Viewer's Guide: Phoenix

Between victory celebrations and brushes with the law, the Busch brothers have certainly taken their share of ribbing recently. Still, the fact remains that both Kurt and Kyle are among the best drivers in NASCAR's top series.

	Inside the Numbers The Busch brothers at Phoenix in the Nextel Cup Series   Kurt Kyle Starts 6 2 Wins 1 1 Top-5s 2 1 Top-10s 4 2 Avg. Start 19.5 21.0 Avg. Finish 12.0 4.5

Especially when it visits Phoenix International Raceway.

Kurt took the checkered flag at PIR last April and Kyle celebrated a win there in November. Both appear to be prime targets for television cameras during the broadcast of the Subway Fresh 500 (8 p.m. ET Sat., FOX).

Kurt will try to defend his win in last year's Subway Fresh 500 without crew chief Roy McCauley. McCauley, a rookie crew chief in the Nextel Cup Series, experienced some mild chest pains and went to the hospital Monday for diagnostic tests. He successfully underwent minor surgery Tuesday to treat a small blockage.

"The procedure was 100 percent effective in alleviating the problem, but my doctor advised me to take it easy and spend this weekend relaxing at home," said McCauley, who will return to work -- and the next race at Talladega Superspeedway -- next week.

Matt Gimbel, who served as crew chief when Kurt got his first Busch Series win at Texas two weeks ago, will be on the pit box Saturday night.

The younger Busch has yet to finish worse than 11th in any start at Phoenix in all three of NASCAR's national series. The 11th-place finish came in a Craftsman Truck Series start last November.

He finished second in his only Busch Series start there in 2004 and he finished eighth in this race one year ago.

"We've run well at Phoenix in both Busch and Cup. There's something about the track that just suits my driving style," Kyle Busch said.

An understatement, to be sure.

Speaking of Kurt Busch, he will join Reed Sorenson and Michael Waltrip as guests scheduled for Trackside this week from Phoenix (11:30 p.m. ET Fri., SPEED).

If you're going to Phoenix, the show will be taped at 2 p.m. local time and the SPEED stage will be located outside the main grandstand near the main entrance.

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"Ask the Producer" takes a break this week, but will return next week heading into Talladega weekend. Have something that bugs you about the broadcast? Click the link to the right.

Now on to this weekend's schedule.

Nextel Cup Series: Subway Fresh 500

Track: Phoenix International Raceway

• 1-mile oval
• 11-degree banking in Turns 1-2
• 9-degree banking in Turns 3-4
• 3-degree banking in frontstretch
• 9-degree banking in backstretch
• Length of frontstretch: 2,179 feet
• Length of backstretch: 1,551 feet

Race length: 312 laps/312 miles (500 kilometers)

TV schedule (All times ET)

• Bud Pole Qualifying: 8:30 p.m. Thurs., SPEED
• NASCAR Live: 5, 8 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• Final practice 7 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• Trackside: 11:30 p.m. Fri, SPEED
• NASCAR Live: Noon ET, Sat., SPEED
• NASCAR Raceday: 6 p.m. Sat., SPEED
• Pre-race: 8 p.m. Sat., FOX
• Race: 8:30 p.m. Sat., FOX

One year ago, Kurt Busch led 219 of 312 laps on the mile oval, emphatically putting behind him a streak of bad luck that included crashes at four consecutive events, including an IROC race a week before at Texas Motor Speedway.

2005 FlashbackSee Kurt Busch win the first night Cup race at PIR Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

The most recent checkered flag went to Kasey Kahne, who became the first polesitter to win at Texas Motor Speedway, and the victory was his second this year from the top starting position.

Keep an eye on Denny Hamlin. When the Cup Series last visited PIR in November, Hamlin took the Bud Pole and finished a respectable 13th.

Busch Series: Bashas' Supermarkets 200

Track: Phoenix International Raceway

• 1-mile oval
• 11-degree banking in Turns 1-2
• 9-degree banking in Turns 3-4
• 3-degree banking in frontstretch
• 9-degree banking in backstretch
• Length of frontstretch: 2,179 feet
• Length of backstretch: 1,551 feet

Race length: 200 laps/200 miles

TV schedule (All times ET)

• Busch Pole Qualifying: 5:30 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• Race: 8:30 p.m. Fri., FX

2005 FlashbackWatch Greg Biffle's dominating night at Phoenix Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

One year ago, Greg Biffle survived an early spinout and grabbed another dominating victory.

The most recent checkered flag went to Kevin Harvick, who cruised to victory last Saturday in Nashville.

Keep an eye on Paul Menard. After a dismal start to the season, Menard is now sixth in the Busch Series standings, his highest position of the season.