July 13, 2009
By Kim Roberson
Kim Roberson
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There has to be a point when you understand that talking on a subject is futile…and potentially getting you in more hot water than you want.
That seems to have been the case for the better part of the past week where Kyle Busch is concerned.
A week ago, we had our second spectacular ending to a plate race in 2009 as Kyle was spun coming to the finish line at Daytona by winner Tony Stewart. Busch, who went airborne in the process, was then hit by Kasey Kahne and Joey Logano before his totaled car came to rest on the front stretch. Thankfully, Kyle was able to get out and walk away from the wreckage.
He seemed relatively calm at the time.
Then he marched towards pit road…and had to be restrained by at least three NASCAR officials. It seemed Kyle wanted to have a word with Mr. Stewart about how the race ended. NASCAR officials, rightly so, decided Kyle instead should be going to the infield care center.
Everyone knows how Kyle feels about losing a race he has led a good majority of. He has said repeatedly “I don’t race to come in second.” So you knew he was good and mad over the outcome.
However, the general consensus from almost everyone I heard, from fan to analyst, was that it was “just a racin’ deal.” Kyle was trying to keep Tony behind him, and in the process, came across the 14’s nose and turned himself into the wall.
For Tony’s part, he immediately showed concern for his former teammate as soon as he climbed out of his car in Victory Lane, and stated that he “didn’t want to win that way”.
Mid week, Tony was on Sirius Speedway with Dave Moody, and he told Dave that he had called Kyle on Tuesday to talk with him about the incident and see how he was doing.
“I got a chance to catch up with Kyle (Tuesday). I checked first of all just to make sure he was all right.
“But when something like that happens, you want to make sure that both guys are on the same page with what happened, and we definitely were. I mean, there was no question on either one of our parts of what happened. I mean, we were instantly on the same page with it. It's just part of racing. “
Stewart said they talked about the “job” they each had, and that they both were willing to do whatever it took to get to the line first. “Kyle knew that my job was to get to his quarter panel, he was trying to move up to defend his spot, and nobody in his position would have just stayed there and let somebody drive back by him. You've got to do something, and he wasn't trying to wreck us, he was just trying to make me make a move to slow me down.
He also checked with Kasey to make sure that all was good with the driver who ended up with Busch on his hood at the end of the race. “I got a chance to see Kasey… and make sure he wasn't hurt, as well. It was good to touch base and make sure we were all on the same page, which we were.”
If you listened to Stewart talk about the phone call, all would seem to be well between the two former Gibbs teammates.
That is, until Kyle showed up at Chicagoland Speedway and started talking with the media.
When asked about Stewart’s call, Busch was indifferent to the conversation. "I really don't have feelings, so it really didn't mean a whole lot" he said on Friday. ""I thanked him for checking on me…I guess he was checking on me to see if I'm alive."
When asked about the finish of the race, Busch was clear that he wanted NASCAR to look at the rules.
"If the second-place driver dumps the leader, then black-flag him," Kyle stated. "He doesn't get the win. If he's on him from behind and moves him out of the way and there's no wreck, then fine. He can win the race. But if you're up alongside a guy and you dump him, then I say, black-flag him and give the win to the third-place guy." Then, when asked about if he thought that what Stewart did to him on Saturday fit that category, Busch stated "That'd be considered a dump."
Sounds to me like Tony and Kyle were sitting in on two completely different phone calls.
It seems to me that Kyle has also forgotten how many times he has been on the “dumping” end of the equation, and he better be careful of just what he asks NASCAR to do, because it might hit him just as badly as it does anyone else.
Richmond last year…the 18 vs. the 88 in the Cup race…and the 18 vs. the 66 in the Nationwide race.
Taking Ron Hornaday out in a Craftsman truck series race (where Hornaday commented after the race “If he's going to race that way, that's pretty chicken. He doesn't deserve to be a racer. He's got a lot of talent, but that is flat stupid.”)
