DENVER, Colo. (June 12, 2013) – Kurt Busch, who is in the Chase hunt, feels his Furniture Row Racing team is on a momentum roll as the Sprint Cup Series heads to Michigan International Speedway for Sunday’s running of the Quicken Loans 400.
Following his seventh-place finish at Pocono Raceway, Busch moved into 15th place in the driver standings and found himself only 21 points from the coveted 10th position, the final Chase berth before the two wild card selections.
Breaking down the 14-race season into halves, it’s easy to see how the Denver-based, single-car Furniture Row Racing team has made a positive move. In the first seven races of 2013, Busch’s average finish was 22.6. His average finish in the past seven races was 12.9.
“It’s all about consistency – it always is,” said Busch, a six-time Chase participant since the playoff format was instituted in 2004. “We threw away a lot of points early in the year due to accidents and mechanical malfunctions, but lately we’ve been more consistent and that’s the reason for our forward move in the standings. However, our recent performances have been better than our finishes and we need to fix that, starting this weekend in Michigan.”
Speaking of Michigan International Speedway, Busch’s record at the 2-mile track includes two wins, two poles, three top-fives and eight top-10s in 24 starts.
But that was at the old Michigan International Speedway.
“Michigan is a different track with the new pavement,” explained Busch. “It has one groove there right now. We were there testing a few weeks back and it was very slick — just the one groove that’s burned in. That’s right around the middle of the track.
“Trying to go low, the car got real slick and slid up. And going high the front-end really pushed bad because there was no grip up there during testing. But once we get under race conditions it should widen out, but it won’t be the same Michigan for a few years until the asphalt settles in.”
Busch’s two wins at Michigan came in the first race in 2003 and the second in 2007.
“Got a couple of wins at Michigan and enjoyed racing there,” noted Busch. “But with the new asphalt you feel like you’re on that razor-blade edge. Our Furniture Row team has picked up the performance level and we need another solid run at Michigan to keep us in the hunt for that Chase position.
