It is no secret that I am not a fan of either of the Busch brothers. Every time I think Kyle has matured, he shows up acting like a fool again.
I cannot let the Kyle Busch incident pass us by. Last week we were already scheduled to run the Tripp Rogers piece before this story broke, so I missed the chance to comment.
You’ve probably heard it, but in case you missed it, Kyle Busch was issued a 128 mph speeding ticket in a 45 mph zone in North Carolina late last month.
On Friday, a reporter asked Cup driver Ryan Newman if it was hard for NASCAR drivers to stay within the speed limit on public roads.
Newman’s response explained that it’s not hard if you’re a professional. "Just like a hockey player: Is it hard for him not to go fight somebody in a grocery line?” he said.
Kyle’s official response to the ticket seemed more like an excuse. His official response said:
"Today, I received a traffic citation in Iredell County. I was test-driving a new sports car, and I got carried away. I went beyond the speed I should have been going on a public road. I apologize to the public, my fans, sponsors and race teams for my lack of judgment. I take responsibility for my actions and I can assure you that something like this will never happen again. I thank the Iredell County Sheriff's Department and all law enforcement for the hard work they do every day to protect the public and to enforce the laws in a fair and equitable manner."
Here’s where the trouble brews: a few weeks ago NASCAR fined Kyle Busch $25,000, and put him on probation for four races after an argument with Kevin Harvick on Darlington’s pit road. The probation applied to last week’s Coca-Cola 600 and this week’s race at Kansas.
Some have wondered if the speeding ticket should count against Kyle’s probation. NASCAR says no. "This is a matter Kyle will have to handle with the authorities in Iredell County," NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp said. "Based on what we know right now, this would not impact his status as a NASCAR driver."
I think to find the answer, we need to look back no further than Kyle’s own brother, Kurt. Kurt Busch was sidelined for the final two races of the 2005 season because of an incident with the Phoenix police.
Reports said that Kurt was pulled over near the racetrack in Pheonix after swerving around a slower car, and running a stop sign. When the officer spoke to Busch, he simply said: ”You ought to be directing traffic.” And perhaps worse yet, Kurt asked the officer, “Don’t you know who I am?” Reports said that Kurt’s breathe smelled of alcohol, but breath-alcohol machines malfunctioned.
Kurt was not scheduled to ride the 2006 season with Jack Roush Racing. The team let him go, saying, “We’re officially retiring as Kurt Busch’s apologists, effective today.”
Isn’t it time that Joe Gibbs or NASCAR stop apologizing for Kyle Busch? The young tempered driver refuses to grow up. How is it that the sport can keep making excuses for him? Joe Gibbs Racing is supposed to be committed to a clean image. Yet, Kyle's behavior is not.
In the future, NASCAR should clarify what probation means. I think that Kyle's complete disregard for human safety should qualify towards more serious penalties. The problem is the sport doesn't want to lose one of its stars, and will just turn their heads the other way.
Team owners also should take a piece out of Roush Racing's book. Kurt Busch's troubles may have been years ago, but no team has come down that hard on one of their stars since that incident. Why not? Apparently they are all too scared to do so. But, look at what it did for Kurt Busch? His behavior has drastically improved since he was parked in 2005.
So what are your thoughts on this incident? Should NASCAR penalize Kyle Busch more? Should Joe Gibbs throw down the axe?
Paul
4:56 pm on Saturday, June 4, 2011
Nascar is way to concerned with the money, [fans], that BABY Busch brings each week he races to do anything more than double talk. Probation? I guess that means on track incidents only. The next time a new 17 yr. old kid gets behind the wheel of his rich parnts graduation gift and thinks about how Kyle didn't punished by Nascar or the police, outside of a fine, and looses control during 128 mph. and dies, GOD forbid .... Maybe the disrespect for the law runs in the family. Joe Gibbs doesn't have the balls to do what Jack Roush did to Kurt and neither does Nascar.
max@canada
5:22 pm on Saturday, June 4, 2011
Kyle is an immature brat. He is disrespectful of his position as a star in NASCAR. He sets a poor example for those who aspire to be in the the elite of Sprint Cup racing. He is the polar opposite of what Joe Gibbs professes to stand for. Kyle makes Joe Gibbs appear to be a hypocrite as it seems Joe puts $$$'s ahead of his beliefs.
