Kurt Busch not sweating contract situation

Even with NASCAR "Silly Season" as hot as the temperature in Daytona Beach, Kurt Busch isn't sweating.

The driver of the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, whose contract is up at the end of the year, did not go into detail about his plans for the 2018 season or what he could be contemplating. What Busch did say, more than once in a Thursday news conference, is he's "very confident" about the future - even if sponsor Monster Energy, which is also the entitlement sponsor of the sport's premier series, has not decided what its plans are.

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"I don't have any worries," Busch, the defending Daytona 500 champion, said at Daytona International Speedway. "I know that I deliver for the team. Our performance level is one that shouldn't be in question. Winning the Daytona 500 is special but performing week in and week out, the deliverables that I bring sponsorship-wise, that comes into play.

"I know they're working with NASCAR, Monster Energy is, trying to sort out their issues with NASCAR and the entitlement sponsor. There's a lot of moving parts, but I don't feel any fear whatsoever.

"I actually feel very confident about the sponsorship that I bring, Ford Performance's involvement with Stewart-Haas and how I blended in with this team. I feel great."

A veteran of the sport and champion, Busch would be a good candidate for teams looking to fill seats. And if the rumors around the garage have been true, there could be many organizations making moves over the next few months.

"The team has the option on my contract, and they just have to notify me by a specific date if they're going to pick that option up," Busch said. "I feel like they will. However, the timing works out; I feel very confident in how things will come together."