Kyle Petty talks with Larry McReynolds during the taping of Tradin Paint. (Photo: Rusty Jarrett, Getty Images) » More Photos

BACK IN THE SADDLE Kyle Petty will pilot the Petty Enterprises No. 45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge this weekend at Watkins Glen International. And hard as it is to believe, it will be Petty’s first Cup race since the Coca-Cola 600 in May. Petty took time off to attend daughter Montgomery Lee’s wedding as well as pull a stint in the TNT broadcast booth. During his absence, he was spelled by Terry Labonte and Chad McCumbee.

“Terry and Chad have both done an outstanding job over the last two months,” said Petty, who has 823 career NASCAR Sprint Cup starts. “Not only have they moved the team up two spots in owner points, but they’ve also helped advance the No. 45 program. This is a competitive car. We need to continue that through the end of the year. I had a blast in the TNT Sports booth but I’m ready to get back on the track.”

ON THE RIGHT TRACK Carl Edwards has had an excellent season behind the wheel of the No. 99 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, and he’s slowly getting the hang of road racing, too. In fact, road-course ace Boris Said, who has tutored the entire Roush Fenway team on the nuances of road racing, said Edwards will be a force to reckon with this weekend at Watkins Glen International, site of the Centurion Boats at the Glen Sprint Cup race.

“I hope Boris is right,” said Edwards, who has four Cup victories this season, including last Sunday at Pocono. “Boris is an unbelievable guy. He’s taught me a lot of stuff and to this day that’s still the guy I go to for road-course advice. Last year at Watkins Glen we were really fast and I had a really good time. We were in a position where we were in the chase and a win was all we were after, so I did a banzai move the last lap running second and hit the fence, but we still finished eighth and I feel really good about going to Watkins Glen.”