're at.
"I'd like to be a little better, seeing how Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards have run the opening two races. It certainly concerns me.
"But there is a lot of racing left. We just had a good test at Charlotte, and more testing is still out there for us. And there are different tracks that have been really good to us. So we're in a rhythm."
Johnson could have won the championship just about every year he's been on the tour. But he said that lost title in 2004, by eight points, and a disappointing stretch run in 2005 both really changed his approach to the playoffs: "It really made us question what we were made of as a race team, and the relationship that Chad Knaus and I had.
"We sat down over the off-season and looked each other in the eye and said, ‘This is what we want to do, and this is the group of guys we want to work with; and we've just got to do a better job.' And we came back from it.
"I'd questioned what we were made of, and then we got it done in '06."
And Johnson and Knaus didn't suffer any setbacks in 2007. "In some ways when I won in '06, I felt like my racing career was complete," Johnson said. "I had everything in my mind set on being a champion. And then to get it done, it was like, ‘Wow. This is my life's work. It is everything I've worked for. It's here, it's done.'
"Then you wake up after the banquet, and it's like, ‘Wow. Daytona testing is right around the corner, and I've got to go do this again.'
"So you find ways to motivate yourself.
"But since the first championship I've been much more at peace with my abilities and my team's abilities. We're just in a sweet spot, doing what we can, and not living or dying by every emotion that comes along."
Jeff Burton, on the other hand, is more worried about Biffle and Greg Erwin, his crew chief, after two straight tour wins: "They're a dangerous team.
"Every year we have these conversations -- last year it was Clint Bowyer, the year before that it was us…
"Every year somebody surprises and puts themselves in a position to win when nobody picked them.
"That's what they (Biffle and Erwin) have done this year.
"Whether they can do it for eight more weeks or not, I don't know. They could; they look really strong. And there are five 1½-mile tracks coming up -- that's where Greg has been his best.
"But there are a lot of variables. You still have Martinsville, you still have Talladega.
"A lot of stuff is going to happen between now and the end of the chase.
"If people ask me to pick a favorite, I don't have a favorite. I really can't pick a team.
"Whoever steps it up, who makes the fewest mistakes ….
"They're capable of winning it, no doubt about that. But I'm not about to put them in the favorite category. Or anybody else, for that matter.
"Kansas is the first of the 1½-mile tracks in the chase, and I think it's going to be important to run really well here. Even though this race track is quite a bit different than Charlotte, and quite a bit different than Atlanta or Homestead, I still think it's important to run well on this kind of racetrack...."
NASCAR's new drug policies are raising a lot of questions among drivers, Johnson said, and NASCAR needs to start providing answers.
"Everybody has a lot of questions," Johnson said. "I don't know where Dr. Black is (that's the man NASCAR is relying on to handle much of the new policy-testing rules). I wish he was at the race last weekend for us all to ask questions and learn.
"I need to meet this man and understand what it's all about and what the perimeters are.
"NASCAR made their announcement, and that was great. But there are still a lot of questions to be answered, for the media and drivers.
"I'm in favor of this policy and whatever they feel is correct. I just want to make sure I understand it...."
"I take seasonal allergy medicine, and from what I understand it's a steroid. And there are things inside of it that could trip certain tests if you're an elite athlete like somebody in the Tour de France or if you're an Olympic runner?
"So where is that boundary?
"I think they've left it open ended because they don't want prescription drugs to be a problem. They don't want this Flonase (fluticasone propionate) that I take to be an issue. And they want to be able to regulate that on a case-by-case basis.
"But at the same time in a sport where all we want more and more in black and white, it's in a gray area. And I think we all have questions.
"My allergies have been pretty rough on me, and it's ended up as a year-round prescription that I take.
■ Mike Mulhern can be reached at mmulhern@wsjournal.com.
On the air
• 2 p.m.: Sprint Cup, Camping World RV 400; WXLV Ch. 7 (ABC); WTQR 104.1; WBRF 98.1
Sprint Cup Camping World RV 400 Lineup
(Race today in Kansas City, Kan.)
