Busch Shatters Qualifying Record at Richmond

RICHMOND, Va. (May 13, 2004) – Kyle Busch led an assault on the NASCAR record books in Thursday’s Funai 250 qualifying session at Richmond International Raceway, earning his third Busch Series pole position in just 11 attempts this season. In the process, the 19-year-old Las Vegas native was one of more than a dozen competitors to break the track record and became the youngest-ever driver to sit on a pole at RIR. The performance marked the seventh time Busch has been the top-qualifying rookie in 2004. “It’s really cool,” said Busch, who drove his No. 5 Lowe’s/Pella Chevrolet to a lap of 129.348 mph, besting the track record by nearly 3 mph. “The NASCAR Busch Series is an awesome series to run in and I always enjoy coming to Richmond. “It’s my first time here in the Busch car, so it’s pretty cool to not only sit on the pole, but to go out here as a Raybestos Rookie and try to run well with all the rest of the veterans out here. It’s been a lot of fun.” At 127.509 mph, Busch also posted the quickest lap in Thursday’s final “Happy Hour” practice. Greg Biffle was second in the session at 126.743 mph, with Martin Truex Jr. third at 126.541 mph. Currently third in the NBS championship standings, Busch has seven top-10 finishes and four top-fives this year. He has not finished outside the top 10 since March 20, when he came in 17th at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. In the last six events, Team Lowe’s Racing has placed no worse than seventh. Friday’s Funai 250 will be broadcast live from Richmond International Raceway on FX (7:30 p.m. ET) and MRN Radio (7:15 p.m. ET).