Kurt Busch only has one short track to look forward to during the Chase. Credit: Autostock

Busch finds smoother sailing in 2004 season

Kurt Busch has been as dominant at times as Jeff Gordon, touchier at times than Tony Stewart and a sparring partner for Jimmy Spencer at least once.

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In 2004, his road to the Chase was much smoother than it has been the past couple of seasons.

While he wasn't taking the series by storm the way he did at the end of 2002, his 2004 season has been solid and consistent.

Victories at Bristol -- his third straight there -- and New Hampshire go along with two more top-fives and 12 top-10s to put him sixth in the points with two races to go.

The victory at New Hampshire was particularly well-timed: he entered the race ninth in points.

After opening the season with five top-10s in seven races, Busch then entered a 10-race stretch where he logged finishes of 36th (twice), 35th and 31st, putting him in danger of not making the top 10.

In the six races after that, he won at NHIS, broke a transmission at Pocono and reeled off four straight top-10 finishes to get solidly back into the top six.

Elliott Sadler's victory at California cost him a spot, but he was solidly in the top 10 and clinched at Richmond. He had two victories, four top-fives and 12 top-10s at the end of the first 26 races.

Daytona 500: A 16th-place finish is not the way he wanted to start the season, but hey, it's a long run.

Subway 400 at Rockingham: Solid eighth-place finish put him in the mix heading to his hometown track.

UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas: In the top-10 (ninth) and solidly positioned after three races.

Golden Corral 500 at Atlanta: He was 12th, last car on the lead lap. Still a good points day for the Sharpie man.

Carolina Dodge Dealers 400 at Darlington: His third top-10 of the season (ninth) set him up perfectly for a return to what has to be his favorite track.

Food City 500 at Bristol: Is there anybody better than Busch at Bristol? For the third straight time, he drove up onto Victory Lane, beating Rusty Wallace by a little less than half a second. He also led the most laps.

Samsung/Radio Shack 500 at Texas: A strong sixth-place run for Busch gave him five top-10s in seven races.

Advance Auto Parts 500 at Martinsville: It could have been six of eight in the top 10, but Busch slipped to 11th at the finish.

Aaron's 499 at Talladega: Things were going well for Busch until Tony Stewart stuck his nose underneath the Sharpie Ford entering Turn 3 on the 59th lap. The resulting crash put Busch out of the race and in 36th place. Needless to say, he was not a happy camper after the event, and this was the race that triggered the 10-race stretch of doom.

Auto Club 500 at California: A lap down in 23rd, Busch was still not happy.

Chevy American Revolution 400 at Richmond: After leading early, he lost 14 laps fixing damage and finished 31st.

Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's: An 11th-place finish is almost the top 10, and that's where Kurt was at the end of the longest race of the season.

MBNA 400 at Dover: While it is just 400 miles, Dover seemed like the longest race of the season, as crash after crash and questionable officiating created chaos. Busch was two laps down in 12th by the time it ended, and he was one of the lucky ones.

Pocono 500: Back on track at Pocono, Busch drove to fifth after starting 27th.

DHL 400 at Michigan: Busch is usually strong here, but he was no better than 11th on this day.

Dodge/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma: The thing about road courses is, you can screw up going both directions. Busch wound up 36th, 16 laps down.

Pepsi 400 at Daytona: Glad to be back on a normal oval, Busch was fourth under the lights and the best Ford finisher.

Tropicana 400 at Chicagoland: Busch got caught up in the mess made by the Tony Stewart-Kasey Kahne restart fracas and finished 35th.

Siemens 300 at New Hampshire: What's the best way to cure the mid-season doldrums? Winning a race, of course, and that's just what Busch did. He held off Jeff Gordon over the final stint and emerged with a second 2004 triumph. It jumped him up in the points from ninth and out of danger.

Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono: A broken transmission relegated him to 26th at the finish, but he wasn't the only one to have troubles.

Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis: Smooth and steady, Busch rode home 10th.

Sirius at the Glen: Apparently, Watkins Glen is a little easier on the screw-up factor than Sonoma. He was 10th for the second straight week.

GFS Marketplace 400 at Michigan: Again, Busch was steady and smooth, coming home seventh for his third straight top-10 and 10th of the season.

Sharpie 500 at Bristol: Could Busch win four straight at Bristol? Nope, as it turned out, but it didn't mean he wasn't trying. He started 24th, got shuffled back a couple of times and was on the move as the laps wound down, but he had to settle for eighth. Over the last four races at BMS, Busch's average finish is 3.6.

California: Finished 11th despite a second long slide that resulted in no contact off Turn 2. He did the same thing at Michigan two races earlier. He all but clinched his spot in the top 10 with his finish, needing only to start at Richmond to earn his way in.

Chevy Rock and Roll 400 at Richmond: He was 15th at Richmond, a lap down. He'll be seventh when the Chase opens this week.