Driver Make Speed
1. Kevin Harvick Chevy 172.227
2. Mark Martin Chevy 171.794
3. David Stremme Chevy 171.581
4. Carl Edwards Ford 171.434
5. David Reutimann Toyota 171.385
6. Matt Kenseth Ford 171.331
7. Jeff Burton Chevy 171.011
8. Kasey Kahne Dodge 170.908
9. David Ragan Ford 170.692
10. Kelly Bires Ford 170.648
11. Bryan Clauson Dodge 170.428
12. Mike Bliss Chevy 170.245
13. Joey Logano Toyota 170.079
14. Scott Lagasse Chevy 170.057
15. Bobby Hamilton Jr. Ford 170.014
16. Marcos Ambrose Ford 169.699
17. Clint Bowyer Chevy 169.486
18. Kyle Busch Toyota 169.465
19. Denny Hamlin Toyota 169.337
20. Greg Biffle Ford 169.184
21. Steve Wallace Chevy 169.035
22. Stanton Barrett Chevy 168.993
23. Jason Leffler Toyota 168.713
24. Justin Hobgood Chevy 168.581
25. Jason Keller Ford 168.476
26. Mike Wallace Toyota 168.140
27. Kenny Wallace Chevy 168.099
28. Brad Keselowski Chevy 167.942
29. Kevin Lepage Dodge 167.931
30. Kertus Davis Chevy 167.817
31. Morgan Shepherd Dodge 167.541
32. Burney Lamar Ford 167.369
33. Jennifer Cobb Dodge 166.734
34. Mark Green Chevy 166.466
35. Kenny Hendrick Chevy 165.781
36. Brandon Whitt Ford 165.507
37. Andrew Ranger Dodge 165.431
38. Eric McClure Chevy 164.755
39. Derrike Cope Chevy 161.252
40. Bobby Hillin Jr. Dodge owner pts.
41. Danny Efland Chevy owner pts.
42. Scott Gaylord Chevy owner pts.
43. Rbt. Richardson Jr. Chevy 165.416
Nationwide Kansas Lottery 300 Results
(Yesterday in Kansas City, Kan.; start position in parentheses)
1. (19) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 200 laps, 195 points, $84,845.
2. (17) Clint Bowyer, Chevy, 200, 170, $62,375.
3. (9) David Ragan, Ford, 200, 165, $51,650.
4. (4) Carl Edwards, Ford, 200, 160, $40,325.
5. (6) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 200, 160, $33,400.
6. (28) Brad Keselowski, Chevy, 200, 150, $36,018.
7. (8) Kasey Kahne, Dodge, 200, 146, $29,100.
8. (23) Jason Leffler, Toyota, 200, 142, $36,268.
9. (13) Joey Logano, Toyota, 200, 138, $32,828.
10. (10) Kelly Bires, Ford, 200, 134, $35,793.
11. (16) Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 200, 135, $33,868.
12. (12) Mike Bliss, Chevy, 200, 127, $30,918.
13. (1) Kevin Harvick, Chevy, 200, 129, $28,600.
14. (7) Jeff Burton, Chevy, 199, 121, $29,858.
15. (26) Mike Wallace, Toyota, 199, 118, $30,073.
16. (5) David Reutimann, Toyota, 199, 115, $23,170.
17. (3) David Stremme, Chevy, 199, 112, $29,903.
18. (20) Greg Biffle, Ford, 199, 114, $22,475.
19. (25) Jason Keller, Ford, 199, 106, $28,433.
20. (14) Scott Lagasse Jr., Chevy, 197, 103, $29,223.
21. (11) Bryan Clauson, Dodge, 197, 100, $29,113.
22. (34) Mark Green, Chevy, 197, 97, $28,003.
23. (43) Robert Richardson Jr., Chevy, 197, 94, $21,425.
24. (31) Morgan Shepherd, Dodge, 197, 91, $27,783.
25. (15) Bobby Hamilton Jr., Ford, 196, 88, $28,223.
26. (41) Danny Efland, Chevy, 195, 85, $27,513.
27. (36) Brandon Whitt, Ford, 195, 82, $27,403.
28. (27) Kenny Wallace, Chevy, 195, 79, $27,283.
29. (42) Scott Gaylord, Chevy, 194, 76, $27,133.
30. (33) Jennifer Jo Cobb, Dodge, 194, 73, $20,805.
31. (37) Andrew Ranger, Dodge, 193, 75, $26,913.
32. (32) Burney Lamar, Ford, 193, 67, $20,310.
33. (38) Eric McClure, Chevy, 191, 64, $26,668.
34. (22) Stanton Barrett, Chevy, 167, 66, $26,558.
35. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, accident, 153, 63, $19,980.
36. (40) Bobby Hillin Jr., Dodge, accident, 90, 55, $26,338.
37. (39) Derrike Cope, Chevy, ignition, 52, 52, $26,228.
38. (2) Mark Martin, Chevy, accident, 43, 49, $21,200.
