The Hot Pass: Busch favored for All-Star success
But there is an F1 test in Shrub's future as his postseason plans include a voyage to the Land of the Rising Sun — home of manufacturer Toyota.
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"We're working on a test session right now at the end of November or beginning of December sometime, going to Japan and doing a little exhibition sort of deal and see what it's like," Busch said. "We'll take the Cup car over there, too, I think. Just kind of run around there at either Twin Ring (Motegi) or something like that and show them what the (NASCAR Sprint) Cup cars are like and try to get in the Formula One car, too.
"We'll see how good I test, first. We'll see if my neck can withstand the G-Forces of the braking and everything. I wouldn't mind it. If I can do it and I'm good at it then I'll give it a shot and try it. It seems as though their racing isn't all that great — they kind of get stuck in line and the aero takes over everything."
Despite Toyota's recent success in the Sprint Cup Series with Joe Gibbs Racing, Busch isn't sure the manufacturer's counterparts across the pond would be equally competitive.
"Toyota is not necessarily one of those companies at the moment that was like Ferrari or McLaren or Renault a couple years ago," Busch said. "It would take — I don't think it is just a driver to put in the seat to make it go. You need a little bit more of a car."
That hasn't been a problem for Busch in NASCAR. If there's a favorite driver for Saturday's Sprint All-Star Race it would be Busch. Fresh off his third Cup win of the season after he dominated the field at the venerable Darlington Speedway last weekend, Busch entered Lowe's Motor Speedway brimming with confidence on Friday. Not surprisingly, he qualified the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota on the pole with a lap of 121.95 mph and will share the front row with his former Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon.
"Being able to go out last definitely helped out," Busch said. "I'm just the one out here wheeling it. Fortunately for me, the stopwatch worked out in my favor tonight.
"This M&M's team and everybody at JGR do such an awesome job. They gave me a great race car that ran three laps phenomenal and gave me great pit stops — they were solid on pit road and that's all you need in this kind of deal. I was nervous as I ever was today. I guess it's probably because if I knew (I was on pole), I would have screwed up just a little bit, which I thought I did coming to pit road, and would have got busted. I'm proud of the effort."
Biffle is baffling
Greg Biffle appeared to be on the verge of winning his first race in 17 events when he first encountered a loose wheel and then watched his engine expire after leading 95 of 234 laps at Darlington.
In the heat of the moment, Biffle raised doubt again whether he would remain at Roush Fenway Racing. But on Friday, Biffle said he's "absolutely, completely happy" with the contract that's been presented to him for his renewal.
"I want to stay," Biffle said. "I've already said that I'm negotiating with Roush. We're working on it. I'm working on staying. I feel like I'm staying. I've given no indication that I'm not staying.
"We've had a deal on the table. We've been going back and forth. I'll admit on my part that I haven't had enough time to work on it with the testing and all the stuff I've done to really get back to them in a timely fashion. We're working hard on doing that, to get it done and get it behind us."
Driver charm school
Dale Earnhardt Jr. admits that he's "very impatient" in his role as owner of JR Motorsports.
And it appears he's a tad bit impatient with his young driver Brad Keselowski as well, not necessarily on the racetrack, but when it comes to the driver conducting himself off the track.
"The problem I run into with Brad Keselowski is that he watches and sees how I act and thinks that's how he can act," Earnhardt said. "But I've earned the ability or the right to be a little bit of a (jerk) every once in a while and he thinks he can come in right off the bat and be one.
"And so I have to tell him, man, you can't be like that. You know, you got to earn it. People ain't going to like you just coming in seven months into the deal and you're complaining all the time. You've got to suck it up for a little while. It's no fun."
Sounds like the lesson on humility that Earnhardt learned from his father.
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