Kyle Busch Mentioned Nearly 1,000 More Times Than Dale Earnhardt Jr. This Season

Kyle Busch is dominating the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in terms of value for his sponsors – and mentions by broadcasters.

Joyce Julius & Associates, which measures sponsor exposure during NASCAR broadcasts, released new numbers this week that said Busch had generated a series-high $28.4 million worth of exposure value for his various sponsors this season, was the most-mentioned driver and had been interviewed longer than any other competitor as of the Coca-Cola 600.

No other driver comes close.

In the sponsor exposure category, which Joyce Julius measures by grading the amount of verbal mentions and visuals and comparing it against the cost of a national commercial, Busch leads runner-up Dale Earnhardt Jr. by more than $6.5 million.

Jimmie Johnson is in third place, more than $8 million behind Busch.

In driver mentions and interview time, Busch continues to thump the field. FOX broadcasters mentioned Busch’s name 2,107 times through the Coke 600 and interviewed him for a total of 21 minutes, 17 seconds. Points leader Carl Edwards is second in both those categories, but trails significantly (450 fewer mentions, four-and-a-half fewer minutes of interview time).

The amount of driver mentions for Busch continues to be a startling statistic; his name had been mentioned nearly 1,000 more times than Earnhardt Jr.‘s name through Charlotte (curiously, Earnhardt Jr. is only the seventh most-mentioned driver on the FOX broadcasts).

Busch isn’t leading in one category, though: Sponsor mentions. Broadcasters mentioned the name of Kevin Harvick’s sponsors 120 times through the Coke 600; Busch was second with 95 mentions.

That number of sponsor mentions dwarfs other drivers like Earnhardt Jr. (18 mentions), Jeff Gordon (31 mentions) and Tony Stewart (eight mentions).