By the Numbers: Phoenix

Last weekend was a historic one for Kyle Busch in Texas as he tied Sam Ard for the most wins in a Nationwide season with 10 last Saturday. But Busch has two races left to try and claim that title outright -- and it starts Saturday in the Hefty Odor Block 200 at Phoenix International Raceway (4 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

It's interesting to compare Busch and Ard and their record-setting seasons 25 years apart because aside from the wins, they're not all that similar.

Busch has run less races than Ard and Busch has run for multiple teams (No. 18 and No. 20 for Joe Gibbs Racing and the No. 32 for Braun Racing) while Ard spent all season in the No. 00 Howard Thomas Oldsmobile. In 1983, Ard's 10 wins propelled him to the championship -- his first of two -- while Busch and his 10 wins will give him between and fifth- and seventh-place finish due to the limited schedule.

The fact is, Ard was flat-out dominant in his 1983 championship season. Sixty-five percent of the races, Ard finished in the top five and he was in the top 10 in 86 percent of them. Only five times that season did Ard finish outside the top 10 and three of those were top-15 finishes.

But all that will become inconsequential if Busch is able to win Saturday at Phoenix or in the season finale at Homestead. Odds are, he might win No. 11 in the Arizona desert.

Busch has been very strong at the 1-mile track located outside Phoenix in Avondale, Ariz. Take out a crash in the 2007 spring race and Busch has finished up front in every race -- with wins in the last two races to make him the favorite heading into this weekend.