by Darrell Waltrip

In my mind, it's phenomenal what we are seeing from Rowdy Busch right now. You simply have to give the guy his due. I appreciate talent: I saw Dale Earnhardt when he was at his best; I saw Richard Petty, David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, Bobby Allison and Jeff Gordon all when they were at their best. I raced against them when they were at their best, so trust me when I say I know talent.

I have to tell you, though: None of them were as good as Kyle.

The question now being asked is if he can win 200 races. He can. He has said that's the goal he wants to accomplish in his NASCAR career, winning 200 combined races in Cup, Nationwide and the Camping World Truck series.

Back in the day, when Richard was winning all those races, he really was doing the same thing. When the series would go on the northern tour for a couple of weeks, they would run something like 14 races both on dirt and on asphalt on little half-mile tracks. They would run 100- to 150-mile races.

Now folks, this isn't a knock on The King, but Kyle winning the kind of races he is right now is more impressive to me than what anybody has done. Compare the quality of Kyle's wins to the quality of everybody else's from the past, and his are far and away a lot more impressive.

How long can he keep this up? Well, he just turned 24, so he could easily drive 25 more years if he wanted to. There's an opportunity here for him to set a lot of records — money, wins and championships. I am just glad I am around to see this.

I will say this again, back in the late '70s and early '80s when Dale Sr. was still a little rough around the edges, I would have paid to see that man race. Now, some 30 years later, I say the same thing about this phenomenon we call Kyle Busch. If Kyle were here in Nashville and going to race at the Fairgrounds, you bet I would buy a ticket to watch him. He's just that impressive — and again, he's just that good.

As good as Kyle was Saturday night, there was a point in the race where I felt he was only a fifth- or sixth-place car. Brian Vickers was out front for a little bit, and then Jeff Gordon took over. I really thought Jeff had the car to beat, but then here came Denny Hamlin — plus, I think Jeff's pit strategy hurt him. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that if Denny were to get the lead, he could take home the checkered flag, but then he had trouble in the pits.

Saturday night also showed how tough this ol 'car really is. Jeff Burton, Mark Martin and Jamie McMurray, for example, all spun out and got in wrecks. Marcos Ambrose had the whole back part of his car knocked off and he still finished 11th. This ol' car is tough, and it sure showed us that Saturday night.

But see, here's the thing that is most striking to me about Kyle: He simply refuses to lose. He never gives up. Kyle loves to win, but he hates to lose even more. Saturday night proved that once again. Joe Gibbs Racing and his crew chief, Steve Addington, are giving him the right equipment and support in the Cup and Nationwide series. Over in the Truck Series, Billy Ballew and his group are doing the same.

He's simply on the right teams at the right time to get the kind of results we are seeing. So enough about that, but guess who the defending champion of this Saturday's race is? That's right: Kyle Busch. Last year, he bounced that ol' car off the Lady in Black all night long and came home a winner. The safe money bet this weekend is easily Kyle.

Around the field

With that said, Busch is going to have to beat the master at Darlington — and to me, that is Jeff Gordon. Jeff's stats there are really impressive. His average starting spot is 6.9, and his finishing spot average is 11.5. That's really amazing when you consider how many races he has run there since 1993. Jeff understands, for instance, that this Saturday night it's a 500-mile race. So if Kyle's going to win, he's going to have to beat Jeff. Tony Stewart runs well there, as does Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Speaking of Dale Jr., I have a real fear that he isn't going to make the 2009 NASCAR Chase. I felt like we were in a stretch where he had to do really well to get himself inside the top 12 and maybe have a chance to run for the championship. He had to finish well at Richmond Saturday night, but he didn't. If he falters in any of these next few races, I am afraid he and the No. 88 team will miss this year's Chase.

I really think the folks in the top 12 right now are the ones we will see still there come Richmond in September. Both David Reutimann and Kasey Kahne have dropped out of the top 12, so I think the Chase is set. That belief is just based on performance. Unless there's someone just outside the top 12 that gets really hot, I think our 12 is already set.

There are two teams that have been really impressive so far: Penske Racing and Stewart-Haas. The Penske camp has made huge strides across the board since last year. They are now performing at a very high level. Kurt is 10 points out of the points lead. But the bigger indicator of Penske Racing turning the corner, at least to me, is how much better Sam Hornish Jr. and David Stremme are running.

Folks used to question whether Sam could make it in the Cup series or whether he needed to go back to IndyCar racing. It's now clear to me that it was the equipment holding that team back more so than Sam. Now the Penske cars are running well. They added a bunch of new people over there, and the setups they are giving the drivers are really paying off. I don't think Sam's ready to win a race yet, but if he continues to improve like he has this season ... well, I think a Cup win could be in Sam's future.

Over at Stewart-Haas Racing, what they are doing is incredible, too. I never really worried about Tony — knowing his talent, the people around him and that he had Darian Grubb as his crew chief, I was pretty sure Tony would be fine. I was more worried about Ryan Newman coming over there, and he and Tony Gibson getting on the same page. When the season started, they seemed to be snake-bit from the start. Now, these last few weeks, he and his crew chief have gotten things ironed out, and man are they hitting on all cylinders right now. Ryan's now climbed into the top 12 in points. From where they started the year to where they are now — folks, that's impressive. Ryan Newman is a great driver, and I totally believe a win is just around the corner for him. I just see an incredibly bright future for that whole Stewart-Haas group.