November 25, 2011
By Rebecca Gladden
This week, Kurt Busch found himself, once again, the subject of public scorn when a video (link) surfaced on YouTube entitled, “Kurt Busch Rages During Interview.”
In the video, Busch is shown standing in the garage during the season finale Sprint Cup race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where he had taken the No. 22 car just a few laps into the race for mechanical repairs.
As captured on the cell phone video, Busch apparently grew impatient waiting to be interviewed by Dr. Jerry Punch for the live ESPN TV broadcast. He then conducts a profanity-laden tirade about Dr. Punch and the situation in general.
This episode was just the latest in a long series of ugly incidents involving Kurt Busch or his younger brother Kyle since the two began racing at the Cup level – Kurt in 2000 and Kyle in 2004.
Though both talented racecar drivers, the brothers have demonstrated, through their own words and actions, a profound sense of entitlement. They have been rude, crude, hostile, impatient and arrogant toward fans, competitors, the media, and even their own team members and crew chiefs.
Kurt and Kyle have also had their share of run-ins with law enforcement while driving in the Sprint Cup Series.
In 2005, Kurt was detained on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and cited for reckless driving after a confrontation with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department a short distance from Phoenix International Raceway. Sherriff’s deputies who pulled Busch over described him as “argumentative and uncooperative” and a police report quoted Busch as telling officers, “You're only doing this because you're a Jeff Gordon fan." The charges against Busch were later reduced to speeding and he was fined and ordered to do community service.
Earlier this year, Kyle was caught driving 128 miles per hour in a 45-mph zone on a two-lane road in North Carolina, telling officers who pulled him over that the high-performance Lexus he was driving was "just a toy." His wife was in the car at the time. In court, Busch pled guilty to speeding and 'no contest' to reckless and careless driving. As was the case with Kurt, Kyle was fined and ordered to do community service. His driver's license was suspended for 45 days.
These traffic violations are just two of the more flagrant examples of behavior that indicates both Busch men have a sense of privilege and a disrespect for authority and for other people in general. There are countless lesser incidents of the brothers' rude and belligerent verbal assaults at the race track, on their team radios, and in numerous live television interviews. Sunday's event with Kurt and Dr. Punch was just the latest entry on a lengthy list of shameful incidents.
For a long time, I struggled to make sense of the Busch brothers' deplorable outbursts and to understand why they have such a chip on their shoulders.
But, the answer became clear in 2008, when I read a Mother's Day article on NASCAR.com about the some of the drivers' moms.
In the article, writer Raygan Swann explained that Gaye Busch, Kurt and Kyle's mother, would be participating in a Mother's Day tribute at Darlington Raceway and would be introduced with her sons during driver introductions before the Cup race.
According to the article, Mrs. Busch was concerned because the previous weekend, Kyle was involved in a crash with Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Richmond. "There will be a lot of hurt feelings this weekend, it will be very hard on me walking across the stage in front of Junior Nation," she said, hinting at her disdain for Earnhardt Jr.'s fans.
Then, Gaye Busch continued: "I've always told Kurt and Kyle to keep their chins up and let it roll off their shoulders, get used to it. Sorry my boys weren't born in the South and sorry they win."
There you have it. If you want to know where the Busch's attitudes come from, you don't have to look any further than their mom.
This air of resentment was voiced again by Kurt Busch last year following a wreck involving Hendrick Motorsports driver Jimmie Johnson. "The guys at Hendrick are pretty boys and get People magazine covers and that's their job," Busch said. "My job is to go out and race cars and that's what I focus on."
Never mind that pretty-boy Johnson was in the process of earning his fifth straight Sprint Cup Series championship.
After Kurt Busch's latest video transgression, his team, Penske Racing, issued the obligatory apology for his " inappropriate actions." It sounded quite similar to the letter of apology written by Kyle just a few weeks ago for his "actions" in a Truck Series race, in which he hooked Ron Hornaday's truck in the right rear and put him headfirst into the wall. That incident happened under caution.
If you're waiting for Kurt and Kyle Busch to change, my advice is, don't hold your breath.
Their inexcusable behavior has been excused for years by their own mother, who believes that people don't like them because they "weren't born in the South" and because "they win."
At least now, you know why they act the way they do.
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