At the close of the 2002 season, Kurt Busch may have been the only driver sad to see the season come to an end. He literally set the NASCAR world on fire by winning three of the last five events on the Winston Cup schedule. Were it not for a string of three poor finishes in the month of August, Busch may very well have contended for the 2002 title.

At age 15, Kurt Busch found immediate success in the Dwarf Car Series. After winning the 1994 Rookie of the Year title in his home state of Nevada, Busch followed it up with a Championship one year later. By 1996, he was Hobby Stock Champion at Las Vegas Speedway Park and attracting the attention of owners in the regional NASCAR touring series. By 1998, he had arrived, winning the Rookie of the Year Title in the NASCAR Southwest Touring Series. Matching his Dwarf car success, he won the Southwest Touring Title one-year later in 1999. In that same year, he won the Roush "Gong Show" audition, earning an opportunity to drive in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. In the year 2000, Kurt's first year of Craftsman Trucks, he won four events and finished 2nd in the final point standings. Based on Kurt's amazing ability to adapt to new cars, team owner Jack Roush decided to spring Kurt directly into the Winston Cup Series, foregoing a stop in the Busch Grand National ranks. At first, many questioned this logic-but nobody doubts the decision anymore.

Kurt credits his start in racing to his father, Tom, who introduced him to the Dwarf Car Series. At age 24, Kurt is still single. Kurt has one brother, Kyle Busch, who some say has as much natural talent as his older brother. If that's the case, the racing world better watch out for the Busch Brothers in the future. In 2003, Kurt Busch returns to the No. 97 Rubbermaid Ford Taurus and his brother is slated to take over driving duties for Hendrick motorsports in the Busch Series later this year.

Some of the materials used here were adapted from: www.roushracing.com