NASCAR Cup Series

For Kyle Busch, is Chase success more about mental side?

Published Oct. 2, 2014 9:14 a.m. ET

Jeff Hammond

With it being Kansas Speedway that starts this second round of the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase, one of the drivers who has probably had some sleepless nights this week is Kyle Busch. Kansas has really been Kyle's Achilles' heel.

If I were Coach Gibbs or J.D. Gibbs over at Joe Gibbs Racing, I think I might invest some money and fly in a voodoo witch doctor to come remove the evil spirits from Kyle at Kansas. I say that because I think a lot of the problems with Kansas where Kyle and the team are concerned come from the mental side of things.

I've seen this with other drivers at other tracks before many, many times over the years. It's not that Kyle can't drive this racetrack, but because of all that he has experienced there, Kyle has convinced himself the track can't be driven the way Kyle wants to drive it.

If the pressure cooker of the start of the second round of the Chase wasn't enough, Kyle's crew chief and team also have to try and find a way to convince Kyle he needs to adjust his driving style at Kansas and give him a car capable of doing that. We have seen Kyle race on so many different grooves on other racetracks that there simply has to be a combination out there that will make it easier for Kyle to have a successful race at Kansas.

It all starts with the mental game. They have got to figure out a way to make Kyle believe that he can beat this racetrack. Basically it's a Kansas tornado out there that Kyle Busch simply can't get around. If he struggles yet again here, then the pressure is going to be even greater to perform well at Charlotte next week and then the always unpredictable Talladega, just to be in position to make it to the third round of the Chase.

Trust me, with as wild and crazy as racing at Talladega is, I would hate to be a driver entering that race knowing I have to win the race to move on in the Chase.

VIDEO: The Chase War Room -- Revisiting The 12 Contenders