39. (35) Kenny Hendrick, Chevy, brakes, 34, 46, $19,565.
40. (30) Kertus Davis, Chevy, handling, 20, 43, $19,455.
41. (21) Steve Wallace, Chevy, engine, 15, 40, $25,788.
42. (24) Justin Hobgood, Chevy, transmission, 11, 37, $19,190.
43. (29) Kevin Lepage, Dodge, transmission, 5, 34, $19,064
NHRA O'Reilly Mid-South Nationals
Pairings
(Eliminations today in Millington, Tenn.)
Top Fuel: 1. Brandon Bernstein, 3.825 seconds, 313.88 mph., vs. 16. Pat Dakin, 4.069, 294.05. 2. Hillary Will, 3.826, 313.66, vs. 15. Morgan Lucas, 4.001, 298.93. 3. Doug Kalitta, 3.838, 311.20, vs. 14. T.J. Zizzo, 3.972, 300.66. 4. David Grubnic, 3.848, 311.13, vs. 13. J.R. Todd, 3.968, 305.70. 5. Doug Herbert, 3.853, 311.49, vs. 12. Clay Millican, 3.911, 307.58. 6. Tony Schumacher, 3.859, 310.84, vs. 11. Rod Fuller, 3.909, 300.53. 7. Bob Vandergriff, 3.861, 312.13, vs. 10. Cory McClenathan, 3.873, 310.13. 8. Larry Dixon, 3.865, 308.50, vs. 9. Antron Brown, 3.871, 310.05.
Funny Car: 1. Ashley Force, Ford Mustang, 4.079, 298.87, vs. 16. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.197, 292.01. 2. Jerry Toliver, Dodge Charger, 4.093, 301.40, vs. 15. Cruz Pedregon, Toyota Solara, 4.194, 288.89. 3. John Force, Mustang, 4.105, 300.26, vs. 14. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 4.167, 296.50. 4. Mike Neff, Mustang, 4.113, 297.42, vs. 13. Jeff Arend, Solara, 4.162, 295.79. 5. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.113, 291.89, vs. 12. Tony Pedregon, Chevy Impala, 4.158, 292.77. 6. Melanie Troxel, Charger, 4.117, 302.28, vs. 11. Tim Wilkerson, Impala, 4.154, 300.40. 7. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.122, 291.82, vs. 10. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.146, 291.76. 8. Gary Scelzi, Charger, 4.131, 295.08, vs. 9. Gary Densham, Impala, 4.138, 292.90.
Pro Stock: 1. Allen Johnson, Dodge Stratus, 6.591, 208.52, vs. 16. Rickie Jones, Stratus, 6.673, 206.67. 2. Dave Connolly, Chevy Cobalt, 6.599, 208.65, vs. 15. Greg Stanfield, Pontiac GXP, 6.655, 207.05. 3. Warren Johnson, GXP, 6.610, 208.88, vs. 14. V. Gaines, Stratus, 6.653, 207.02. 4. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.610, 208.68, vs. 13. Steve Spiess, Cobalt, 6.646, 206.73. 5. Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.618, 207.69, vs. 12. Jason Line, GXP, 6.642, 207.72. 6. Larry Morgan, Stratus, 6.625, 206.92, vs. 11. Jim Yates, GXP, 6.633, 207.21. 7. Mike Edwards, GXP, 6.629, 207.78, vs. 10. Johnny Gray, Stratus, 6.632, 207.18. 8. Justin Humphreys, GXP, 6.629, 207.46, vs. 9. Jeg Coughlin, Cobalt, 6.631, 207.59.
Pro Stock Motorcycle: 1. Chip Ellis, Suzuki, 6.910, 191.10, vs. 16. GT Tonglet, 7.089, 185.97. 2. Chris Rivas, Buell, 6.970, 187.50, vs. 15. Junior Pippin, Buell, 7.083, 184.25. 3. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.987, 187.91, vs. 14. Mike Berry, Suzuki, 7.071, 186.72. 4. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 6.992, 189.66, vs. 13. Joe DeSantis, Suzuki, 7.071, 187.26. 5. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.996, 188.28, vs. 12. Angie McBride, Buell, 7.061, 184.02. 6. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 7.000, 188.38, vs. 11. Angelle Sampey, Buell, 7.024, 185.61. 7. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 7.002, 190.19, vs. 10. Hector Arana, Buell, 7.024, 188.25. 8. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 7.014, 188.12, vs. 9. Michael Phillips, Suzuki, 7.015, 192.47.
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