NASCAR notes: Labonte to join little brother on Petty's team

DARLINGTON, S.C. | Former champion Terry Labonte will join younger brother Bobby as a teammate for Petty Enterprises next month when Kyle Petty moves to the TV booth.

Petty is scheduled to run the Coca-Cola 600 before a seven-race break. He'll miss Dover for his daughter's wedding, then spend the next six races as a TNT analyst. Petty will return to the No. 45 car at Indianapolis in late July.

Terry Labonte likely will drive five races for Petty during that span. "For us, (Terry) has always been in our mind because of Bobby," said Robbie Loomis, executive vice president of operations at Petty Enterprises, before Saturday's race at Darlington. "We saw him help out Michael (Waltrip's) deal last year. I think Kyle has always been close to him. It's a good fit. Kind of a neat deal for us."

Terry Labonte drove three races last year for Michael Waltrip, competing in road course events at Infineon Raceway and Watkins Glen. Labonte also drove for Waltrip at Indianapolis last year. Labonte's top finish in those races was 30th at Indianapolis and Watkins Glen.

This would be the second time the Labonte brothers have run as teammates. Terry Labonte drove in five races for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2005 when Bobby Labonte was there.

Terry Labonte ranks fourth in series history with 851 career starts. He won 22 races.

A secret to success on intermediate tracks?

There might not be much of a secret to Carl Edwards' success. Some drivers say the rear of his car is flexed to provide an aerodynamic advantage through the corners at 1.5- and 2-mile tracks this season. Edwards has won at California, Las Vegas and Texas.

With the series headed to Lowe's Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile track, for the all-star race and the Coca-Cola 600 the next two weeks, Edwards will be considered a favorite in both.

"The more we've found to make changes to that way, it's made the car go faster," Kyle Busch said of pushing the rear-end to the right.

Some like the guy most everyone else hates

Dale Earnhardt Jr. fans blame Kyle Busch for denying Junior a victory last week at Richmond. Despite their late crash last Saturday, Busch had a few fans at Darlington.

Robert Wise of Florence, S.C., wore a Busch hat and Dale Earnhardt Sr. T-shirt. The 43-year-old says he's enjoyed this week even after receiving insults from some people.

"(Busch) is a pure racer," said Wise, who likens Busch to the late Earnhardt. "He wants to win. So what if he's not the most popular. He's the best driver out there."

Todd Knaperek of Asheville, N.C., is a new Busch fan. He wore a Busch T-shirt and hat.

"I think he kind of got wronged when they got rid of him at Hendrick," Knaperek said, referring to Hendrick Motorsports letting Busch go to sign Earnhardt Jr. last year. "I like (him) for one reason because there are not many of us out there so I don't feel like I'm following the bandwagon. I think it takes a lot of guts to cheer for the guy everybody loves to hate."

Briefly

Roth Racing hired John Andretti, who has run in three Sprint Cup races this season, to drive in the Indianapolis 500 on May 25.