Reigning and two-time NASCAR Busch Series champion Kevin Harvick (#21 AutoZone Chevy) isn’t running a full-time schedule, but he’s still pushing towards the top of the list of all-time greats in this final year with series sponsor Busch Beer.

The series’ hottest driver, Harvick comes to Michigan International Speedway having won two consecutive races (Montreal, Watkins Glen) and can become the seventh driver in series history to produce three consecutive victories. Ryan Newman (2005) was the last to do so. Harvick boasts four wins in his last five races; the exception was a second-place finish at Daytona International Speedway last month.

He’s now tied with Jack Ingram for second on the all-time win list with 31.

A win at Michigan also would give him four wins in the last four races he’s entered, although not consecutive events. He won at Chicagoland Speedway and skipped O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis before embarking on his current two-race streak. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2001-03) and Newman (‘05) hold the mark with wins in five straight starts, though not in consecutive races.

Harvick’s Richard Childress Racing teammates, Jeff Burton and Scott Wimmer, are on a hot streak as well. They have the #29 Holiday Inn Chevy only 41 points behind the driver and owner-leading #60 Sharp Ford of Carl Edwards and Roush Fenway Racing. The #29 RCR team has made up 227 points on the #60 over the last five races to pull within its closest margin of the season. Those two teams have been 1-2 in the owner standings since the first race at Nashville Superspeedway in April. The #29 was a season-high 302 points out of first following the second Nashville race in June.

The series driver and owner championships have been split once before, also involving RCR. In 2003, Brian Vickers (#10 Fan1st.com Toyota) won the driver’s title, but the duo of Harvick and Johnny Sauter won the owner championship for Childress in the #21 PayDay Chevy.

Living The Dream: Michigan Native Keselowski Back Home In #88

It’s quite a homecoming for Brad Keselowski (#88 NAVY Chevy) as the Rochester Hills, Mich., native prepares to make his fourth start for owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. and JR Motorsports.

Keselowski has been impressive since taking over the #88 Chevy at Chicago, registering two top-15 finishes, including his first career top 10.

Road specialist Andy Pilgrim handled the past two events for JR Motorsports at Montreal and Watkins Glen, but now the seat goes back to Keselowski in front of the hometown crowd.

“Coming back with JR Motorsports, I’m looking to seal the deal this year and I think we have a really good shot at it,” he said of his prospects for a full-time ride with the organization.

He hopes to race against his brother, Brian, who will attempt to qualify his #49 Dodge for their father Bob. The Keselowski racing tradition runs three generations deep in Michigan, starting with the siblings’ grandfather, John. The family has competed in all levels of racing from late models to the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series.

“We live about an hour-and-a-half from the track and racing has always been a part of our lives, so competing in front of our hometown crowd will be a lot of fun,” Brian said.

In the Loop: Owner Championship Heating Up; Martin Set For Spoiler Role

Trust that Jack Roush and John Henry – co-owners of Roush Fenway Racing – will have a close eye on the #60 Ford of Carl Edwards during Saturday’s NASCAR Busch Series race at Michigan International Speedway. Though their driver has a robust lead in the driver standings, there’s still a neck-and-neck race in the owner standings.

The #60 Ford, driven exclusively by Edwards this season, holds a 41-point cushion over the #29 Richard Childress Racing Chevy driven by both Jeff Burton and Scott Wimmer. Burton will drive the #29 this weekend at Michigan, and will attempt to curtail the Roush success at the 2-mile track.

Over the last two years, Edwards has performed well at Michigan. Though an accident ended his day in 2006, he did lead 31 laps in that race. In 2005, his first visit to Michigan, Edwards notched a third-place finish.

In his Michigan career, Edwards has a Driver Rating of 118.3 (second-best among those competing Saturday), an Average Running Position of 4.5 (best of any driver), 38 Fastest Laps Run (most of any driver) and has spent 247 of 253 Laps in the Top 15 (most of any driver).

Jeff Burton ran at the Michigan NASCAR Busch Series race last season for the first time since 2003 and finished 10th. In that race, Burton earned a Driver Rating of 92.2, an Average Running Position of 14.6 and spent 83 Laps in the Top 15. He has had past success at this race, with a win in 1998 and a runner-up finish in 2002.

Mark Martin (#5 Hendrick Autoguard Chevy) – the series’ all-time leader in wins (47) and Busch Poles (30) –  will make his fourth start of the season this weekend at Michigan.

Thus far in 2007, he’s had success; he finished second at Darlington in his last series race and has an overall average finish of 6.3. Martin finished fifth last season at Michigan, earning a Driver Rating of 121.6 and an Average Running Position of 5.7.

