HAMPTON, Ga. — Kurt Busch grabbed the checkered flag, shifted his car into reverse and headed off on a unique victory lap. Backward.
Too bad for everyone else he didn’t drive that way during the race. It’s probably the only way he could have lost.
Busch, a former NASCAR Cup champion who has been overshadowed lately by his kid brother Kyle, drove to a dominating victory Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Kurt led 234 of 330 laps in the Kobalt Tools 500, surviving a couple of scrapes with the wall and a late caution to pull away for a 0.332-second victory over Jeff Gordon.
It really wasn’t that close.
“This car was unbelievable,” Busch said. “I guess good things come to those who wait.”
Busch led more laps in one afternoon than he did all of last season (164), when his only victory came in a rain-shortened race at Loudon, N.H.
“I just drove (against) the track, not the competition,” Busch said.
The older Busch made his mark on the victory lap. It was his take on the “Polish Victory Lap” conceived by the late Cup champion Alan Kulwicki, who would drive the wrong way around the track after a win — but facing forward. Busch went the right direction, but had to steer out of his rearview mirror.
“When you put the car in reverse like that, it relaxes,” he explained. “It’s like cooling down a horse after a good Kentucky Derby run.”
Busch’s performance left Gordon searching for his first win since 2007. But the four-time Sprint Cup champion remained on top of the standings.
“We’re getting close,” Gordon said after his second runner-up finish of the season. “We’re going to keep knocking on the door until we get to Victory Lane.”
Mark Martin was the fastest in qualifying, becoming the second-oldest driver in Cup history to start from the pole. But it was another rough day for the 50-year-old after blowing engines the two previous weeks. He apparently cut a tire, smashed the wall and finished 31st, 14 laps down.
