BRISTOL, Tenn. - Kurt Busch loves Bristol Motor Speedway.
And why not? He's won two straight NASCAR Nextel Cup races and three of the past four.
A victory Sunday in the Food City 500 would put Busch in select company. Only three drivers have won as many as three in a row on the half-mile oval.
Three-time points champion Darrell Waltrip won seven straight 1981-84, Cale Yarborough, another three-time champion, took four in a row 1976-77 and Fred Lorenzen won three straight 1963-64.
"Those are big names and I'm real honored to be in that group," Busch said. "There are a lot of names that have driven at Bristol and to win here is one thing, but to be able to win repeatedly requires a full team effort.
"It takes that knowledge on what to do on pit road or what to do inside the race car. Maybe we can do it again and maybe we can't, but it's just a matter of having everything go your way and having a little Lady Luck on your side."
BACK IN THE FAMILY: Jeff Gordon's stepfather, John Bickford Sr., is taking over the company that manages the Nextel Cup driver's business affairs.
Bickford replaces Bob Brannan, vice president and general manager of Jeff Gordon Inc. since 1995.
"I'm very excited about working with John in this capacity again," Gordon said in a statement. "He helped shape my racing career and was pivotal in the decisionmaking process as I progressed through different racing series up to NASCAR. I'm confident in his ability to move JG Inc. forward."
INSTALLATION: Lowe's Motor Speedway will install soft-wall barriers in time for its May NASCAR races. The Concord, N.C., track originally planned to have the steel and foam energy-reducing wall, or SAFER barriers, installed before its October races. Track president Humpy Wheeler said after officials determined where the barriers needed to be placed, they realized they could have the work done for the May events.
AUDITION?: Indy Racing League champion Scott Dixon will test with the BMW Williams Formula One team.
With former CART champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya leaving Williams for Team McLaren in 2005, team principal Frank Williams has to find a replacement. He plans to take a good look at the Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver.
Dixon was scheduled to test today at the Paul Ricard circuit in France to familiarize himself with the team's FW26, then return in April for a three-day test at Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.
