 | | Kyle Busch says the respect of his peers is important to him. Credit: Autostock |
By David Newton, NASCAR.COM
February 26, 2006
10:29 PM EST (03:29 GMT)
FONTANA, Calif. -- The haulers of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch sit next to each other in the Nextel Cup garage at California Speedway. Earnhardt isn't sure he wants to be that close to Busch on the track.  | | |
| Inside the Numbers |
| Kyle Busch's Cup career |
| Starts |
43 |
| Wins |
2 |
| Top-5s |
9 |
| Top-10s |
13 |
| Poles |
1 |
| Laps Led |
368 |
| Avg. Start |
19.4 |
| Avg. Finish |
23.0 |
| Earnings |
$5,406,793 |
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Asked if Busch's driving is out of control as reigning Cup champion Tony Stewart said after last Sunday's Daytona 500, Earnhardt chuckled and said, "Yeah!'' "For a rookie, he's pretty wild,'' Earnhardt said of Busch, who is in his second Cup season. "Most rookies are. I can't say I did any better when I was in his position, but he could turn it down a notch. "Whether he does, that's his deal. I like giving him [crap] about it. ... He just needs to realize that he's right on that brink of really pissing off somebody that he don't want to piss off.'' Busch apparently ticked Stewart off at Daytona. The two got into a late-race bumping match that ended with Busch getting a drive-through penalty for aggressive driving after pushing Stewart below the yellow line. Afterwards, Stewart said Busch was going to hurt somebody, comparing him to a bird without feathers. "He just doesn't know where he's going,'' Stewart said. "He has a fast car. He just needs to learn how to drive the thing.'' Stewart spent an hour and a half with Busch on Friday night discussing what happened just like veteran drivers did for him early in his career. He didn't elaborate on the conversation other than to say everything went "fine.'' "I had Bobby Labonte, who is an excellent mentor,'' Stewart said. "I had Dale Jarrett, who is a good friend. Having veterans like that, it's kind of the trickle down effect. It's not an easy transition to come to this series.'' Busch, who doesn't turn 21 until May, admits he's aggressive. He doesn't admit to crossing the line even though criticism about his style is widespread throughout the garage. The younger brother of 2004 Cup champion Kurt Busch also has earned his share of praise after winning twice last season, including his inaugural Cup victory at California in September. "When I've raced around Kyle I've never had a problem,'' said 2003 champion Matt Kenseth, still fuming from his run-in with Stewart last week. "He's always raced me really clean. He's always given me a lot of room and shown me a lot of respect, so in turn I've given that back. "I've never had any kind of problem with him.'' Jeff Gordon said it was unfair for Stewart to attack his Hendrick Motorsports teammate at Daytona. "Tony was out of control, too, so I don't think he can say a whole lot,'' the four-time Cup champion said. At the same time, Gordon expressed concern when Busch was on his bumper in the final laps of the 150-mile qualifying race. Gordon said he simply was worried about being passed, but his comments on the in-car radio suggested he was worried about getting wrecked. "I've had issues with a lot of young rookie guys along the way,'' Gordon said. "They sometimes don't use the best judgment, but Kyle's already matured a lot from last year. "Yeah, there's times when he's a little bit too aggressive, and hopefully he'll learn from those circumstances.'' Respect is the key issue with Busch. While drivers respect his abilities, they don't necessarily respect how he uses them, calling him everything from dangerous to unpredictable. "He's a good driver, but he does make me a little nervous because he's aggressive and pretty erratic on the track,'' Casey Mears said. "I don't think he has earned a lot of respect. "Over time he will. It's not a big issue, but right now it's probably in the forefront with a lot of guys.'' Busch said respect is important to him and insists that's not a factor, noting he's talked about that with veterans such as Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnson, Labonte and Gordon. "They've all told me I've done a great job on the track and that I'm able to drive my cars whether they are lose or tight or whatever, and get the most out of them,'' he said. Those same drivers also have told Busch that he puts himself and other drivers in situations that could be avoided. "He's still a little bit aggressive,'' Gordon said. "Yeah, sometimes he needs a little more patience. The fact that NASCAR implemented the no bumping and aggressive driving, that's only going to help him to be more patient and really come into his own. "But as young as he is, to be out there doing what he's doing, I'm pretty impressed.'' Kurt Busch said his brother is making some of the same mistakes he made early in his Cup career. He suggested that when such problems arise it would be best to contact that person and admit his mistake. "Don't just do it,'' Kurt said. "You have to make an impact and tell them you learned some things and that you're going to make sure that doesn't happen again.'' Kyle didn't appear interested in talking to Stewart early on Friday, judging from his comments about the two-time champion and his primary sponsor, Home Depot. "I represent a lot of women and children and Tony represents a lot of bearded old guys and contractors that go to Home Depot and pick up tools and stuff,'' said Busch, whose primary sponsor is Kellogg's. "I've got a different crowd. The women and children are, 'Ooh, what's Kyle going to say?' "Tony Stewart, he can pretty much rattle off what the wants.'' But Busch does appreciate when drivers come to him to discuss differences as he and Stewart did on Friday night instead of airing them in the media as Stewart did at Daytona. "Help me out,'' he said. "I'm a young guy and I'm trying to learn. If you want to teach me something, come up and discuss it with me and tell me what I need to do differently.'' Kurt, who outside of Jimmy Spencer didn't have a problem with respect early in his career, hopes he can help his brother get through these rough times. "When you're fast and young you want to race hard every week,'' he said. "There are lessons for it that will pull you down for doing it. I could make sure he's learning that as quickly as he can.'' The sooner the better, Earnhardt said. "I don't see how it's going to cause any big problems down the road,'' he said. "He just needs to settle down a little bit.'' | 
