Kyle Busch shows no respect for NASCAR, race fans, or fellow competitors
Posted: Sunday, May 17, 2009
by Nila Smith
Fact and Fiction
Kyle "Rowdy" Busch is one of the most talented drivers on the NASCAR circuit today. He can do things with a race car that most of the other drivers on the circuit only dream of.
As a result, he is very successful in the racing world, taking win after win, and coming in with top 5 and top 10 finishes when he doesn't win.
Yet, he is not now, and probably never will be a fan favorite. He is not well thought of by his fellow drivers including his own brother and fellow competitor Kurt Busch.
Case in point, this weekend was the NASCAR All-Star race at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte .
The All-star race is a special event for the NASCAR circuit that pays homage to the origin of the sport, in that it goes back to the early day rules and plays out much like the dirt track races that are still enjoyed by thousands of fans around the country.
The day begins with some special events, such as the Burnout contest.
The burnout contest is a competition to see who can produce the best burnout.
For those of you who don't watch NASCAR, burnouts are common at the end of the race, and a privilege enjoyed only by the race winner.
Typically the burnout involves spinning the back tires at a high rate of speed, with the foot on the brake, keeping the car in a somewhat stationary position, causing a great white smoke to emit from the rear of the car.
This is often time accompanied with what are called doughnuts, where that the nose of the car will stay in one spot, while the rear end of the car travels in a circle around it.
In a good burnout the car will be lost in the haze of smoke, and the crowd will go wild over it.
At yesterday's burnout contest, fellow driver Jeff Gordon allowed NASCAR to use cars from Jeff Gordon's Racing School . NASCAR set up a competition area complete with pylons to establish an out of bounds area.
The rules were pretty simple. Attempt a 30 second free-style burnout, stay within bounds, and don't hit the wall.
Each of the competitors had a ride along guest in the car with them during the competition.
When Busch took the wheel, he purposefully went straight for the wall! He hit the wall on the passenger side, then veered over and took out all pylons that set the boundaries.
He did do somewhat of a burnout, but it was obvious to everyone there that his main purpose was to smirk at the NASCAR rules, and cause damage to a vehicle owned by Jeff Gordon.
At the end of the ride, he said that he always wrecks at Charlotte , and thought if he tore up the car on the burnout contest, he might not wreck during the race! Whatever!
When the commentators caught up with Busch's rider, the conversation was stiff and it was obvious from the man's body language, facial expression and tone of voice that he was not happy about the ride he'd taken.
And who would be? After all, he was sitting helpless is a high speed race car, while the driver pushed peddle to the floor and drove him right into a wall!
Obviously, Busch was disqualified from the competition, but he really didn't seem to care. He had done what he intended to do, make an ass of himself on National Television, thumb his nose at a NASCAR tradition, and put a black mark on the event for several people.
In addition, the winner of the contest received money for his favorite charity. I'm not sure what charity Busch would have chosen, but I am wondering if that charity wishes he would go away and leave them out of it all.
Jeff Gordon is a former team mate of Busch's, and I also can't help but wonder if Busch took some silent pleasure in tearing up a car that Gordon had offered to NASCAR for the event.
Later that evening came the actual All-Star race.
The race is divided much like the dirt track races are today. There are segments, the first being 50 laps, with a mandatory pit stop after 25. Then there are two 20 lap segments followed by a 10 minute break, and finally the 10 lap shoot-out.
Jimmy Johnson ruled the first 50 laps, the next 20 belonged to Busch, but Jeff Gordon took control and won the third segment of races.
At the final ten, Gordon and Matt Kennseth were at the front of the pack, with Busch in the second row.
The first start, Busch attempted an outside pass of the two lead cars. He pulled out to go three wide before he crossed the start-finish line, which was against NASCAR rules.
However, he was saved from penalty when a caution came out before the completion of the first lap, and suffered no consequences for his violation.
At the second restart, again in the second row, behind Gordon and Kennseth, Busch decided to thread the needle, running in between the two leaders, making for a three wide race.
As the race persued, Kenseth began to fall back, and Ryan Newman charged to the front. Neck and neck with Gordon and Busch, they neared the banked turn and inertia started pushing all three cars to the top of the track. Busch was pinched between the Gordon and Newman.
As metal crunched and sparks flew, it was Gordon who paid the ultimate price, as he careened off the track and into the grass, then spun around, and crossed the track with the entire field dodging and swerving to avoid the wreck.
