Kurt Busch's Chase hopes need a boost at Dover. Credit: Autostock

Busch records fastest laps in Dover practices

DOVER, Del. -- Dover has marked quite a comeback for Kurt Busch, but he is cautiously optimistic heading into Sunday's MBNA RacePoints 400.

Busch has an affinity for Bristol, but he's had much less success at Dover, its concrete cousin. In 10 races, he's never finished better than fifth and has three DNFs in 10 starts.

Inside the Numbers Kurt Busch at Dover Category No. Starts 10 Wins 0 Top-5 1 Top-10 3 DNF 3 Poles 0 Laps Led 13 Avg. Start 13.2 Avg. Finish 19.6

But Busch rolled off the truck fast Friday -- he qualified 10th -- and he was even better Saturday, as he paced both practices. Busch ran 154.939 mph in Happy Hour and 153.984 mph in the second practice.

Two cars wrecked badly enough Saturday to necessitate a move to backup machines. Mike Bliss hit the fence in the first practice and, during Happy Hour, Bobby Hamilton Jr. tagged the wall along the frontstretch.

Busch also slapped the wall, but damage was limited to the right-rear quarterpanel, and the team was at work fixing the cosmetic damage.

Chase for the Nextel Cup competitors made up eight of the top-15 speeds in the second practice and, during Happy Hour, they took the top four spots.

The MBNA RacePoints 400 is a non-impound event, so Nextel Cup teams practiced twice Saturday. The track conditions varied greatly from Friday, as cool, cloudy skies provided a stark contrast from Bud Pole Qualifying.

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"It's pretty cool, so it's nice for speed, but [Sunday] I am sure it'll be sunny," Busch said. "The temperature is supposed to go up so the track will be harder to get a hold of [Sunday]."

Busch was a favorite to win his second Nextel Cup title, but he wrecked on Lap 3 last weekend at Loudon, immediately putting him in a major points hole.

"[The] car is looking good for [Sunday]. [I] hope we can gain some points," said Busch, who is 142 points behind leader Tony Stewart. "Go fast, each one of them; it's hard to keep that pace for nine races, but we are going to try [and]do everything we can to gain some points."

Busch enjoys running at Dover, but he has had trouble getting his car dialed in for a full 400 miles, and he knows that has to change Sunday.

"We always run good the first portion of the race at Dover, we just get a tight condition at the end," said Busch, who finished ninth here in June. "I am driving hard. This is a tough way to go about it, being behind."