Affairs of NASCAR's Busch merit scrutiny, wanted or not

ONE OF NASCAR's mysteries is, why aren't the Busch brothers a bigger story? Not just in racing, but overall in sports.

Both are contending for the Sprint Cup title: Kyle Busch is third in points, Kurt Busch is fourth. Kurt is a former Cup champion (2004). Although Kyle hasn't won a Cup title, at age 26 he has won an impressive 97 races in NASCAR's top three series: 21 Cup, 48 Nationwide, 28 trucks. Many observers consider Kyle the most talented racer in NASCAR.

For several years, Kyle has served as the villain in the Cup series. Flamboyantly bowing to fans after winning, he seems to embrace the black hat. Annoying such racing rivals as Kevin Harvick doesn't bother him.

Stock-car racing thrives when a significant number of fans despise a driver. The media certainly enjoy having a Kyle Busch ticking off people.

One theory on why the Busch brothers aren't more prominent outside racing is their personalities. While they are well-spoken and usually cooperative with the media, they aren't as engaging as Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon or Carl Edwards.

This was illustrated after last month's Cup race at Pocono Raceway. After all Cup races, the top three finishers visit the infield media centers. Since the winner has victory-lane obligations, the second- and third-place drivers arrive first. There are three seats on an elevated platform. At Pocono, runner-up Kurt and third-place Kyle each took end seats. I'm not the only sports writer who noticed they didn't speak or acknowledge each other. No "Yo, bro, nice race." Nothing. Very curious.

They answered all the questions and were very gracious talking about Jeff Gordon, the winner. But there was no brotherly bashing or joking.

We've since learned Kurt and his wife Eva are divorcing after 5 years of marriage.

During the national anthem before the June 26 race at Sonoma, Calif., Kurt stood beside a blonde who wasn't Eva. Fans watching on TNT noticed the new couple and launched questions on Facebook and Twitter. It turns out Patricia Driscoll, president and executive director of the Armed Forces Foundation, has been at other races with Kurt.

According to reports, many NASCAR media members who travel the circuit knew about the split but didn't report it. Jeff Gluck offers a balanced account on www.sbnation.com.

The view here is, NASCAR's stars are public figures and celebrities. When a driver of Kurt's caliber splits with his wife (see Gordon and his first wife, a former Miss Winston), it's news.

Before Saturday night's Cup race at Daytona, Kurt responded to a question about his marital status, saying he appreciated the media being "extremely professional" regarding his personal situation. Then he said, "I'm happy that I'm an athlete in a sport that really cares about writing about our sport vs. writing about our personal lives."

Yo, what kind of bubble is Kurt in? He and other racers need to understand that many fans are interested in the personal lives of the drivers: marriages, births, even occasional divorces.

THIS IS RACING?

Another restrictor-plate race, more tandem racing.

Must admit, I have trouble understanding how anyone can like the matchup "racing" we are seeing at Daytona and Talladega.

The old line about needing to watch only the last 2 minutes of an NBA game is starting to apply to restrictor-plate racing. Why watch the first 150 laps of a 160-lap race when all that matters is what happens the final 10 laps? I'd rather watch a racer stalk the leader and try passing him or her than this tag-team style.

I'm pleased for David Ragan that he finally won a Cup race at Daytona, but I suspect he'd rather celebrate for outracing teammate Matt Kenseth than having Kenseth push him across the finish line.

OL' KENTUCKY HOME

The Cup series welcomes its first new track in 10 years Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway (Kansas was the last new Cup track). The Camping World Truck Series debuted in 2000 at the Sparta, Ky., track. The Nationwide series has raced there since '01.

Greg Biffle won the first truck race at Kentucky. He has three runner-up Nationwide finishes in six starts there.

Joey Logano also knows his way around the 1 1/2-mile oval: He's won three Nationwide races in a row, all from the pole. David Gilliland's Nationwide victory in 2006 was a career-maker. Gilliland was a part-time racers with a low-budget team; the next year, he was in the Cup series with Yates Racing.

The track in northeastern Kentucky is hosting a tripleheader: trucks tonight, Nationwide tomorrow night, Cup Saturday night.

Having a Cup race at the track is a dream come true for Owensboro, Ky., natives Darrell and Michael Waltrip. The Speed channel is presenting a 1-hour special Saturday at 9 p.m., focusing on Darrell's Kentucky roots and his career.

THIS WEEK'S RACE

Quaker State 400

Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Ky.

When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

TV/Radio: TNT/WNPV (1440-AM)

Race course: 1.5-mile oval

Race distance: 200 laps/300 miles

Race forecast: partly cloudy, low 80s

Track facts: Fans attending next year's NASCAR races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will have a full menu. Rolex Sports Car and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series races will be Friday, July 27, 2012, at IMS. The Nationwide races previously held at nearby Lucas Oil Raceway will be July 28, with the Brickyard 400 Sprint Cup race July 29 . . . With Kentucky Speedway hosting its first Cup race Saturday night, it's worth noting Jeff Gordon won the first races at Indy (1994), California's Auto Club Speedway ('97) and Kansas (2001) . . . The 33rd-place finish by polesitter Mark Martin Saturday at Daytona dropped him four places to 18th in points . . . Martin Truex Jr., 35th at Daytona, fell five places to 23rd place.

Wins: Kevin Harvick, 3; Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon, 2 each; Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Trevor Bayne, Regan Smith, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Kurt Busch, David Ragan, 1 each.

SPRINT CUP STANDINGS (Through 17 of 36 races)

1. Kevin Harvick 586

2. Carl Edwards 581

3. Kyle Busch 576

4. Kurt Busch 570

5. Matt Kenseth 564

6. Jimmie Johnson 564

7. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 534

8. Jeff Gordon 519

9. Clint Bowyer 505

10. Ryan Newman 498

11. Denny Hamlin 495

12. Tony Stewart 494

13. Greg Biffle 473

14. Juan Montoya 468

15. A.J. Allmendinger 467

16. Paul Menard 466

17. David Ragan 457

18. Mark Martin 455

19. Kasey Kahne 452

20. Joey Logano 439

Up next: Lenox Industrial Tools 301, July 17, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon, N.H., 1 p.m.; TV: TNT; last year's winner: Jimmie Johnson.