Thursday, June 8, 2006 | 7:33 a.m.
Rick Hendrick wants Kyle Busch to be himself.
Kyle Busch says he is going to start acting more like Carl Edwards.
Busch, penalized last week by NASCAR for throwing his HANS device (head and neck support) at Casey Mears' car after the two crashed during the Coca-Cola 600, said he won't risk a suspension by acting up the way he did May 28 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in North Carolina.
"If that happens again - which it won't because I know what the consequence is going to be - you basically have to go the Carl Edwards route: 'Oh shucks. Darn. We wrecked. We'll just have to come back and get them next week.'
"You're going to lose a fiery side but that's basically what this sport has to endure now."
Busch was fined $25,000, docked 25 points and placed on probation until Dec. 31 for the all-encompassing "actions detrimental to stock car racing," which included throwing the equipment and disobeying a directive from a NASCAR official.
Although Busch said his reaction to the incident stemmed from repeated on-track run-ins with Mears, Mears said he doesn't believe there are any unresolved "issues" between the two.
"It's funny; if you get into it with a guy a couple of times, people think there might be an issue," Mears said. "There's really no issue at all.''
Busch, 21 and a Las Vegas native, admitted he hasn't done a very good job of showing fans and fellow competitors the true Kyle Busch.
"The thing is, I show everyone the wrong side of me, and there is a different side outside the racetrack, and that is what my (teammates) love about me.
"(Team owner Rick Hendrick) tells me to be more of myself, really. I show the wrong side of myself at the racetrack. I like to have a good time and joke around, but it's so hard with 42 other guys who have their own agenda."
Brendan Gaughan of Las Vegas walked into Texas Motor Speedway this morning with considerably less swagger than he did three years ago.
Gaughan, who won four consecutive NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races at TMS in 2002 and 2003, struggled at the 1.5-mile speedway last season and goes into Friday night's race ranked 16th in points with only one top-10 finish in eight races this season.
"We're cautiously optimistic," Gaughan said. "It's tough to go there with a little bit of insecurity and thinking that we're not as good as we used to be. In 2002 when we won, nobody expected us to win then, either, so you never know. This team is resilient, and the best truck that we can put on the track is going to be there."
But it won't be the same truck that carried Gaughan to a second-place finish at Texas in 2001 and the four consecutive victories in 2002 and 2003. Gaughan said that truck, nicknamed "Lonestar," is being rebuilt at the Orleans Racing shop near the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
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Number-one qualifiers in the National Hot Rod Association's Top Fuel category who have advanced to a final round through the first nine races of the season
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Career NASCAR Cup victories for Bill Elliott at Pocono Raceway
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