NASCAR COCA COLA Ganassi, Penske will try to win both holiday races



Car owner Roger Penske has both pole winners.
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) -- Chip Ganassi straddled his chair backward, settling in for a chat with NASCAR's top leaders. In Winston Cup just over two years now, Ganassi is beginning to feel at home.
One of the top car owners in open-wheel racing, Ganassi has made a successful entrance into NASCAR and is looking for a banner day today in both series.
He's got an excellent chance to win the Indianapolis 500 with either Scott Dixon or Tomas Scheckter. Tonight, he'll be at Lowe's Motor Speedway, where either Sterling Marlin or rookie Jamie McMurray could challenge in the Coca-Cola 600.
"I feel pretty good about our chances in Indy, we've got two good cars," Ganassi said. "I think winning Charlotte will be a taller order, because in speed, we have some catching up to do. But it's a long race and if we rely on race craft, we can get up front."
No car owner has ever won both of the Memorial Day weekend races on the same day, although Ganassi and Roger Penske both will be trying.
One driver, two races
And no driver has ever done it, but Robby Gordon will try for the fourth time to race all 1,100 miles.
All three will be making a mad dash for North Carolina minutes after the Indy 500 ends -- assuming there is no Victory Lane celebration.
Penske probably has the best chance to pull off the sweep, although he fell short the past two years when Helio Castroneves won in Indy, but NASCAR drivers Rusty Wallace and Ryan Newman came up empty.
Penske will try again with Castroneves and Newman sitting on both poles.
Although Ganassi's cars aren't on the front row of either race, he's just as confident as Penske is about his chances.
"I know what we have in Indy, and I know what we can have in Charlotte," Ganassi said. "It's not impossible to pull it off."
It's that aggressive attitude that has gotten Ganassi to the top so quickly.
Busch
NASCAR newcomer Kyle Busch got "Buschwhacked" by Matt Kenseth, who took the lead on the last restart and cruised to victory in Saturday's Busch Series race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Kenseth is the Winston Cup points leader who moonlights in the Busch Series for extra track time and a chance at another victory -- a group known as the "Buschwhackers."
In the Carquest Auto Parts 300, he used a veteran's experience to beat Busch as the race came off its final caution flag on Lap 171 of 200.
Busch took only two tires to Kenseth's four during the caution.
"I sort of felt like it was Christmas," Kenseth said when he saw Busch had taken two tires during the last pit stop. "As many times as we've raced here, as many times as I've done that, I would never gamble on two. ... When I saw him get two, I was really surprised."
Ends in yellow
The race finished under caution as Greg Biffle spun out in Turn 4 with four laps to go. That secured Kenseth's second series win of the season. He won the Busch race at California Speedway in April.
Kyle Busch's NASCAR debut was delayed from last season, when NASCAR passed a minimum age requirement of 18. Busch, the younger brother of Winston Cup driver Kurt Busch, had signed a deal with Roush Racing before the rule was passed.
Earlier this year, he signed instead with rival owner Rick Hendrick. He turned 18 on May 2, and they picked Saturday's race for his debut.
Busch led 33 laps before Kenseth took over.