RIVALRY … REALLY?

      Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards are rivals now, at least that’s the hype
that will be spewed as talk centers on the top two drivers in the Sprint
Cup series.
      Edwards bumped Busch out of the way  to take the lead from him
late in Saturday night’s race at Bristol and went on to win. Busch slammed
into Edwards on the cool-down lap and Edwards reacted by spinning Busch.
      That apparently makes them rivals and provides a storyline heading into the
Chase.
      I thought Busch was a rival for everyone except teammates Denny
Hamlin and Tony Stewart at Joe Gibbs Racing?
      Be prepared for two months of Carl vs. Kyle; the Oh-Gosh Kid from
Missouri against the Sin City Kid from Las Vegas.

MELTS AT THE BANK
      I corrupted my 9-year-old great nephew Avery by giving him a dose of
speed Saturday night. He watched a few laps of the Sprint Cup race with me.
      What car did he begin rooting for?
      He started with the No. 43 because that’s his favorite number. But he
quickly switched allegiances to Kyle Busch.
      Was it because he loves a points leader and front runner? Or does he
favor Toyotas? It certainly wasn’t because of team-owner Joe Gibbs’ ties to
the Redskins because he and his dad are devout Raiders fans.
      He began rooting for Busch’s No. 18 because he loves M&Ms.
      NASCAR marketers would love him.
      Once his younger sister, Peri, couldn’t find a pink car, she lost
interest.
      Their mom only would have watched had a car been sponsored by
Arbonne, a skin-care line.
      And their father, an attorney, has been attracted by the persistent
amount of litigation that occurs in the sport.
      Skruffy, their dog, was mesmerized and rarely left my side. He
sniffed out the Pedigree dog food logo on Busch’s car.

VERY HOT PENSKE
      Penske Racing was extremely hot last week and it certainly wasn’t its
Cup teams.
      After one of Penske IndyCar haulers caught fire last week in Wyoming
en route to Sonoma, Calif., its drivers finished 1-2 on Sunday; Helio Castroneves danced his way to victory and Ryan Briscoe
finished second.
      The team lost both primary race cars, equipment and more in a
transporter fire Wednesday morning. Castroneves and Briscoe used back-up
cars rebuilt by the team at Sonoma.
      “It was an incredible effort by Team Penske,
 Castroneves said. “I can’t thank them enough.
      “You’re talking about two days’ work in 12 hours. When you see guys
doing that, you just want to do your best for them.”
      Too bad Penske’s effort hasn’t been as successful for Kurt Busch and
Ryan Newman in their stock cars.

THE BIG GO
      The Cup series will be at California Speedway in Fontana this weekend
but my focus will be on Clermont, Ind., for the biggest drag race of the
year.
      The 54th annual U.S. Nationals — which runs Friday through Monday for
pros — will finalize the fields for the NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series’
Countdown playoffs.