Carl Edwards commented after his run in with Kyle at Bristol last year where Carl bumped Kyle out of the way to win the race “I thought 'Would he do that to me?' And he has before, so that's the way it goes."
Carl was referring to “Richmond in a Nationwide race when he was trying to get through the field and he piledrove me.”
And who could forget the 2007 All Star Race where Kyle took out his own brother, Kurt?
When other drivers were asked to weigh in on last weekend’s events, they were unanimous in their thoughts.
“It was just a racing deal” said Kasey during interviews in Chicago.
"I certainly would not say he got dumped," said four-time Cup Champion Jeff Gordon. "It's not getting dumped when the guy has a fender or bumper inside of you, and you turn and come across (his bumper). This is stock-car racing. We have spotters. You expect them to know you're there. There were a lot of aggressive moves that went on there…but I'd put more blame on the guy who was leading and blocking, rather than the guy who was behind."
It wasn’t until pre race Saturday night that Kyle seemed to admit he might have been at fault, and it was time to move on. “I’ve moved on and put it behind me” he stated while waiting for driver introductions.
I was wondering just who was sitting off camera pointing a gun at Kyle to make sure he made that comment instead of something else to add fuel to the already growing fire.
I know Kyle likes playing the bad guy, and when you have as much talent as Kyle does, it seems you can pretty much do anything you want so long as you back it up on the track.
The problem is, this season, Kyle is leading a lot of laps, but in the end, something goes wrong to take him from finishing first to finishing somewhere outside of first. And it is almost never his fault.
Sounds like what he accused Junior of back in May. "It's never Junior's fault… it's always the crew chief" he said when Tony Eury Junior was removed as the leader of the 88 team.
Even fans that have supported Busch are starting to get weary of his antics.
“Kyle Busch is a friggin idiot. He should be careful about black flagging someone's ass, because NASCAR may one day black flag his ass for stupidity. That was a dumb-ass block, and a real driver would own up to their mistake after seeing the replay and having a couple days to think about it “ commented a fan who roots for the 24 team. “As long as Kyle continues to act like he can do no wrong, I've given up wanting to like the guy. I'm embarrassed now that I gave him the benefit of the doubt so many times before.”
Another person wrote “Kyle has gotten to the point that whenever I think of him I'm reminded of a line from an Eagles song: I'd like to find your inner child and kick its little ass.”
“I am not surprised at all by his comments ... the part about not having any feelings so it didn't really mean a lot speaks volumes about him ...He needs to learn a little humility ... it’s interesting how when he finds himself in a bad situation, most but not all of the time it is someone else's fault” wrote another person.
Dale Earnhardt Senior once commented “Cheer for me or boo me, but make some noise”, referring to the period when he heard more boo’s than cheers from fans. But even Dale found a way to win over his harshest critics while still driving hard and winning races.
Karma seemed to catch up with Kyle yet again Saturday in Chicago, where he finished 9 laps down and out of the race.
Someone asked “Who is he going to blame for hitting the wall? The wall?”
I have said it before, and I’ll say it again: Kyle Busch has a ton of talent, and the possibility of a long career ahead of him. That said if he wants to survive in this sport, he is going to need to take a lesson from the books of drivers such as Dale Senior and even his brother. You can have all the talent in the world, and for a while, you can drive any way you want so long as you back it up with wins. But eventually, you are going to find that a little humility and the ability to swallow your pride and admit you are wrong can take you almost as far as that driving ability…and when you combine them, who knows how far you can go.
Now, a quick side note. A get well wish for MRN’s Alex Hayden, who was involved in a nasty crash en-route to the airport to go work the Chicago race this weekend. Thankfully, he is OK, with the exception of being a little battered and bruised.
And a sad farewell to Judy…a die-hard Dale Junior fan who I only knew via the internet, but who touched the lives of many with her enjoyment of the sport and her #1 driver. Judy passed away unexpectedly this weekend, leaving behind family and friends who will miss her dearly. Rest in peace Judy, and enjoy the company you have while watching the races from the best seats in the house.
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
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