June 15, 2009
By Matthew Pizzolato
Matthew Pizzolato
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If there were any doubts before, there are none now. Kyle Busch has become Public Enemy Number One for Junior Nation. His recent rounds of comments, especially the one aimed specifically at Earnhardt Jr’s fans after his recent Nationwide win at Nashville have started an entire new cycle of controversy.
Kyle Busch is without a doubt, one of the most talented drivers on the NASCAR circuit, and one of the most outspoken. He seems to thrive on controversy and likes to create it, even when there is none to begin with.
In addition to his seemingly boundless racing talent, it seems his immaturity level knows no bounds. His guitar bashing antics in Nashville’s victory lane bore the marks of an over inflated ego. Busch however, likened his disrespectful celebration to impersonating some of rock and roll’s greatest stars.
“Pete Townshend? I think Ozzy's done it, too. I think KISS has even done it. Everybody's done it, expect race car drivers,” Busch was quoted as saying in a Sporting News Wire Service report on nascar.com. “All them sorry saps, they take it home in one piece and put it on their shelf, man. I break that thing up and spread it within the team so everybody's got a piece.”
Whether he believes it or not, Kyle Busch is no rock star. He is a race car driver and should stick to his day job. Yet, after he became a guitar-breaking pioneer, he seemed shocked that people were upset.
“A lot of people hated it, and I guess those are the ones with 88s tattooed on their arm. Or maybe still 8s. I've got no issues with Junior -- it's his fans that are crazy. But that's all right,” Busch said in a David Caraviello article for nascar.com.
Yet, why take a shot at Earnhardt and his fans after winning a race that Earnhardt didn’t even compete in? Apparently, Busch still has not gotten over being replaced at Hendrick Motorsports by the most popular driver in NASCAR.
There is an old saying that actions speak louder than words, something that apparently Kyle Busch has never heard. Since Busch left Hendrick, he has clearly outperformed his replacement, winning 11 races in the Cup series while Earnhardt has only one victory to his credit. Yet, he constantly barbs Earnhardt with ridiculous comments every chance he gets.
Earnhardt on the other hand seemed unconcerned about the comments Busch made about the 88 team’s recent crew chief change.
“He's always had a chip on his shoulder for me,” Earnhardt said. “I expect anytime he gets an opportunity to throw a jab in there, he's going to do it. That's just his personality.”
It seems that Earnhardt doesn’t let Busch’s remarks bother him at all; maybe his fans should follow his example.
Anytime that Busch wants to be in the limelight, all he has to do is make a comment about NASCAR’s most popular driver and he is creates a maelstrom of media fury. There is no such thing as bad publicity and as long as Busch can draw attention to himself by talking, he will continue to do so. Fans that are angered by what he says are just giving him what he wants.
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