Kyle Busch runs strong at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Kyle Busch ran more laps than anyone during Speedweeks. He led a bunch of them, too.

Just not the ones that really mattered.

Busch finished fourth in the Daytona 500 on Sunday, ending a hectic weekend that also included strong showings in the Craftsman Truck Series and the Nationwide Series.

Busch was second in both of those.

He was considerably better in the big one, leading a race-high 86 laps and dominating most of the afternoon.

But several late cautions kept the field bunched together, and Penske Racing teammates Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch hooked up to prevent Busch from getting to Victory Lane.

“Just frustrating to come home fourth,” Busch said. “But that’s part of the Daytona 500 when you run as good as we had all day long. Those guys couldn’t keep up with us, but there were all those cautions at the end that propelled them forward enough in order to get them ahead.”

Busch was the only driver to race in NASCAR’s three series this weekend, and even he questioned whether it was a smart idea considering it creates triple the practice sessions, qualifying attempts, drivers’ meetings, team meetings, media interviews and sponsorship obligations.

Living legends

Bobby Allison and Cale Yarborough sat next to each other Sunday, maybe the perfect pairing for NASCAR’s celebration of the 50th running of the Daytona 500.

The two former series champions were at the center of an on-track brawl in 1979, the one in which Yarborough and Bobby and Donnie Allison were kicking, swinging and scuffling at the end of NASCAR’s first live, flag-to-flag televised race.

The fight sparked more interest than ever before in the sport.

Nearly 30 years later, Yarborough and Bobby Allison joined nearly two dozen Daytona 500 winners brought together by NASCAR before The Great American Race.

“They are the men that built this sport, they created this great event,” said NASCAR board member Jim France, the brother of late NASCAR chairman and CEO Bill France Jr. “Their actions over the years have established the history of this place.

“If my brother was here today, he would say, ‘They built it, they did a hell of a job and don’t screw it up guys.’ “

The former Daytona 500 winners played a key role in a daylong tribute to five decades of racing at NASCAR’s most famous track, a 2 1/2 -mile superspeedway that helped the sport become a national draw.

The winners, including Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt and Junior Johnson, collectively gave the command for drivers to start their engines.

Three former champions were missing during the pre-race drivers’ meeting: Darrell Waltrip was working as a television analyst; David Pearson had an emergency; and seven-time race winner Richard Petty had another engagement.

Petty later joined them trackside and dropped the green flag to start the race.

NASCAR president Mike Helton recognized the former champions, who received a standing ovation in the drivers’ meeting, then credited the France family for how much the sport has grown in 50 years.

“A lot can happen in 50 years, and it can be good or it can go away from you,” Helton said. “We’re very fortunate to have had leadership and foresight to keep the Daytona 500 growing and build it into one of (biggest) spectacles in all of entertainment and sports.”

Generally speaking

Despite recently announcing a record financial loss, General Motors is committed to staying in NASCAR.

GM lost $38.7 billion in 2007 and has announced a round of employee buyouts. But General Motors vice president of global sales and marketing John Middlebrook said the company’s outlook is brighter than that number would indicate.

And he said now is no time to stop spending on its Chevrolet brand and that NASCAR would be “the last racing that we would drop,” because the return on their investment is high.

Old school

NASCAR went old school with its pre-race concert, bringing in some big names from the past.

Chubby Checker, Kool & The Gang and Michael McDonald all performed.

“This is history being made,” Kool & The Gang member Jirmad Gordon said. “It’s very exciting to be here.”

NASCAR invited the group to represent the 1970s, and the Gang sang its popular hit “Celebration.”

Checker represented the 1960s and showed he still can shake his hips. The 67-year-old artist demonstrated dances like the Pony, the Fly, the Shake, the Hucklebuck, and of course, the famed Twist.

McDonald represented the 1980s, and country music duo Brooks & Dunn handled the 1990s and on.

Asked whether NASCAR still had a tight bond with country music, Kix Brooks took a jab at the sport’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“Little E’s turned his hat around backward, and he’s into rock now,” Brooks said. “We’re going to go out there and hand out CDs and bring a few (fans) back.”