Johnson still the man to beat

There's no doubt, Kyle Busch is having a breakout season.

Competing in the most competitive racing series in the world, Busch has won 37 percent of the races so far this season, after Saturday's win in the LifeLock.com 400. On top of that, his last three wins have come in three completely different racing disciplines – road racing, restrictor plate racing, and on a 1.5-mile road course.

Although it might be premature to suggest we are seeing Kyle Busch at his very best, you have to wonder, can he get any better than what he is right now?

I suppose the answer to the question depends on what you use as a measure.

To put what Busch has accomplished in these first 19 races of the 2008 season in perspective, consider this: Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson have the highest career win percentages among active drivers. Gordon wins 15-percent of the time, while Johnson's winning percentage en route to capturing the Championship in 2007 was 27 percent.

Again, Busch has won 37 percent of the races this season.

Johnson and Gordon are also the last two drivers to win at least 10 races in a season, a milestone Busch appears destined to match. But history shows that achieving double-digit wins does not guarantee a driver a title in that same year.

Just look at Gordon, who won 10 races in 1996 but saw Terry Labonte win the title.

All this leads me to a key point I took from the past weekend’s race.

As impressive as Kyle Busch has been thus far in the season, Jimmie Johnson is still the two-time defending champion and if Busch is to win it this year, he's going to have to take it from Johnson when it matters most – in the final 10 races of the season.

I still don't believe we've seen the best of Johnson in 2008, but I think we are about to see the best. He showed strength at the end of Saturday's race, and though he did make a mistake in giving Busch the high side of the track on the final restart, he immediately realized it and won't make the same mistake again.

Still, you have to give credit to Busch for taking advantage of the window of opportunity. Busch perfectly timed the restart, in spite of Johnson doing very little wrong.

I think Saturday's finish is a preview of things to come in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Up to now, no one has stepped up to challenge Busch, other than maybe Carl Edwards. But Carl has found ways to lose races this year. So who is going to be that challenger?

Statistically, Busch may look impossible to beat. But realistically, he still has one more huge hurdle to clear, and that's Johnson.