NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Auto Club 500

Topics:  Auto Club 500

Kyle Busch
February 22, 2009

FONTANA, CALIFORNIA

KERRY THARP: We'll go ahead and roll into our post race press conference at the Auto Club 500 at Auto Club Speedway. Good event here tonight. Kyle Busch put on a heck of a show this weekend, came in third in tonight's race. Kyle, your thoughts about how things transpired out there this evening.
KYLE BUSCH: It was a good run for us. The Interstate Batteries Camry was decent there in the beginning. We were sixth through 10th battling our way, biding our time, kind of riding. Kept working on it. Kept making it better and better. Started climbing up the ladder a little bit. Got to sixth, fifth, fourth, made more changes, got to third. Just wish we were able to hang with those guys up front and make it a three-way battle for the lead. Unfortunately, our stuff didn't quite have the grip that those guys did. They were able to motor away from us.
Overall a good points day for us to be able to rebound from last week's mess into this week's good fortune. Hopefully we can carry that on into Vegas and run well there and go to Atlanta, same thing.
KERRY THARP: We'll take questions now for Kyle Busch.

Q. Did you ever feel like the car could be a winning car tonight?
KYLE BUSCH: No, I felt like we got to third, if I could ever challenge those guys, then maybe. But I couldn't even challenge them. I couldn't even keep up with the 17 and the 24 on that last run.
Never thought it was a winning car. Felt like if I could just bide my time right there, I could finish third, just try to protect a third-place finish.
I had the best seat in the house for that battle. It was pretty cool to see those guys racing like that. It was a good show for the fans. Their first good race they've had out here in a while. They stuck through the weather. That was cool to have all them here, too, being able to watch those guys, two superstars putting on a show like that.

Q. You watched that battle for so long. Did you think Gordon was going to get Kenseth?
KYLE BUSCH: Yeah, I saw the battle earlier the run before. Kenseth's stuff was getting a little bit loose. As a matter of fact, he was backing up to me. I figured that maybe -- I knew they made an adjustment on that last pit stop, so I wasn't sure how good that adjustment was going to be. It was good enough. They made it to where they could hold their own there with Jeff for a while. Then Jeff's stuff just got tight apparently. I talked to him after the race a little bit. He wasn't able to keep the ground on the bottom like he wanted to.
It was cool to watch those guys, though, like that.

Q. You're going to have more chances to try to get the triple three wins in the same weekend. After going through what you did this weekend, what kind of a challenge is that to win three in the same weekend?
KYLE BUSCH: It's never been done before, so it's definitely a challenge. We know that.
I've won two in one weekend a few times. In Atlanta last year was probably my best shot to do the three. We won Friday, Saturday we led the most laps and were leading with 20 to go, and we had a shock break, put us in the wall, then we won on Sunday.
The last one's always the hardest to get. They leave it the hardest to get because it's on Sunday and it's the biggest show.
You know, I don't know. It's not easy in this sport. But never is. But maybe one day.

Q. Kyle, can you talk about Matt's ability, seems never to really beat himself too much. Going into this year, how much did you consider him a contender?
KYLE BUSCH: Well, you never know who to put down as a contender for the championship. But you've got to put down all the guys that made the Chase the year before. Matt's made it four years in a row, whatever it's been. You knew he was going to be a contender.
To start off this year with such a bang, it's pretty cool. I think everybody knows by now. The last time it happened was '97 I believe when Jeff did it.
So it doesn't come very easily to win two in a row, let alone to win the first two races of the season in a row.
He's going to be fast at Vegas there, too. He was fast last year. He was running third or something on that restart and they all wadded up down the backstretch. He'll be good next week, too. He might have a shot for three.

Q. I know you follow other sports. Can you compare what winning three races in the same weekend is to another sport?
KYLE BUSCH: Yeah, I mean, I guess like what Phelps did, winning eight medals or whatever it was. I don't know how many days he goes through before he wins eight. I don't think he wins eight in one day or eight in two days or whatever.
You know, it's probably something like that. Just being able to excel at all the different games you play in the Olympic Games, being able to win all of them that you participate in.
KERRY THARP: Kyle, thanks for putting on such a great show this weekend. Appreciate it very much. Continued good luck.
KYLE BUSCH: Thank you.