The brush south of the border can get thick in places I hear. Never fear. The Buschwackers are coming. Carl Edwards is leading the way.
Edwards says, “I really love traveling to Mexico. They have great fans and I am very excited. The Mexican drivers are fast. They’re going to be very hard to beat because this is their third year in the Busch cars. We have finished in the top-10 both years, but we struggled a little last year. I feel like we can do much better this year and I would love to do my back flip in front of the Mexican fans!”
On his right flank is Dave Blaney.
Although this is the third Mexico City race for the Busch Series, it will be Dave Blaney’s first time participating in the Telcel-Motorola 200. Blaney has never even seen the 2.518-mile road course, but he’s been doing his homework. Blaney has been watching tapes of the past two Mexico races to get a better feel for the track. Kicking off the season with a second place finish in Daytona and capturing the pole in California, Blaney and the Fan1st.com team plan to keep the momentum going in Mexico. Although he has never raced at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, he has logged a combined 21 starts at Watkins Glen International and Pocono Raceway.
Behind them are David Gilliland, Juan Pablo Montoya and David Reutimann. O.K. so it isn't a big bunch of wackers. Which makes my point. Separate the venues between Nextel Cup and Busch and you get a truer Busch race.
Of course I am also trying to drag you in here and get you interested in Busch racing. So stick with me.
Actually this is an excellent opportunity for Regan Smith to climb in the point standings and see if he can win the Busch title this year. Currently Edwards is second, Blaney is fourth and Smith is ninth.
Apparently, after filing an entry, wacker Greg Biffle who is currently fifth in the points, has decided not to make this trip. Current points leader and wacker Kevin Harvick did not plan to race. Neither did wackers Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart or Kyle Bush.
Coverage of the Telcel-Motorola 200 begins Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN 2.
FONTANA, Calif. (Feb. 23, 2007) - Driving a No. 24 DuPont Cromax Pro Chevrolet, Jeff Gordon, captured his career-second pole position at California Speedway on Friday. He will lead the field to the green flag in Sunday's Auto Club 500. "This DuPont Cromax Pro Chevrolet has been awesome ever since we unloaded off the truck," Gordon said. "We do that because of a lot of hard work by the guys at the shop on this race car, from the aerodynamics to the geometry, and of course under the hood with this Hendrick Motorsports horsepower.
Riding a wave of momentum from last week's Daytona 500 runner-up finish, Mark Martin and the U.S. Army team will start Sunday's Auto Club 500 on the inside of the second row. Martin's 01 Chevrolet laid down the third fastest lap in Friday's qualifying session at California Speedway. Kasey Kahne was second at 185.519.
For a while, the accomplishments of Kyle Bush were attributed to precocious driving. His mistakes? Simply youthful error. Now, starting his third Nextel Cup season and approaching 22, Bush is ready to be judged strictly on his merits. Bush had a good week at Daytona, but a rookie-like miscue on the last lap of Sunday's Daytona 500 ruined everything he had built to that point. Bush will start 12th on Sunday and looks to have a better finish in Fontana.
On the last lap of the Daytona 500 David Ragan saw Kyle Busch run off the apron coming off of turn four. Busch’s car jumped sideways and prompted a nine-car demolition derby that took out contenders. The final incident of the race, perhaps the most spectacular, involved Clint Bowyer, Busch, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Robby Gordon, Matt Kenseth, David Gilliland, Sterling Marlin and Reed Sorenson. "I just kind of stood my ground and stayed straight and kept my eye on the start/finish line," said Ragan. That's where I was trying to get to."
Mears and Biffle then both spun. Behind the smoke Robby Gordon hit Reed Sorenson sliding him into the wall. Meanwhile Jeff Gordon who Mears had clipped in the left rear was turned into the wall and began spinning.
Gordon could hardly see anything as he was spinning. "I'm not sure I did want to see what was in front of me on that last lap," Gordon said. "I saw them going every which way. It was about survival, because it was so wild and crazy out there."
Sliding on down the track Mears hit Marlin.
"We escaped a lot of pileups today, including the last one,” offered Marlin, a veteran driver. “I was running 10th and looking down the frontstretch at the checkered flag, thinking I was clear of the wreck, when the 25 car ( Mears) hit the wall and shot back down the track into us.” Marlin added, “There was nothing we could do. I just took my foot off the brake and slid across the finish line.” Marlin’s yellow and green Chevy came to a stop in the infield grass where Marlin climbed out and walked to the garage.
Mears wasn't done yet. He then pinballed into Bowyer.
Bowyer took the wildest ride in his #07 Jack Daniel's Chevrolet when his car flipped over, slid on its roof across the finish line like a matchbox car and flopped back over on its wheels on the infield grass where a flash fire erupted in the engine compartment as Bowyer climbed out. Bowyer and all other drivers climbed from their wrecked machines unhurt. "It was quick," he said. "You know, I flipped over and then here comes the mud. I tell you, if much more mud would have come in, I wouldn't have gotten out.
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