NBS ETC.

• Keller Countdown: Jason Keller (#11 CARFAX Ford) returns to the series after a two-week break to resume his march toward the all-time NASCAR Busch Series starts mark of 417 held by Tommy Houston. Keller must qualify on time but has put the #11 car in the field the previous five races he’s run for owner Bryan Mullett. Keller comes to Michigan with 411 starts and is the only driver other than Houston to have 400 or more starts in series history. The next closest active driver is David Green, the 1994 series champion who is in fourth place with 386. Green is running the remainder of the season in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. In addition to chasing the starts mark, the 37-year-old Keller will add to his all-time earnings record, now standing at $11,040,796 – the only driver in series history to top the $11 million mark.
• Hornish Jr. Returns to NASCAR:  Sam Hornish Jr. (#12 Mobil 1 Dodge) will make his first appearance in the NASCAR Busch Series since participating at Richmond International Raceway in May. Hornish, the 2005 Indianapolis 500 winner who is fifth in the IRL point standings, seeks to qualify for his sixth NASCAR Busch Series race this year and the eighth of his career. Hornish earned his first stock-car pole this past June in the ARCA event at Michigan and finished second. He has competed in seven races in different series at Michigan, leading six of those events and posting four top-five finishes. His hometown of Defiance, Ohio, is an hour from the speedway and he considers the track his home venue.

• McClure Set To Visit Cincinnati Reds: Eric McClure (#0 Hefty Brand Chevy) will travel to Cincinnati on Monday, August 20 to celebrate “NASCAR Night” with the Cincinnati Reds. McClure will participate in first-pitch ceremonies and drive Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory around in his #0 Hefty Chevy before the game. Former NASCAR NEXTEL Cup champions Rusty Wallace and Terry Labonte along with Kyle Busch also are scheduled to join the festivities.

 “I’m a huge baseball and sports guy,” McClure said. “I played through college and coached youth ball for seven years. There are a lot of drivers out there and the fact that I was invited is pretty special.”
  The Reds will face the Atlanta Braves at the Great American Ball Park at 7:10 p.m. ET.

COUNTDOWN TO 417

Jason Keller has 411 career starts; the series record is 417. He must qualify on time for all but one of his remaining races (Calif. – Brewco).

Schedule (Team)          Projected Start
8/18 – Michigan (CJM)      412
8/25 – Bristol (CJM)          413  
9/1 – California (Brewco)   414
9/8 – Richmond (CJM)      415
9/22 – Dover (CJM)           416
9/29 – Kansas (CJM)        417 – TIE
10/13 – LMS (CJM)          418 – BREAK
 
The Director’s Take: Michigan

INSIGHT FROM JOE BALASH,
NASCAR BUSCH SERIES DIRECTOR

“Aerodynamics is the key word to racing at Michigan International Speedway. How the teams have their body placed on their chassis to run the 2-mile speedway will pay big dividends over the course of the race.  
 
“Having the body at the right attitude, sealing the nose of the car to the track … all those attributes combine to build speed.

“The long straight-aways coupled with wide, sweeping turns make Michigan a fast race track.  Teams will work to reduce the drag on their cars while drivers will look to gain a faster straight speed without scrubbing off any speed in the turn to pull away from their competition.”

 Rookie Spotlight: Coleman Starting To Surge In “Battle Of The Brads”

• Coleman Shows He Belongs:  After two impressive top-10 runs on tracks he had never seen before, 19-year-old Brad Coleman (#18 Carino’s Italian Grill Chevy) is finally headed to familiar territory at Michigan International Speedway. Now in fifth place in the Raybestos Rookie standings after passing Brad Keselowski, Coleman returns to the site where he registered top-five finishes in both of his ARCA races at MIS for Brewco Motorsports last year.

 “I love Michigan and am ready to navigate that great track again,” said Coleman. “It will be quite an experience coming off the tight and technical turns of Montreal and Watkins Glen to the wide open, high speed banks of MIS. Our team is looking forward to being back on the ovals and we could not pick a better one to start on than Michigan.” 

 Besides being the youngest driver on the track in both road races, he was one of only three drivers to finish in the top 10 in both events. The others were Kevin Harvick – who won both races – and his RCR teammate Jeff Burton.

 In 12 races for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2007, the native of Houston, Texas, has posted three top fives, five top 10s and seven top-20 finishes along with winning the pole at Talladega Superspeedway last April.

