Rethinking Kyle Busch

Let me get this out there I am so happy that Kyle Busch was able to walk away from that last lap wreck. No true fan of the sport ever wants to see a driver get hurt in a race regardless of who they cheer for or not, if you do then you are not a true fan of the sport - just one sick individual.

I’ve also got to compliment Kyle on his refusal to comment about the wreck right after it happened - I mean haven’t we all said something in the heat of the moment that we eventually ended up regretting? Kudos to him.

I know people, myself included, have been down on Kyle recently for his refusal to talk about things after a race, especially if it is one that didn’t go his way, but I now realize what he is doing isn’t selfish or immature but quite the opposite.

Kyle has been burned by both the media and fans about his comments in the past and by ‘putting it on pause’ for a day or two after a race allows him to cool off and get a better perspective on things (maybe even watch some replays). The people at JGR had to go through the growing pains of Tony Stewart and his often confrontational relationship with the media early in his Sprint Cup career and I’m sure they have been able to pass on some sound advice to Kyle so that Kyle doesn’t have to experience what Tony did early on.

So my hat is off to Kyle and JGR for their handling of the media. Good stuff. So if you think Kyle’s refusal to talk to the media after a race is immature and selfish think again, it is very mature and not selfish at all because he is taking his fans, sponsors, and racing organization into consideration by not talking to the media while he is still caught up in the heat of things. The man is a competitior and he is out there to win and sometimes it is hard to flip that internal switch off immediatly after something happens on the track.

It would be interesting to see what people would have thought of a young and brash Dale Earnhardt if he had as much media attention early in his career as young drivers like Busch, Logano, etc. have now. Makes you wonder doesn’t it?

To be honest with you I wouldn’t be surprised to see more drivers start doing what Kyle is doing now and you know what? Given the amount of coverage NASCAR gets in the mainstream media and the not so mainstreem, like this little ol’blog here, I can’t blame them either. Can you?