Observations from the Centurion Boats at The Glen

By Mike Smith (contact)

Sunday, Aug. 10, 2008 | 8:20 p.m.

What slump? The Kyle Busch juggernaut continued with a flawless performance at Watkins Glen that gave him another 10 bonus points for a total of 80 with four races left until the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

One of the marks of a true champion is an athlete’s ability to triumph over adversity and Kyle is certainly showing that adversity is only a speed bump on his march toward the championship. He won at Infineon Raceway this year after starting 30th. And despite engine worries after missing a shift in practice on Saturday, he drove to Victory Lane for his eighth Sprint Cup victory this year. If he wins the championship he will have earned it.

I heard some cheers for Kyle at the end of the race. Are the fans beginning to warm up to Kyle as a result of his phenomenal season? I have no idea if this is the case, but regardless of what you think about Kyle’s personality, you can’t deny that we may be watching the beginning of a historical NASCAR career.

I always identify with the underdog, so I was on the edge of the couch during the last few laps, hoping that Marcos Ambrose would have something for Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch. His third-place finish was a giant shot in the arm for the Wood Brothers who haven’t been to Victory Lane since Elliott Sadler won at Bristol in 2001. I’d like to see more of Ambrose in the No. 21 car.

I’d love to be a fly on the wall at Hendrick Motorsports on Monday when Dale Earnhardt’s team discusses the pit strategy that was used for No.88 car. Dale had a car capable of winning the race, but his team’s decision to wait until the caution flag to pit resulted in Dale being pushed back to the 31st position. He finished 22nd and dropped to fourth in points, 269 points behind the leader.

Speaking of flies on the wall, I’d also love to have heard the meeting between Michael McDowell, David Gilliland and Mike Helton in the NASCAR trailer. Regardless of who started the road rage incident, McDowell had no business running Gilliland off the track.

Say what you will about the Car of Tomorrow, but it puts the old car to shame when it comes to safety. I don’t think the new car is perfect, but when things get ugly on the track, the safety aspects of the car’s design make up for some of its shortcomings.

Lose the gravel. Those splitters move that stuff like a backhoe. Isn’t there a better way to slow the cars down and keep all those rocks from getting on the track?

Why did ESPN feel that it was necessary to keep on reliving the dust up from last year between Kevin Harvick and Juan Pablo Montoya? Enough already! It’s insincere when the networks try to manufacture drama and controversy based on something that happened a whole year ago.

The New York Times had an interesting story from Saturday’s edition about drivers becoming steadier on the road courses. Check out the link. I think you’ll like the quote from Benny Parsons.

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