If anyone hasn't noticed,
Kyle Busch is not happy.
He is not too fond of
all three of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates, and seems glad that he will be leaving the team that fathered his entrance
into the Nextel Cup Series.
That departure may come
sooner rather than later.
It all started in late
May when talks began behind closed doors between Hendrick Motorsports and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Earlier that month Earnhardt
announced he would leave the team his late father founded, and that he has earned 17 Cup wins with, as well as two Busch Series
titles.
With NASCAR's new team
limit coming into effect soon, Hendrick would have to let one of his current drivers go, but who would it be? Jeff Gordon?
No, he has a lifetime deal. Jimmie Johnson? No, he and crew chief Chad Knaus have developed one of the best driver-crew chief
relationships in the sport's history, and Johnson won the Cup championship last season. Casey Mears? Perhaps, but he was just
signed last year and is showing some promise.
Kyle Busch? Interesting.
The 22-year old phenom has showed that he will be a championship contender in years to come, but has also shown that he can
be a very impatient driver who isn't afraid of tearing up his team's equipment.
As everyone knows, Busch
will leave at season's end, and Earnhardt will join Gordon, Johnson, and Mears as NASCAR's "Dream Team", and Busch seems like
the odd man out.
It never seemed so obvious
on July 7.
Busch seemed to have
a race-winning car in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona Int'l Speedway, one of the series' premier events, and he had all three of
his Hendrick teammates behind him to boot. One problem -- not one of them seemed to want to work with the young man.
In the closing laps,
Busch rode in the low line, his teammate Jeff Gordon on the outside line, helping Roush Fenway driver (and enemy) Jamie McMurray.
With two laps to go, Gordon was told the inside lane was clear to push his teammate Busch to victory.
He did not move.
Instead, he stayed on
the outside, tried to make a move for the win with a lap to go, fell back in line and settled for a 5th place finish. Busch
got help from his older brother, Kurt, and his efforts were not enough as Busch was edged out by McMurray for one of the closest
finishes in recent memory.
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Following the race, Busch
attempted to congratulate Gordon on pit road, where the 4-time Cup Champion was busy conducting a TV interview. Busch said
"Congrats" and patted him on the back. Gordon gave Busch the thumbs up and continued with his interview. Busch thought Gordon
blew him off. Gordon didn't.
That brings us to this
past week at the Chicagoland Speedway, where Busch said, "I'm not helping anybody but myself and this team for winning races.
I'm not helping Jeff Gordon. I'm not helping Jimmie Johnson or Casey Mears. They are able to go back and see what I run and
that kind of stuff. But for me, it's just to go out there and to try to win races and keep winning with my name."
That seems rather selfish
from someone who is with undoubtedly the best team in NASCAR, albeit he's leaving after this season.
Usually when a driver
announces his departure from his current team mid-season, they mention that they will not give up on trying to win races,
or help teammates as well, and 9 times out of 10, they go by what they say. Busch has not, and doesn't seem like he will,
either.
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It makes me wonder what
kind of team would want a hot shot driver like this. Many say he will go to Dale Earnhardt Inc. and take over the ride Dale
Earnhardt Jr. vacated for his chance to drive for Hendrick. What would the late, great Dale Earnhardt, the founder of DEI,
say about Busch's hiring after his recent behavior? He's probably rolling in his grave thinking about it.
I would be, if I knew
someone as ungrateful as Kyle Busch was joining the team I started.
It will sure make things
interesting as the Chase looms, and Busch is around the cutoff point of making the “Chase.” Will he make it and
go against his two other teammates who will most likely make the Chase with ease, or will he put this behind him and race?
Or will Rick Hendrick get rid of the young gun? We'll see.
2006 StockCar Review.