Gordon's car came to rest only after he had run nose first into the wall. It was the end of the race for him, and I would guess that Busch was quite pleased with himself.
However, Busch's car had sustained damage, along with Newman's. At the restart, both cars were at the front of the pack, but with damage on both sides of his vehicle, Busch's car performance was hurt terribly. He couldn't compete. As he fell back in the pack, and new competitor emerged, Tony Stewart.
Before it was over, there would be one more caution and re-start in the ten lap shoot out, but Busch was no longer a contender.
Kennseth was back in the lead but in the last three laps, Stewart took over and the rest is history.
Busch ended in third, much better than he deserved, and Kennseth took second, Ryan Newman also in a damaged car, ended the race in 18th..
Personally I was quite happy to see Stewart win. He is only the second car owner-driver in history to win the All-Star.
Stewart and Haus Racing joined together this year to build a new team, and they have thus far struggled, but managed to reach second place in points for the championship, a remarkable feat for a new team.
This win will give the entire organization a boost of confidence, plus the win came with a one million dollar paycheck, something I'm sure that they'll be able to put to good use.
And, I was also quite happy to see the arrogant, disrespectful driver known as "Rowdy" Busch lose the race.
It is a sweet justification for his total lack of respect shown at the burn-out contest. I guess the old saying "what goes around comes around" is sometimes true, and in this case at least, the best revenge.
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Top-level comments on this article: (3 total)Great article. Well done.Often when people earn his wage they think they are invincible and they develop a lack of respect. Not always but maybe in his case this could be an explanation.You could be right Connor.Kyle is the youngest driver in history of NASCAR. He was only 16 I believe when he started racing professionally. It was one of those deals, where there was no rule about age, but after that, NASCAR wrote a rule and now drivers must be at least 18.He was noticed almost immediately for his driving talent, and even though I am not a fan of his, I can't take that away from him, he's good and he knows it.One of these days perhaps he will grow up, until then the fans, the other drivers, and NASCAR are just going to have to tolerate the attitude I guess.
Spite. I tell you, Nila, spite is a dangerous tool. No matter how it is used and for whatever purposes. Thank you for sharing this with us.It all comes down to humility and maturity. In Kyles defense, he's not the only driver to come on the scene cocky and arrogant, but at the moment, he is the only driver who has not gotten past it.Case in point, Tony Stewart. When he started driving 10 years ago, he was a mess. He got himself to such a point, that NASCAR demanded that he get professional help for anger management, or else they would ban him from driving.Stewart did what he was told, and has shown significant improvement.I was very impressed with his humility and his concern about those he works with when he won this race.He was thrilled that his business partner was there with him when it happend. He spent a great deal of time thanking his partner, his crew, and his engine supplier.When asked how he intended to celebrate the victory, he said that he had told his crew they could do whatever they wanted to do, as long as they were ALL together in the celebration.When asked about the million dollar purse, he said that truly the money was not the most important thing. He said that he had crew members who had never experienced a NASCAR win, and he was just thrilled that he was able to give them one that they could all celebrate.Stewart will turn 38 years old this week, and no one could ever deny that the man has grown and matured in his career.We can only hope that eventually Kyle will as well.Your right about that, Nila. I can tell, you know your NASCAR!It is a passion that was unloosed by the hubs. He introduced me to the world of racing and I was hooked day one!
Great article, Nila. I can't imagine a grown man acting that way. Some men just never grow up! Thanks for sharing with us.SandraThanks for reading my article.Serously, the man is still very childish in his behavior, and it needs to change. Like it or not, racing is a huge sport, and young men like Joey Lagano and others have been led to the sport by watching it.When our youth see grown men acting with such little respect for the rules, it does not make for a good example.On the other hand there are plenty who do set a good example for our youth, such as Carl Edwards who is as straight laced as they come, polite, courteous, and always concerned about others.As an example, he regularly visits children with life threathening diseases and disorders. He has in the past given away trohpies he has won, to children he has visited. He says that the kids want the trophies, and he is happy to give them away if it makes a child happy.When he visits children and they give him little token gifts, he makes a point of mentioning it on national television, and generally will attach them to the interior of his race car during a race. It may sound like a little thing, but to a sick child it means everything.I share these things with you all because, though people who know NASCAR already know this, those who don't follow the sport, I want you to understand that there are a lot of good people in this industry.Kyle Busch is the exception, not the norm.
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