Justin Labonte will be driving in place of Kyle Busch at the Memphis Busch Series race. Credit: Autostock

Saturday's tight schedule awaits Buschwhackers

Kyle Busch skipping Memphis; three Chasers to make commute

Nextel Cup regular Kyle Busch has decided to skip his first Busch Series race this season, due to a tight schedule traveling between Atlanta Motor Speedway and Memphis Motorsports Park on Saturday.

Kevin Harvick will race at Memphis despite clinching the title two weeks ago. Credit: Autostock

Busch Series Standings after 31 of 35 races Pos. +/- Driver Behind 1. -- Kevin Harvick Leader 2. -- Carl Edwards -775 3. -- Clint Bowyer -847 4. -- Denny Hamlin -898 5. -- J.J. Yeley -1055 6. -- Kyle Busch -1268 7. -- Paul Menard -1276 8. -- Greg Biffle -1429 9. +1 Johnny Sauter -1646 10. -1 Reed Sorenson -1662 Note: Harvick clinches title • Complete standings, click here Title timeKevin Harvick wins his second Busch Series championship Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

But three other contenders in the Chase for the Nextel Cup -- all positioned higher in the standings than 10th-place Busch -- will make the effort, including Kevin Harvick, who clinched the Busch title two weeks ago and is second in the Cup standings. Denny Hamlin and Kasey Kahne will also pull double duty.

Harvick said the fact that he's clinched would make no difference to him emotionally and that the schedule wouldn't affect him, either.

"We've raced the same every week, and that was to go to the racetrack and try to be competitive and in the top 10 and put ourselves in position to win," Harvick said. "And we've been fortunate to do that.

"We didn't plan on doing anything but racing [at Memphis] at the beginning of the year anyway, so I never saw anything affecting that."

The Sam's Town 250 at Memphis is scheduled to start at 2:10 p.m. ET. Nextel Cup Happy Hour is scheduled to end at 12:50 p.m. -- meaning anyone who has any hope of making it to Memphis will miss some Atlanta practice time.

Charles W. Baker Airport in Millington, Tenn., is located adjacent to the racetrack, but its shorter runways limit the size of aircraft that can land there. Millington Regional Airport is about four miles from the track and has an 8,000-foot runway suitable for most private jets.

A Baker Airport spokesman said that in the past, teams have flown to Millington and helicoptered to his facility. He said that last year, when the Nextel Cup Series raced at Martinsville on the same weekend as the Busch Series was in Memphis, Jack Roush flew his Cessna Citation jet to Baker carrying Carl Edwards, with a similar tight schedule.

According to the Atlanta and Memphis entry lists that were filed with NASCAR's Competition Department, seven drivers will have to commute back and forth to do Cup practice and the Busch race on Saturday: Harvick, Edwards, Clint Bowyer, Hamlin, J.J. Yeley, Reed Sorenson and Kahne.

"After reviewing the track schedules, we knew it would be impossible for Kyle to make the Memphis race after participating in the Nextel Cup final practice and our team debriefing in Atlanta," Hendrick Motorsports general manager Marshall Carlson said. "We're supportive of our drivers running both series, but with the difficult logistics this weekend we thought it best to concentrate on Cup and the championship chase.

Sam's Town 250 Substitute drivers for practice Driver Substitute Clint Bowyer Brandon Miller Carl Edwards Peter Shepherd Denny Hamlin Kertus Davis Kevin Harvick Randy LaJoie Kasey Kahne Hermie Sadler Reed Sorenson Kevin Hamlin J.J. Yeley Mark Green

"We'll look forward to having Kyle back in the No. 5 Chevrolet next weekend when the two series are together again at Texas."

After the events last weekend at Martinsville Speedway, Busch's slim hopes in the Chase have been rekindled, while Harvick, Hamlin and Kahne are all within 99 points of new leader Matt Kenseth.

While Busch fell to 10th, he is only 171 points behind Kenseth with four races remaining. Harvick is 36 points behind Kenseth and Hamlin is fourth, just 47 points back.

Hendrick Motorsports entered Justin Labonte in its No. 5 Chevrolet at Memphis, which is the car Busch has driven in the first 31 Busch races this season. Labonte previously subbed for Busch at other events with similar schedule conflicts, but Busch always made the races.

"We're fortunate to have a talented driver like Justin Labonte available to substitute for Kyle this weekend," Carlson said. "He's a proven winner in the Busch Series and already has experience working with the No. 5 team this season."

Hamlin and Yeley are fourth and fifth, respectively, in the Busch Series standings. Hamlin has a chance to catch Bowyer for third, which is his incentive to make the commute.

Busch is sixth in Busch driver points and, if Paul Menard starts the Sam's Town 250, he'll jump over Busch. But Menard is more than 200 points behind fifth-place Yeley and can't catch him, even if Yeley skipped the race.

	Kasey Kahne is the only driver pulling the double that is not ranked in the top 10 in Busch Series points. Credit: Autostock
	Double Duty Standings for drivers in both Cup and Busch series Driver Cup Busch Kevin Harvick 2 1 Carl Edwards 12 2 Clint Bowyer 18 3 Denny Hamlin 4 4 J.J. Yeley 29 5 Kyle Busch 10 6 Reed Sorenson 25 10 Kasey Kahne 8 31

Both Hamlin and Yeley are planning to miss some of Saturday's Happy Hour session.

The most unusual aspects of the commutes are that Harvick has already clinched the Busch title and Kahne is obligated to drive in the race.

Harvick is 775 points ahead of Edwards after the last race, two weekends ago at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Kahne, who has split the season in Evernham Motorsports' No. 9 Busch Series Dodge with Scott Riggs, Erin Crocker, Boris Said and Jeremy Mayfield, is nowhere near the top 10 in the Busch standings. He is eighth on the Cup chart, 99 points behind Kenseth after Martinsville.

Vitaminwater, a product Kahne endorses, is sponsoring the Busch car at Memphis with the stipulation Kahne drives.

Both Riggs and Crocker are scheduled to race at Atlanta and Evernham released Mayfield in August, so Hermie Sadler is scheduled to practice and qualify the car before Kahne arrives on Saturday.

Kahne will make one run in Happy Hour at Atlanta and leave for Memphis on a plane with "several other drivers," his PR representative said.

Yeley, who is 29th in the Cup driver standings, has commuted to the Busch races that previously conflicted with Cup events this season on Hamlin's Lear jet. The Joe Gibbs Racing pair plans to helicopter to the track when Hamlin's jet lands.

Other substitute drivers who will practice and qualify the Busch cars while waiting for their regular drivers include former two-time Busch champion Randy LaJoie for Harvick, Peter Shepherd for Edwards, Brandon Miller for Bowyer, Kertus Davis for Hamlin, Mark Green for Yeley and Kevin Hamlin for Sorenson.