If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Spin ‘Em

April 1, 2008

By Allen Madding

Allen Madding

Kyle “Rowdy” Busch was set to finish in third place in his No. 51 Miccosukee Toyota going into the last lap of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Kroger 250 at Martinsville, Virginia on Saturday. Busch positioned himself within inches of the back bumper of Johnny Benson’s No. 23 truck going down the backstretch.

Fans in the grandstands, watching on television, and members of the media all watched intently as they expected something to happen. Not to let anyone down, Busch made one of his legendary career defining moves getting into the left rear corner of Benson’s truck and spinning him entering Turn 3. Busch then jumped on the brakes to miss Benson and planned on diving to his inside to grab a cheap second place finish. But, Busch’s devious plan was foiled by Matt Crafton, who got into the back of Kyle Busch, and sent him spinning as well.

NASCAR scored Benson with a 25th place finish and Busch a 26th place finish after the altercation.

Benson’s crew was justifiably irritated by having a second place finish stolen from them by dirty driving antics of the younger Busch brother. They waited for him on pit road and expressed their discontent through his window net when he had to stop for traffic on pit road after the checkered flag had fallen.

In the after race interview, Busch claimed he had a right to be upset with getting spun after spinning Benson, and then elected to chastise Benson’s crew for their display on pit road.

Busch’s comments came across almost comical. After intentionally spinning someone on the last lap, he is irritated that he was spun, and he thinks Benson’s team was out of line.

What is it about Kyle Busch that makes him think he can do anything he wants, stoop to any level, drive as dirty as he wishes, and there will be no consequences? Perhaps he has forgotten his unpopularity in the Legends Series where his “spin ‘em to win” driving style did not garner him many friends among fellow competitors.

Busch does not have any real stake in the Truck Series. He is competing in the Truck Series for fun. He is not racing for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship. He is not even racing for earnings, as he is not collecting any salary driving the No. 51.

Johnny Benson on the other hand is racing fulltime in the Truck Series. His finishing position affects his income for the week and his points toward the year-end championship. Kyle Busch’s move on the last lap dropped Benson 23 positions, which will make a significant drop in his point standings and in what he collects from the team for his part of the winnings.

Busch made it clear that he would not give it a second thought to make the same kind of move again if he was in the same position. A little respect for his fellow competitors would go a long way. If someone in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series does not teach him how to respect his fellow competitors soon, someone in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series may just drive the point home.

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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