Being aggressive is part of a NASCAR driver's job (cont'd)

What happened last week at Watkins Glen was epic NASCAR, a terribly entertaining race highlighted by an ultimately harmless shoving match between Montoya and Harvick, both taken out in a wreck with 17 laps to go (watch video). Montoya, who hasn't backed down from anyone or anything all season, was blamed by many for starting the incident by trying to block Martin Truex Jr., even though the Dale Earnhardt Inc. driver said at Michigan that he "took full responsibility" for the initial contact, and even tried to reach Montoya on the telephone last week.

Harvick has pulled no punches, saying Montoya "drives like he doesn't know what he's doing," and that his view "is pretty widespread" throughout the garage (read more). A sampling of opinions doesn't necessarily back that up, revealing that many of Montoya's peers see him going through the same growing pains many other first-time NASCAR drivers have endured. Formula One, with its austere points system and wild dash for the first turn, can be every bit as aggressive as the fender-bending short tracks that have produced many of Nextel Cup's top drivers.

"Sure, he's aggressive. It seems like he's always on, or over, that edge," Truex said. "The more experience he gets, the more he'll be able to keep himself out of bad situations. He's doing a fine job."

"Montoya has put himself in many situations that someone else has come out the loser. There is no question about that," Jeff Burton added. "He is trying to feel his way through this thing. He is an aggressive driver. He has come here to win, immediately, and he is driving accordingly. He doesn't necessarily have the experience in these cars to drive as aggressively as, say, Jeff Gordon can, and still get by with it. It's still a learning process. He has been in the middle of more stuff than most people have, there is no question about it. No one questions Montoya's ability to drive a racecar, at least no one that I have spoken to. It's just a matter of him getting the experience to go along with the ability that he has."

Take away the pedigree, the Indianapolis 500 championship and the seven F1 wins, and Montoya's situation isn't too unlike those others have faced entering NASCAR's premier level. Jeff Gordon, now a four-time champion, wrecked cars at a record pace when he first broke into the show. Drivers like Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch, David Ragan, Robby Gordon, and even Harvick -- remember when people called him the Instigator? -- have periodically been dogged by peers claiming they're driving too aggressively and needlessly taking other people out.

It happens. As long as there are cars on the racetrack, some are going to get bent up and put out of commission. As long as drivers climb the career ladder or change series, some are going to face accusations that they're pushing too hard. Somewhere out there is that elusive gray area, that ethereal borderline between aggression and recklessness. Every driver has to try to find it. It's that quest that keeps people coming back.