Kurt Busch also had trouble at Darlington. Credit: Autostock

Early spin halts Kurt Busch's night early

Fluid may have contributed to Coca-Cola 600 incident

CONCORD, N.C. -- Defending Nextel Cup champion Kurt Busch finished just 25 miles in the Coca-Cola 600 Sunday before his racecar whipped around, spun out and hit the Turn 2 wall on the driver's side.

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"It just snapped around on me real quick," Busch said. "I don't know if there was fluid on the track or not.

"There was a bunch (of fluid) on the windshield and (the car) just came around. Obviously, I was in no hurry. It's 600 miles, but it just snapped around on me."

Busch's misfortune Sunday evening marked the second time in three points races he experienced early-race trouble.

At Darlington earlier this month, he wrecked by himself on the first lap of the Dodge Charger 500. He finished 37th, dropping him from second to fourth in the championship standings.

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Following a 17th-place run at Richmond, Busch entered the Coca-Cola 600 fifth on the points chart.

"It'll hurt but we've got plenty of time," Busch said regarding his points status. "We had a car that was going to be competitive, but we're gonna finish in the forties somewhere."

Busch rejoined the race on Lap 156. He hit the wall again seven laps later. He finished 43rd and dropped to 10th in the Nextel Cup standings.