Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne, NASCAR's Most Over-Hyped Drivers

Boy, this article is going to catch one heap of flak from you readers, but I ask that you at least hear me out before you make a judgment.

Hype is an undesired side effect of sports. Everyone knew that Stephan Strasburg was the greatest pitcher in baseball...before he made a single start. Casey Atwood was going to be the next Jeff Gordon and dominate NASCAR for the coming decade...but that didn't exactly pan out now did it?

Sometimes the hype is warranted, see LeBron James, but more often it's just that, hype. In all the excitement regarding the hype, the true nature of the athlete in question can become somewhat obscured.

As sports fans we live for the quintessential moment during an event, a moment that makes the hair on our arms stand straight up.

That's what sports are all about after all, right?

Many times the hype associated with an athlete will become over-hyped. And in NASCAR there are two drivers who often receive a lot of hype despite the fact that they have yet to back it up on track.

I am talking about Sprint Cup drivers Kasey Kahne and Kyle Busch.

Right now, you are probably throwing your Budweiser or M&Ms at the computer screen, and that's okay. Busch is the most electrifying driver on the circuit since the late Dale Earnhardt. No one can deny his natural ability behind the wheel of a car.

Both drivers came into the sport at roughly the same time, the younger Busch's first full season coming in 2005 and Kahne's in 2004. Both drivers have stats that many other drivers would pay good money to have. Both drivers have won on a variety of tracks.

Yet neither one has fully lived up to the hype associated with them.

Would you believe Kahne hasn't finished better than eighth in Cup points in his entire career? Or how about the fact that Busch has only climbed higher than tenth in the final standings once in his six seasons?

If an NFL defensive back makes at least one spectacular play a game, but regularly can't wrap up on a crucial play at the end of the game, does that make him an elite player?

If an MLB pitcher goes 10-10 on a season, but in those ten wins looked Cy Young worthy, does that make him an elite player?

If an NHL goalie posts numerous shut outs in a season, yet routinely gives up three or more goals a game, does that make him an elite player?

Few would argue that to be true.

So why does everyone believe Kahne and Busch to be some of the best drivers on the circuit?

Busch is obviously the closer of the two. His domination in NASCAR's lower ranks is unquestioned. When it comes to NASCAR's top series, Busch has a tendency to be unable to close the deal. Winning eight races, but then fading spectacularly down the stretch does not make a championship season.

In fact, Busch's 2008 season is the exact reason NASCAR must be wary on giving too much credit to victories in determining the season championship.

Leading 299 laps means nothing if you do not lead the last lap. Despite what many want to believe, part of the challenge of NASCAR Sprint Cup racing is the endurance factor. This isn't your Saturday night sprint, this is a 500 mile endeavor.

Kahne burst onto the scene in Bill Elliott's old number nine by rattling off second place finishes. The fact that he finished second by mere inches in his second career start began to fuel Kahne's hype.

Over the course of his career, Kahne's average points finish is a mediocre 14th place. Granted this is not a terrible stat for many, but considering he is portrayed as the next messiah at Hendrick Motorsports, it does cause one to ponder. Not once has Kahne had to contend for a top five points finish, yet alone a championship.

What each driver is noted for, however, is their spectacular, dominating wins. Here's my problem with dominating wins, they have as much to do with the car as the driver. It's not as if Kyle Busch woke up one morning suddenly able to drive a track that much better than everyone else and lead three quarters of the race.

When that happens, the car deserves equal credit with the driver. Lake Speed led almost half the race during his only victory in the 1988 Southern 500. Was Speed simply an unrecognized, magnificent driver who out-drove all other drivers for one race? Or did it have to do with a bit of luck and a spectacular car and setup underneath him?

Yes, the spectacularly setup car does not drive itself around the track, but many drivers have stated that with well running cars that they barely have to do anything. Repeat victories at the track over several years, a la Denny Hamlin at Pocono or Darrell Waltrip at Bristol, prove that it is the mark of the driver and not the car that earned the majority of the victory.

Consistency is the true mark of a great driver. To be able to take a 20th place car and come home tenth is what makes an elite driver. This is something neither Busch or Kahne have been able to do. You do not hear of them suddenly appearing at the end of the race like Jimmie Johnson or Kevin Harvick or, as of late, Tony Stewart does.

They're either up front or buried in the back.

Again, I ask how they can be considered some of the best drivers in the Cup series today? In order to be elite, one needs to be able to back up their performance week after week. I might fear Busch or Kahne on Sunday, but I wouldn't fear them over the course of a season.

Would you?