Busch, Hendrick team shine at New Hampshire (cont'd)

"Clint Bowyer, my congratulations to him. He was the class of the field. And we just lost track position. ... That one group of yellow flags just really got us behind so we had some catch-up to do. We had great pit stops. I'm very happy to see the Chase started off like this."

So was Busch, who again downplayed his lame-duck status at Hendrick. He will begin driving Toyotas for Joe Gibbs Racing at the beginning of next season, meaning he is down to his final nine races in the No. 5 Chevy fielded by Hendrick.

"Week in and week out, I keep describing the fact that everybody is still behind me. We still have our team meetings and we still go through all the information processes, just as we did from the beginning when I joined Hendrick Motorsports," Busch said. "It's no different here anymore, and I don't think it will be -- because it would not only hinder my performance, but it would Jeff and Jimmie's as well, too."

As for his own earlier stated worries that life at Hendrick might not be as rosy as it has been since the announcement that he would be leaving, Busch added: "I think you've just got to be a big boy and put all that stuff behind you and go on and grow up -- and realize that there are better things in the future."

That could include the immediate future.

"It's Week 1, man. There are nine more races to go, and we've still got Talladega," he said when he was asked to assess his chances of actually winning the Chase.

"I assessed our chances last year, saying we could win the thing -- and we struggled a little bit. So, you know, I'll assess ours the same this year by saying we've got a great shot of winning it. We've got a great team. We've got the same team we had last year. We went through the whole Chase last year, and I think we've gotten stronger and developed an even better relationship along the way this year where we can really chase this thing."