Busch in need of a Monster rally

DOVER, Del. -- Kurt Busch was penalized and demoralized the last time he left Dover.

His tantrum in the pits cost him 100 points and a coveted spot in the top 12 of the Chase standings. Thanks to a late surge in the final two months, the temperamental Busch recovered to qualify for NASCAR’s Chase for the Nextel Cup championship.

Now the former Nextel Cup champ is back at the Monster Mile, mired in a similar points hole, with even less time to recover. He’s 102 points behind with nine races left.

Another faulty part or a wreck could cost Busch and the No. 2 Dodge a chance to finish near the front of the field and all but end his shot at a second Cup championship.

For a driver once known for his hot temper, Busch is keeping his cool.

“To have a small setback in the beginning still gives you nine races to go to make up that small deficit,” said Busch, the 2004 champ. “No panic mode. We just hope this weekend at the Monster Mile is better for us.”

Busch plummeted from fifth to 12th in the Chase standings after last week’s 25th-place finish at New Hampshire, putting him more than 100 points behind leaders Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. His Dodge lost a cylinder and had carburetor problems, resulting in the worst finish of all the Chase drivers.

“We got beat by a $5 part,” Busch said. “We don’t ever usually have those types of failures.”

He was running up front for the early part of the race and was one of the few drivers to hang with winner Clint Bowyer. But his car slowed on the 122nd lap with his parts failing and he couldn’t recover.

Busch has some experience rallying back from a big hit in the points race. He was cruising and had a spot in the top 12 until he came to Dover in early June. Busch lost his temper after his car made contact with Tony Stewart’s No. 20, and he took his anger out via some pit road rage.

Busch pulled his car next to Stewart’s car, forcing a member of Stewart’s crew to jump back and onto the hood. NASCAR parked Busch, and he finished 42nd. Busch was docked 100 driver points, fined $100,000 and placed on probation -- one of the stiffest penalties handed down by NASCAR. He fell from 11th to 17th in the Chase standings and turned what should have been summer tuneups into pressure-packed races.

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The Chase

Nextel Cup standings through 27 out of 36 races.

*--* Driver Points Behind 1 Jimmie Johnson 5,210 -- 1 Jeff Gordon 5,210 -- 3 Tony Stewart 5,200 -10 4 Clint Bowyer 5,195 -15 5 Kyle Busch 5,175 -35 6 Martin Truex Jr. 5,170 -40 7 Matt Kenseth 5,156 -54 8 Carl Edwards 5,147 -63 9 Denny Hamlin 5,128 -82 10 Kevin Harvick 5,122 -88 11 Jeff Burton 5,119 -91 12 Kurt Busch 5,108 -102 *--*

REMAINING RACES

* Today: Dodge Dealers 400, Dover, Del.

* Sept. 30: LifeLock 400, Kansas City, Kan.

* Oct. 7: UAW-Ford 500, Talladega, Ala.

* Oct. 13: Bank of America 500, Concord, N.C.

* Oct. 21: Subway 500, Martinsville, Va.

* Oct. 28: Georgia 500, Hampton, Ga.

* Nov. 4: Dickies 500, Fort Worth.

* Nov. 11: Checker Auto Parts 500, Avondale, Ariz.

* Nov. 18: Ford 400, Homestead, Fla.