Justin Kaise
9:38 pm on Saturday, June 4, 2011
Not only nascar is screwed up but so is that officer that gave the ticket. In Georgia he would have went to jail for that fast. How can I respect Kyle, Nascar, or the Law when they dont respect me? I am part of the public that has to worrie if Myself or anyone else will be killed by a fool as such because of who he is alows him to do anything he wants on the public higway?
mary anne napier
12:57 am on Sunday, June 5, 2011
I think that as a reporter, you should not be so biased in your opinion.I 'm 67 years old and I like Kyle Busch a lot. I also like Kevin Harvick. Both, for the same reason.They race hard, they race to win and they speak their mind. I don't think Kyle should be punished by NASCAR.The police will handle the incident just fine.NASCAR should not be able to punish anyone for anything that doesn't happen on their property.Kyle is still a young person and he has a lot to learn,granted. But, he needs to grow and make some mistakes and hopefully learn from them.I'm glad no one got hurt in the"test drive",but I am sure he is not the first or the last driver to drive too fast.He just happened to get caught. People should just get off his back.People are jealous of his success at such an early age and are just looking for ways to drag him down.
Joseph Hyer
2:30 pm on Sunday, June 5, 2011
Mary anne, I just wanted to clarify a point that you made. You said I should be so biased with my opinion. I just wanted you to know that the purpose of this column is to act as an opinion piece. I am not trying to act a reporter in this column, but instead, as an observer of the sport. Thanks for reading and commenting.
S.C. TEST DRIVER
9:14 am on Sunday, June 5, 2011
Are you kidding me?!!! Some of us forgot how NASCAR started. Let me remind you, "driver's running illegal moonshine". If it was a case of a driver doing something illegal off the track, maybe we should just get rid of NASCAR..... BAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
J.D.
12:05 pm on Sunday, June 5, 2011
If it was me I would have benn arrested pronto, not only that ...bye-bye driver's license and hello driving school. For the life of me I cannot understand what gives these "known" poeple the Ok to do something illegal with just a slap onthe wrist. Maybe if they were treated like the majority they would see things in s differnt light and have a little more respect for what they do outside of their limelight.
Steve MacNay
12:25 pm on Sunday, June 5, 2011
Kyle Busch is only a spoiled brat. He not only has to race with the younger racers to get enough practice to go with the big boys, he has to do it in public roads. I just wish the truck and nationwide series would start putting him in the wall at the start of the races so they can let new people that cannot afford to run a chance at earning some money. I have quit watching these series because of Kyle Busch, and have great pleasure watching him hit the wall in the cup series. Kyle if you can't run with the wolves stay on the porch.
Elmoretta Mathews
8:58 pm on Sunday, June 5, 2011
I am a new fan of NASCAR. I feel the authorities who haveresponsibility with these infractions should take care of it. Every sport has those that some people think are favored. I feel a race is much more fun to watch when Kyle is racing. Let the powers that should make dicisions on the racer(s) we the fans most likely don't have all the facts
Ridge
1:33 pm on Monday, June 6, 2011
Now if only you could spell, "Pheonix"
J. C. Olson
10:45 am on Tuesday, June 21, 2011
If he had done that in the state of MN, they would have thrown him in a rubber room with a white wrap around jacket, they call it "attempted vehicular suicide". The average citizen doesn't stand a chance, but if you are someone that thinks they are as special as Kyle apparently does, it really isn't fair to the rest of us. He and his race team need to keep the speeding on the track instead of on the street where innocents can be hurt or killed by his immaturity.
Joseph Hyer
9:22 am on Saturday, November 5, 2011
I believe the truck race from last night will close this discussion. Spinning another driver out under caution. Wise choice. If NASCAR parks him this weekend (as it is rumored), he'll have a heck of a time recovering. Sponsors/teams can't go for this anymore...