Drivers wonder if Hmiel penalty sets precedent

MARTINSVILLE, Va. - The dreaded "p" word is back.

Jeff Burton voiced concern Friday that NASCAR's decision to penalize Shane Hmiel 25 points for flipping off Dale Jarrett sets an iffy precedent, one that could potentially burn the sanctioning body in the future.

"There's been no restraint on drivers in the past of making hand gestures to each other, and now there's a precedence," said Burton, who met with NASCAR officials Friday morning to voice his concerns.

"I feel that we've got Pandora's Box open pretty big on this one."

Jeff Burton

Last season, NASCAR set a precedent that resulted in a 25-point penalty for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Having docked Busch Series drivers Ron Hornaday and Johnny Sauter for using improper language earlier in the season, NASCAR had no choice but to penalize Earnhardt similarly when he cursed in Victory Lane at Talladega.

Burton says the new precedent is different, more disturbing.

"I didn't have any problem last year on the deal with Junior. (NASCAR) warned us and said this is what's going to happen. It happened and they said exactly what they said they were going to do," Burton said. "But this is spontaneity.

"We go in the tunnel turn at Pocono and I get into (Ricky Rudd) and my in-car camera shows him flipping me off, and he gets penalized, that's tough."

Conversely, Jeff Gordon feels it falls under the same umbrella as Earnhardt's penalty.

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"It's no different than the rest of these penalties that come along with something that you say. It's the same concept," Gordon said. "There are people and kids and a big audience that's watching out there.

"It doesn't mean you can't react. It doesn't mean you can't confront somebody. It's about how you handle it. and that one was handled inappropriately and he paid the price."

Rusty Wallace isn't concerned about the possibility of being caught in the act.

Rusty Wallace

"I'm not worried about it, I'm really not," Wallace said. "The finger was one thing, but the whole incident leading up to it and what went on throughout the day is what got Mike (Helton) just really tired of it, you know.

"All the crashing and all the past history and all the wrecking just finally got people upset. I though (Hmiel) roughed up Jarrett, personally. It was really disrespectful, I think. And I think if he hadn't have done all that stuff he might have gotten away with the finger."

Some fans are of the mind that NASCAR's decision to penalize Hmiel bolsters the sentiment that Nextel Cup Series racing has gotten too vanilla. Burton disagrees.

"I hear a lot of debate about we're making this sport too sterile. I disagree with that 100 percent," Burton said. "That whole thing (between Hmiel and Jarrett) could have been shown on an in-car camera and would have had the same impact if he'd never flipped him off.

"By the way, he didn't flip him off until he turned his back. It added to it because everybody said, 'Uh oh, what're they going to do about it.' But it would have been just as dramatic and just as interesting without the profane gesture."

Given the dynamics involved, Burton says the onus is on the drivers.

"There's a reason NASCAR is trying to draw a line on what's acceptable. The reason why is there's a lot of pressure about what's on TV and who's watching it," Burton said. "That's not a bad thing. It doesn't make it an easy solution. The only solution I see is that we as drivers have got to be responsible.

Jeff Gordon

"It's a touchy situation. I respect what NASCAR's trying to do. I disagree a little bit with what they're trying to do, but it is a tough situation."

It is no secret that drivers often extend the middle finger to one another during competition.

"You've got to understand, we can't talk to each other. Everybody in the world knows what that symbol means," Burton said. "So when you're racing someone, we don't have time to hold a sign up and say, 'Hey, I'm mad at you.'

"(The middle finger) is a universal sign for, 'Look, you've done something to me that's made me really angry.' So that's why you see it so much on the racetrack, because there's no time for anything else and lets the guy behind know, 'Hey, that wasn't cool and I don't want to see you do that again.'"

Gordon added, "We give hand gestures all the time -- some of them are appropriate, some aren't," Gordon said. "I think I know any time that happens, especially now, that could mean there's a penalty."