Heralded Las Vegas rookie Kyle Busch ignores pressure

Wednesday, March 9, 2005 | 8:37 a.m.

Kyle Busch has a lot to prove - to himself.

He gets a little embarrassed when reminded that his older brother, reigning NASCAR Nextel Cup champion Kurt Busch, gives him credit as the better driver of the two.

"It's definitely cool that a Nextel Cup champion tells you that or says that to the media, but I just have to go out and prove it," said the 19-year-old, who will race in Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, his hometown track.

The teenager did win his first Cup pole two weeks ago in California - becoming the youngest ever to do that. But Busch has yet to show the kind of racing prowess in NASCAR's top series that brother Kurt demonstrated and has forecast for his younger sibling.

In six Cup races last year, Kyle managed no finish higher than 24th. His two starts so far in his official rookie season have produced finishes of 38th at Daytona and 23rd in California.

Nobody should get too down on the kid, though. He's definitely got the makings of a very big star.

In 2001 - his junior year in high school - the Las Vegas native drove in six NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races for Roush Racing and had a pair of top 10 finishes.

He got sidelined briefly - and Hendrick Motorsports subsequently took advantage of a contract glitch to steal him away from Roush - when NASCAR made a rule limiting participation to drivers at least 18. But Kyle's ascent was slowed only momentarily.

He finished eighth in the American Speed Association in 2002, then won two ARCA stock car races and made seven Busch Series starts for Hendrick in 2003, showing his promise by finishing second in his debut at Charlotte.

Last year, the younger Busch finally got the chance to run a full NASCAR season and took full advantage, winning five races and finishing as the Busch Series runner-up to Martin Truex Jr.

Now, he is a full-time Cup driver, taking over the No. 5 Chevrolet vacated by two-time series champion Terry Labonte, who has backed off to a limited schedule this year.

"I think he's going to do well," Labonte said. "He was a little nervous about it because the Cup races he ran last year didn't go as well as his Busch deal was going.

"I told him that this is a whole different deal. You're going to be with a real team, a legitimate team. Last year, he ran with a group that was just kind of put together and had no chemistry."

Kurt Busch rose through the ranks nearly as quickly as his younger brother, arriving in Cup racing in 2001 at the age of 22 after winning the NASCAR Southwest Tour title in 1999 and finishing second for Roush Racing in Craftsman Trucks the next year.

The elder brother finished 27th with no wins and three top-five finishes as a Cup rookie before establishing himself as a rising star the next season with four wins and a third-place finish.

Kyle knows he has some big footsteps to follow.

"The reason I'm here, obviously, is because of my brother," the younger Busch said. "He opened a lot of doors for me.

"There's probably doubt in everybody's mind that I belong here," he added. "But, in my own mind, I believe I belong here. I've worked my whole life to get here even though it's only been 19 years."

His slow start hasn't been easy to take for a driver accustomed to quick success.

"I'm pretty much my own worst critic, which is kind of bad to be," Kyle said. "Still, I look forward to going out there and facing the challenges that arise and working with my new crew chief. It's going to take some time to develop the chemistry there."

The new crew chief for the No. 5 Chevy is Alan Gustafson, who worked with Labonte last year as team engineer.

"Alan was a big part of my team who I've got a lot of confidence in," Labonte said. "I think after Kyle runs a little bit and works with Alan some, I think he will be fine. It might take him a little bit to get some confidence."

Busch also will be working closely with 21-year-old teammate and friend Brian Vickers, the 2003 Busch Series champion and 25th in points last year as a Cup rookie.

Team owner Rick Hendrick has had great success having the No. 24 and No. 48 teams of established stars Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson work out of the same building, and now Busch's No. 5 and Vickers No. 25 are doing the same.

"They are in a rebuilding mode with the 5 and the 25," Labonte said. "I think they are doing the right things. I think Brian and Kyle will work well together."

At an age when a lot of guys are attending college and trying to figure out where they are headed in life, Kyle Busch is pretty sure he is where he's supposed to be.

"I hung out with the smart kids in high school so I could learn as quick as I could and get out of school," he said. "They're probably off being computer wizards or something like that now.

"I always got made fun of in school because I was racing and I really didn't have a future ahead of me," he added, grinning. "I guess I kind of proved them wrong."