2007 NASCAR BUSCH SERIES
RAYBESTOS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

Driver                              Points
 1. David Ragan                 199
 2. Marcos Ambrose          181
 3. Juan Pablo Montoya     165
 4. Kyle Krisiloff                 164
 5. Brad Coleman               131
 6. Brad Keselowski           118
 7. Robert Richardson Jr.      84
 8. Justin Diercks                 51
 
ESPN/ABC

ESPN2 continues its season-long coverage of the NASCAR Busch Series with live Saturday coverage of the CARFAX 250 at Michigan International Speedway. The telecast begins at 3 p.m. ET with NASCAR Countdown.

The two-mile Brooklyn, Mich., oval has a history of producing competitive racing and close finishes, including last year’s event that featured 20 lead changes among 13 drivers and was won by Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Dr. Jerry Punch will anchor ESPN2’s coverage from MIS, with analysis by 1989 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup champion Rusty Wallace and two-time champion crew chief Andy Petree. Pit reporters will be Allen Bestwick, Dave Burns, Jamie Little and Mike Massaro, while Tim Brewer will report from the ESPN DISH Tech Center.

A Spanish-language version of the race will be televised on ESPN Deportes, ESPN’s domestic Spanish-language network.

2007 At-A-Glance: NASCAR Busch Series Leaders After 24 Of 35 Races:

Traditional Statistics:  
Driver points – Edwards (3534)
Victories – Harvick (5)
Races led – Edwards (17)
Laps led – Edwards (682)
Top-five finishes – Edwards (13)
Top-10 finishes – Edwards (17)
Owner points – Roush (#60) - (3534) 
Money Won – Edwards ($923,335)
Miles led – Ky. Busch (1015.53)
Busch Poles – Hamlin (4)
Closing in on Top 10 – Biffle 10th (2309 pts) Blaney (-57)
Consecutive Weeks in Top 10 – Edwards, Harvick (24)

Loop Data Statistics:
Driver Rating – Edwards (111.1)    
Average Running Position – Edwards (8.342)
Fastest Laps Run – Edwards (451 fastest laps)
Quality Passes – Edwards (850)
Laps In Top 15 – Edwards (3,793 of a possible 4,323)

Chevy Answers With Another Win To Extend Manufacturer Lead

For the 13th-time this season, Chevy crossed the finish line first to extend its lead in the Bill France Performance Cup standings. 
 
Kevin Harvick’s win at Watkins Glen gives him a series-leading five wins on the season and is a good omen for Chevy, which has the most series wins at Michigan International Speedway with 10.  
 
Ford remains second, 39 points ahead of third-place Dodge. Toyota is fourth.
 
David Gilliand (#25 FreeCreditReport.com Ford) understands what a victory at Michigan means from a manufacturer perspective. 
 
“All of the major car manufacturers’ headquarters are right down the road from where we’ll be racing,” he said.  “A lot of their VIPs will be at our race, so [drivers] want to make sure we give a strong showing.  That’s going to add a little bit of excitement to the race because no one wants to let down their manufacturer.”

Manufacturers' Championship
2007 Point Standings
Chevy         179
Ford           145
Dodge         106 
Toyota          98

Up Next: Food City 250 At Bristol Motor Speedway

A newly-resurfaced Bristol Motor Speedway awaits the traditional excitement of the August race and 100,000-plus spectators next Friday night. ESPN2 will air the Food City 250 at 8 p.m ET.
 
Last year’s winner, Matt Kenseth, crossed the finish line just ahead of Kevin Harvick by .968 seconds to claim his third series win at Bristol. Don’t count Harvick out though, because he’s tied with Morgan Shepherd with the most wins at Bristol with four. Shepherd also is tied with Jason Keller for the most poles at the track with three.

Ryan Newman posted the fastest time last season with a lap of 124.436 mph to put the Roger Penske Dodge on the pole. It will be interesting to see if the new surface will raise the speeds during qualifying, scheduled to be held just hours before the start of the race.
  
FAST FACTS

The Race: CARFAX 250
The Place:Michigan International Speedway
The Date:  Aug. 18, 20071
The Time: 3:30 p.m. (ET)
TV: ESPN2, 3 p.m. (ET)
Track Layout: 2-mile oval
Race Purse: $1,216,807
2006 Winner: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2006 Pole: Mark Martin

2007 Point Standings

No. Driver                Points
1   Edwards              3,534
2   Reutimann           2,768
3   Harvick                2,743
4   Leffler                  2,614
5   Ragan                 2,586
6   Hamilton Jr.         2,495
7   Leicht                  2,427
8   Ambrose              2,395
9   M. Wallace           2,325
10 Biffle                    2,309
 
Pre-Race Schedule: Friday – Practice, 1:10-2:15 p.m., 2:30-3 p.m. (Rookies) and 4:45 p.m. (Final – one hour, time permitting) Saturday – Qualifying, 11:10 a.m.