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Rookie of the year recorded two victories and nine top-fives
Kyle Busch won two races in 2005. It is too bad that he didn't get to enjoy either of them.
Busch won at Fontana in the first Nextel Cup race after Hurricane Katrina. He won in the first Nextel Cup race after Kurt Busch's suspension.
In the first win, Busch generously offered his winnings to the hurricane relief fund. In the second, he offered his opinions on what happened to his brother.
The first offering was welcome. The second was not. As it was, Kyle Busch pretty much did it all in 2005. Good and bad.
He bought a house. He won two races. He called Kasey Kahne "NASCAR's poster child." He defended family from Victory Lane. He finished the season on probation after hitting a car after the event at Watkins Glen.
When it was all said and done, the rail-thin, pale-faced 20-year-old finished 20th in points. With more consistency, he easily would have made the Chase, but eight DNFs did him in.
Because only one Hendrick Motorsports entry made the Chase in 2005, Busch will be expected to make NASCAR's playoffs in his second season.
Those high expectations will come after Busch won two of the final dozen races. In the latter, he beat the unbeatable Greg Biffle with a late charge at Phoenix.
Beating Biffle at PIR -- he rallied from a lap down -- was one of the more superhuman feats of the year. But Busch thought he could have won more often.
"It should have been more than that," he said. "We were able to win a couple of races this year and had a couple of top-fives and top-10s and we've also had our down times."
Still, it's hard to argue with Busch's year. He didn't have a "couple of top-fives." He had nine.
Nine top-fives. He was in the top five of a quarter of the races. He finished in the top five more than Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman or Rusty Wallace.
"The biggest thing that I learned this season was ... in order to finish first, you've first got to finish," Busch said. "It's just one of those deals where I need to learn that you'd rather finish a race 15th than 30th or 41st."
Even with the slew of DNFs, Busch didn't have much competition for rookie of the year. Busch was one of only two rookie drivers competing full time in 2005, and Travis Kvapil, the other, managed just two top-10s.
"It means a lot being able to get that award," Busch said. "It's an honor to put my name on that list of drivers who have won it and to be the youngest one is also an honor to me."
Kyle Busch won two races in 2005. It is too bad that he didn't get to enjoy either of them.
Busch won at Fontana in the first Nextel Cup race after Hurricane Katrina. He won in the first Nextel Cup race after Kurt Busch's suspension.
In the first win, Busch generously offered his winnings to the hurricane relief fund. In the second, he offered his opinions on what happened to his brother.
The first offering was welcome. The second was not. As it was, Kyle Busch pretty much did it all in 2005. Good and bad.
He bought a house. He won two races. He called Kasey Kahne "NASCAR's poster child." He defended family from Victory Lane. He finished the season on probation after hitting a car after the event at Watkins Glen.
When it was all said and done, the rail-thin, pale-faced 20-year-old finished 20th in points. With more consistency, he easily would have made the Chase, but eight DNFs did him in.
Because only one Hendrick Motorsports entry made the Chase in 2005, Busch will be expected to make NASCAR's playoffs in his second season.
Those high expectations will come after Busch won two of the final dozen races. In the latter, he beat the unbeatable Greg Biffle with a late charge at Phoenix.
Beating Biffle at PIR -- he rallied from a lap down -- was one of the more superhuman feats of the year. But Busch thought he could have won more often.
"It should have been more than that," he said. "We were able to win a couple of races this year and had a couple of top-fives and top-10s and we've also had our down times."
Still, it's hard to argue with Busch's year. He didn't have a "couple of top-fives." He had nine.
Nine top-fives. He was in the top five of a quarter of the races. He finished in the top five more than Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman or Rusty Wallace.
"The biggest thing that I learned this season was ... in order to finish first, you've first got to finish," Busch said. "It's just one of those deals where I need to learn that you'd rather finish a race 15th than 30th or 41st."
Even with the slew of DNFs, Busch didn't have much competition for rookie of the year. Busch was one of only two rookie drivers competing full time in 2005, and Travis Kvapil, the other, managed just two top-10s.
"It means a lot being able to get that award," Busch said. "It's an honor to put my name on that list of drivers who have won it and to be the youngest one is also an honor to me."