Busch vows to finish time at Hendrick on own terms

JOLIET, Ill. -- Kyle Busch is beginning to sound like a man without a country. Or at least a racecar driver without a true home.

Sure, the No. 5 Chevrolet he still pilots for Hendrick Motorsports continues to perform well. Busch qualified in the sixth position Friday for this Sunday's USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, running a fast lap of 181.886 mph.

But afterward, as he talked with a gaggle of media on pit road, Busch did not back off earlier comments he made about his increasingly uncomfortable lame-duck status at Hendrick. He was the odd man out when Hendrick recently signed Dale Earnhardt Jr. to a five-year contract, beginning next season, and continues to go through the process of deciding which organization he will drive for beginning in 2008.

Busch was upset after finishing second -- by inches -- to race winner Jamie McMurray in last Saturday's Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway. He said then -- and repeated Friday -- that he thought he could have won the race with a little help from his, um, former friends. (watch video)

He still doesn't think he got it from his Hendrick teammates.

"It's just been a difficult transition period from what I felt like was a really good team chemistry that was going on between all the drivers and all the teams [at Hendrick]," Busch said. "Since that transition period came when Junior announced he joining Hendrick Motorsports, it's been real different. I'm just frustrated in all of that, in last week's result and the way it came down."

Busch claimed that Gordon "blew him off" after the conclusion of the Pepsi 400, although Gordon denied that charge and said he gave Busch a thumbs-up while conducting a post-race television interview. Busch knows that he is under contractual obligation to finish this season with Hendrick. But he admitted that he doesn't ever expect it to go back to the way it once was.

"It used to be where we called each other and talked to each other and text-messaged back and forth," Busch said. "I had a sit-down with Jeff just before the [Coca-Cola] 600 [in May]. That went very well. Since all that happened [with Earnhardt Jr. signing], I'm in the team meetings sitting there listening. I don't even talk about what my car does because they all seem to talk amongst themselves. I sort of just sit there in the corner."

Gordon said Friday that he hadn't had a chance to talk with Busch since the Daytona race, but that he would welcome the opportunity. (Continued)