KURT BUSCH TO START NINTH IN SUNDAY’S GOLDEN CORRAL 500 -First Start For Miller Lite Dodge Driver In Chassis Formerly Driven By Rusty Wallace-

HAMPTON, Ga. (March 17, 2006) -- It took a test on Tuesday at the Kentucky Speedway to determine which car Kurt Busch and his Roy McCauley-led Miller Lite Dodge team would race here this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway.  Busch is extremely pleased with that decision after qualifying ninth here tonight for Sunday’s Golden Corral 500.

            “I think we made good adjustments,” said Busch, who clocked in with the third-fastest lap in the afternoon practice session.  “It just came in a little looser than we anticipated during the run out there. It’s still a great qualifying effort. You can pass without any problems at Atlanta. It just qualified looser than I’ve qualified all year. I don’t know if that’s a product of the car or the change we made (before qualifying*. We’re definitely still learning. We’re gathering a lot of information each time we go out.”

            It was another Dodge that claimed the pole here tonight, although it was not the heavy favorite.  Kasey Kahne’s lap of 192.553 mph (28.792 seconds) edged out Busch’s Penske Racing South teammate Ryan Newman’s effort by a mere two-thousandths of a second.  Newman, looking for an incredible seventh consecutive pole here on this lightning-fast 1.54-mile track, clocked in with a lap of 192.540 mph (28.794 seconds) and will start on the outside of the front row.

            Jeff Burton continued his impressive start of the 2006 season by taking the third starting spot, as did Bobby Labonte, driving the Petty Enterprises Dodge to the fourth qualifying position.  Rookie J.J. Yeley was fifth, with Kevin Harvick sixth, rookie Denny Hamlin seventh, Greg Biffle eighth, Busch ninth and Casey Mears 10th.

            Busch anticipates getting his Dodge Charger “really dialed in” during tomorrow morning’s two final practice sessions here at AMS.  He draws additional confidence from the history of this particular car, the PRS-053 Dodge.

            “This is the first chassis we’ve used that Rusty used, so I’ve got my work cut out for me,” Busch said.  “We did the Goodyear tire test here with it, and we thought we’d bring it back for the race. Rusty raced it five times and got four top-10 finishes with it, so we know it can get the job done. I’ve driven all types of cars. You’ve just got to get the setup right, get the car handling well and the rest will go your way.”

Saturday’s schedule at AMS calls for practice sessions from 9:00 a.m. till 10:00 a.m. and from 10:35 a.m. till 11:20 a.m.  Sunday’s Golden Corral 500 (325-laps, 500.5 miles) has a 1:30 p.m. EST starting time and features live coverage by FOX-TV and PRN Radio.

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