Busch — that's Kurt, not Kyle — dominates Atlanta

HAMPTON, Ga. – Kurt Busch can enjoy his off week. He won't have to answer any questions like, "Hey, when are you going to beat your little brother?"

He took care of that on Sunday.

With a dominating win at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the "other" Busch showed that he's not just going to concede the spotlight to kid brother Kyle. In fact, Kurt earned bragging rights for the next two weeks in their sibling rivalry.

"I just felt like I needed to hold up my end of the bargain with Kyle winning all the time," the elder Busch said after running away with the Kobalt Tools 500.

You remember Kurt? Former NASCAR Cup champion. Was supposed to be the sport's next big star. Then along came Kyle, seven years his junior.

Last year, Kurt managed one lone win in a rain-shortened race at Loudon, N.H., his triumph due more to strategy than skill. Meanwhile, 23-year-old Kyle became a full-blown star, winning eight races before struggling in the championship playoff.

Last week in the family's hometown of Las Vegas, Kyle was on top again, racing from the back of the field for his first victory of the season while Kurt was a disappointing 23rd. And the youngster won again Saturday in a truck race at Atlanta. His talent is so immense that he's been mentioned as a leading candidate to drive for an American-based Formula One team that's trying to get off the ground, even though he has no open-wheel experience.

But Sunday was Kurt's time to shine.

Finally.

"We're back in business," team owner Roger Penske said. "His brother is a great driver, but there's not many people out there who can hold a candle to Kurt."

They certainly can't match his victory lap. Busch grabbed the checkered flag, shifted his car into reverse and headed off backward around the 1.54-mile quad-oval.

Too bad for everyone else he didn't drive that way during the race. It's probably the only way he could have lost.

How dominating was Busch? He led more laps in one afternoon than he did all of last season 164. Not even a couple of heavy scrapes with the wall and a late caution that knocked him out of the lead could deny the victory. He blew by Carl Edwards on the restart and beat Jeff Gordon to the line for a 0.332-second victory that really wasn't that close.

"This car was unbelievable," Busch said. "I guess good things come to those who wait."

Kyle pulled up beside his big brother after the race and gave him a congratulatory wave. The kid finished 18th, three laps behind.

Gordon is still in search of his first win since 2007. But the four-time Sprint Cup champion remained on top of the standings after another strong run, heading to the next race at Bristol, Tenn., in two weeks with a 43-point lead over Clint Bowyer.

"We're getting close," said Gordon, who's gone 44 races without a win but savored his second runner-up finish of the season. "We're going to keep knocking on the door until we get to Victory Lane."

And we're talking about Kurt, not Kyle.





Kasahara