Intentional spins, record wins and hairpins

1. Should Kyle Busch have been penalized for bumping Brad Keselowski out of the way to win last weekend's Nationwide event at Bristol?

David Caraviello: In the immediate aftermath of the event, you heard something of a drumbeat for this, and had the incident not involved Kyle [the most polarizing guy in the sport] and Brad [who's been on the receiving end of this stuff too much this year] I doubt you'd have heard a thing. The answer, of course, is no. People really have to be able to discern between takeouts that are designed to win a race, and takeouts that are malicious. That fit the former, not the latter.

Joe Menzer: No. I felt that way then and I feel more strongly about it now -- after talking Tuesday with Ray Evernham at a NASCAR Hall of Fame function. Ray's point was that Kyle raced Brad K. clean for 20 laps and that Brad, when it came time, could have dealt with Kyle's "slide" move differently so that they wouldn't have touched the first time.

Mark Aumann: Not at all. I'd consider it certainly deliberate and blatant, but Bristol has had a history of bump-and-runs before, and I don't see where NASCAR needed to step in there. If Keselowski wants payback at a later date, I think that's certainly within his right. I will say, Brad's response during driver introductions the next night may have won over a few fans. He certainly got a rousing cheer.

Joe Menzer: That was simply great racing in my mind. There was a time when Brad K. needed to let Kyle go, and could have planned a countermove to get by him again. But he's so hell-bent on proving the point that he's "never going to back off" that he repeatedly finds himself in these situations. A heck of a young driver, but Ray's point -- and mine here -- is that he still needs to learn the give-and-take of the deal.

• Busch spins to win
• Kyle takes revenge
• Post-race reactions

Mark Aumann: At the same time, Joe, Kyle got the "red mist" and pretty much was going to put the bumper to Brad as soon as he got back there. Whether that's "eye for an eye," I don't know. But Kyle's not a saint in this, by any means. He could have just as easily made a clean pass on the second attempt. But he chose to drive through the No. 22 instead. Still, it made for a great show.

David Caraviello: The problem here is that NASCAR kind of boxed itself in a little bit by fining Carl Edwards $25,000 and docking him 60 points for taking out Brad at Gateway several weeks ago. That now has everyone thinking that any similar action deserves a similar penalty. Again, we're talking degrees here, and people need to be able to tell the difference. Many, it seems, can't. But again, there are a lot of people who don't like Kyle, and want to see him taken down in some way. Had this involved some other driver, I doubt very seriously people would have cared as much.

Joe Menzer: The difference between what happened at Gateway is that Brad K.'s contact with Carl earlier on that final lap clearly was incidental and just good, hard racing. There is a difference between that and what transpired at Bristol. Real observers of the sport surely can see that.

Mark Aumann: Isn't it fascinating that Brad seems to be the center of the storm every time? OK, Joey Logano has had his moments on camera as well. But there's something about Keselowski that seems to bring out the vitriol in his fellow drivers. Hamlin, Edwards, Busch. At what point does he receive all the supposed "payback" that's owed him?

Joe Menzer: Look, I'm not trying to throw Brad K. completely under the bus here. I think he's been great for the sport. I love the fact that he's an aggressive, hard-charging driver. You don't hear him complaining about someone "racing him too hard" like Logano did the other week. But he does need to understand the give-and-take better or he'll never reach his full potential.

David Caraviello: Can they see the difference, though, Joe? You had some "real observers" screaming for a penalty as soon as it happened. People want NASCAR to be consistent in these instances, when it's never been. Every incident -- EVERY incident -- is case-by-case and judged on its own merits. Precedent does not exist. Come to grips with that, and you'll sleep better at night.

Joe Menzer: I sleep fine these days. Apparently you do, too, because it's almost as if you just woke up for this Smack session.

David Caraviello: Dude, please. I've been awake a whole 10, 15 minutes.

Mark Aumann: Yes, David, and Bristol is a different animal. Even with the ability to have more side-by-side action, you still have to expect fender-rubbing and sheet-metal-banging. I think NASCAR did the right thing by letting them go. I think you have to take into consideration the track, the history of the two drivers and whether or not it was premeditated.

Joe Menzer: Not to name drop, but I will anyway ... Evernham said he likens this situation with Keselowski to when Gordon first came into the sport and was trying to deal with Earnhardt. He said he had to tell Gordon to back off and let the No. 3 go sometimes because racing him hard every single lap -- often when there were plenty of laps to go -- only led to trouble and heartbreak. He said even if Gordon were in the right, or believed he was, it didn't matter. Doing that would only tick Big E off and then Earnhardt was going to do whatever it took to get in front of him -- even if it meant dumping Gordon. Alas, those were different times, I guess.

Mark Aumann: But the guys running over Keselowski don't have the experience -- or the reputation -- of an Earnhardt. I think that's apples to oranges.

David Caraviello: Do we have to go back and penalize Jeff Gordon for knocking Rusty out of the way now? Does the Intimidator get a posthumous penalty for rattling Terry Labonte's cage? Hey, this is why people love Bristol. And now we want to start dishing out penalties because two controversial guys happen to be involved? Please. Perspective can be a good thing.

Joe Menzer: I think we're all in agreement on this one. No penalty. But Aumann, you're an a--! You, too, Caraviello!

Mark Aumann: Do I have to come over there and bump you out of your chair again? I'll give you the chrome keyboard.

David Caraviello: Should we move on before Menzer starts name-dropping again? Did he mention that he hung out with Ray Evernham the other day? I heard something about that .... (Continued)