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Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 20 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing, hopes to leave Sunday's Nextel Cup race at Michigan International Speedway ready to go on a blistering streak of summer success, writes Benny Parsons of MSNBC.com.

Kurt Busch has four top-10 finishes in ten races at Michigan, including a win in 2003. The 2004 Cup champion could be a factor right to the finish on Sunday.

In his rookie season Kasey Kahne was super impressive in both his Michigan races, taking second in the June event, and fifth in the August run.

Kahne didn't run well last year at Michigan, but if for some reason the bottom of the track does not give up speed on Sunday, and you've got to run high to be fast, than I expect Kahne -- who loves the high groove -- to be a top contender.

My darkhorse is Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has struggled at this venue.

Keys to success at Michigan
To run this track and to run it well I think a driver needs a lot of experience.

That experience translates to the ability to find more grip -- if needed -- on this very wide track. This is a track where drivers can run two and even three distinct grooves.

With the multiple grooves there is a lot of room for drivers to move around and make some exciting passes.

If a driver can't get his car to grip on the bottom of the track, he can try to run in the middle or run high. And drivers like Kasey Kahne who have reputations for going to the top of tracks will likely look to run high at Michigan.

But I think the real key is which driver will have the car that can run well at the bottom of the track because I think that car will be the one to beat.

With a wide track offering a lot of room to run and to pass, races at Michigan are usually pretty clean.

Managing fuel is always a major challenge, and engine tuning is the most critical factor in getting maximum fuel mileage. Drivers who brake with their right foot find that their cars do great when it comes to fuel mileage at Michigan.

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Bobby Labonte is one of those, but there aren't too many others as most drivers brake with their left foot since they became accustomed to doing that while growing up racing on short tracks.

But by braking with the left foot, there are times, especially when going into the corners of a track, that a driver has one foot set on the brake and the other on the accelerator -- and there is nothing that causes poor fuel mileage as much as that does. 

Finally, there's a long pit road at Michigan so I expect some drivers will be penalized for speeding, especially under green-flag pit stops, something we saw at Pocono Raceway last weekend.