NASCAR Cup

Las Vegas: Pole winner's interview

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M's Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Starting Position: 1st How was your qualifying run? "That was pretty awesome right there. The car was pretty good. It wasn't as good as it could have been. It was definitely pretty ...

Published: Mar 2, 2008, 9:42 PM

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KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M's Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Starting Position: 1st

How was your qualifying run?

"That was pretty awesome right there. The car was pretty good. It wasn't as good as it could have been. It was definitely pretty tight. I just drove through the tightness that we had in it, and luckily it stuck good enough where we were able to clear all the walls and not hit anything and put up a good lap. The M&M's Toyota and all the guys back at the shop at Joe Gibbs Racing have given me awesome cars and prepared everything really, really well. I'm just fortunate enough to be driving for them now."

Can you describe your qualifying lap?

"It was a good steady lap for us today. We just went out there and practiced and felt like we had a good, solid M&M's Toyota. We tested well out here. Going out there for qualifying -- we got through (turns) three and four pretty good to come to take the green flag. I felt like I got a good run coming down the front straight-away into turn one. I drove it a little bit further than I wanted to, but it felt like if it was going to stick and it was going to be the lap that I needed. It pushed up just a little bit over the bumps somewhat, and I put it wide open and hoped for the best."

What do you think about leading the points and starting first in your home town?

"You just start out front and keep going. If you've got a good enough car, then you have a good enough car. I'd be pretty fortunate to finish second, third or fourth. If we happen to win this thing this weekend -- that would be pretty cool to be able to come out of here after 267 laps, 400 miles, and be in victory lane. That would be pretty special. We'd have a big M&M's party -- that would be pretty neat."

Are you feeling pretty good right now with what you've done this season -- and now to get the pole here?

"Pretty much. It's just been crazy the way things have been going. I'm at a loss for words almost because I've talked about how well we're running, and how great things have been going. Sooner or later you wonder when the fall is going to happen. I'm a pretty good surfer, so as long as this wave is here I'm going to ride it."

Could you feel the tires sensitivity in your qualifying lap?

"The sun today made the track real slick with the tires the way they are. Once it cooled down a little bit, the track seemed to bring in a lot of grip and those guys at the end were going pretty fast -- faster than they would have if they had gone earlier in the day in the sun. Overall, we were fortunate enough to get a good draw and run late like we did to sit on the pole. As far as the race goes, I think it will be a fine race. You're going to have guys going from the top to the bottom and the bottom to the top, all day long. On new tires you're going to be able to run the bottom. The more you run, the more the cars will either push or get loose -- probably push. You'll move up the race track to get some clean track and clean air, making moves around the outside of guys."

How's your relationship with your crew chief Steve Addington progressing?

"Things have been going pretty excellent with Steve. He's a real cool guy -- a laid back, cool cat. He's real serious and intense about his race car in the way he wants it set-up -- that's any crew chief. It's always a crew chief that's able to lead the team and the team guys believe in Steve. You could come to this deal and think it's a driver you need to plug into the deal and things aren't working then everyone is going to point the finger at the crew chief. Everybody's been behind Steve and everybody has been behind me. For us to be able to come out of the gate working as well as we have with one another, and be as successful as we have been , is great. The way we work ed during the test session -- looking at the computer with how things are running and then diagnosing things, so when we got to the race track without the computer we'd have a better sense and better knowledge with what I was talking about and how much of a change we needed in the car."

What does it mean to you to have older drivers say great things about you?

"It's a great feeling. I've heard it all over the place. I had Mark (Martin) come up to my car after qualifying. He came over to me and told me it was once him who people told how much of a talent he was. And, now it's him telling me that. The way that he put it, and the words he put it in were pretty special, it felt cool. As far as learning and watching Mark (Martin) over the years has helped me. Watching Dale Earnhardt Sr. has helped me, Jeff Gordon, my brother (Kurt Busch) and my dad. You have to keep going and run the best you can week in and week out for every lap of the race."

-credit: toyota motorsports

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