Drivers rekindling rivalry with fervor of fifth-graders

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- Well, this was unexpected. But perhaps it should not have been.

Before folks could even gain closure on Carl Edwards' feud with fellow Sprint Cup driver Brad Keselowski, Edwards opened up a new one -- or more accurately, revived an old one -- with Kevin Harvick by telling reporters he has "absolutely no respect" for Harvick.

Edwards has admitted he deliberately wrecked Keselowski during the closing laps of the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 7. The driver of the No. 99 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing was subsequently placed on a three-race probation by NASCAR for his action, which sent Keselowski's No. 12 Penske Racing Dodge airborne at more than 190 mph.

Rekindled rivalry

On the eve of Carl Edwards' meeting with NASCAR and Brad Keselowski, fans and drivers were reminded of an old feud Edwards shares with Kevin Harvick.

• Edwards, Keselowski to meet
• Drivers weigh in on feud
• Harvick on Edwards

Edwards and Keselowski will be sitting down together to meet with each other and NASCAR officials Saturday morning at Bristol Motor Speedway, where they'll race against each other both in Saturday's Nationwide Series race and in Sunday's Food City 500 Sprint Cup event.

Taking issue with the fact that Harvick called Edwards "a fake" on a radio show last week, Edwards told the media on Friday that he not only has no respect for Harvick, but that he thinks Harvick is "a bad person."

And that wasn't all Edwards said.

"I'll be glad to talk with Brad about [what happened]," Edwards said. "The thing is that whatever he wants to do is fine, but once it affects, say my business, my team, all that stuff, I have to address it. That's it. It's no deeper than that. It's only between him and I and what happens on the race track.

"As far as other people's commentary and all that, I have absolutely no respect for Kevin Harvick. I think he's a bad person. That's my opinion. I've told him that. We've had our deal before and his actions through that interaction were so devious and underhanded and cowardly that, it's like, I just have no respect for him."

Asked about Edwards' comments Friday, Harvick did not back down. He also addressed another comment he had made on the radio show, when he poked fun at the fact that NASCAR did not issue a monetary fine to Edwards for the Keselowski incident, saying that he wanted all his fine money from previous years refunded.

"I don't think I ever said anything about the penalty being one way or the other. I made a crack about maybe I got in trouble in the wrong era. It was more expensive then. But things change, and the sport has changed, and I'm not up in arms about anything like that," Harvick said. "As far as the fake comment, you can't be the nice guy, you can't be the bad guy, and you can't be the bully. So, I mean, that's just how I feel about that."

Obviously, bad feelings between Edwards and Harvick still linger from two seasons ago when they ended up scuffling in the Nationwide Series garage at Charlotte Motor Speedway. That incident stemmed from Harvick calling Edwards "a pansy" for riding in the back of a race at Talladega most of the day and then inadvertently causing a wreck after trying to move up to the front late in the event.

Edwards responded by leaving a profane note for Harvick after the race. Asked about that later, Harvick said no one had left him a note like that "since about the fifth grade."

After their scuffle in Charlotte, during which Harvick and one of his pit crew members threw Edwards against the hood of Harvick's car, Harvick said: "You've just to to be careful about who you want to pick a fight with. If you want to pick a fight with the wrong person, sometimes it turns around and bites you, no matter how big and tough you think you are."

Edwards insisted Friday that he is who he is and that there is nothing fake about it.

"It almost in a way, when people like that question me, it makes me feel better because if those people were lined up patting me on the back I'd be on the wrong side of what's right and wrong. And I truly believe that," Edwards said. "I am not trying to be a good guy or a bad guy, that's just who I am. All those people that say whatever they say know that if I have an issue with them, I go speak to them. I don't go talk behind their back like little girls. That's what a lot of them do. I learned that wasn't cool in about fifth grade.''

Edwards added that his approach to racing is the same as his approach to life.

"It's really simple. I treat everyone the best way I can possibly treat them. That's the way I was raised. But I stand up for myself," Edwards said. "That's simple. If somebody doesn't respect that, then that's their problem. [It] doesn't really matter."

Edwards also denied that he has an anger management issue.

"People are going to say what they do. That's all they can say about me because it's hard for them to accept that I am a decent guy," Edwards said. "If you go ask all the people who know me, all the people around me, go ask them and they'll tell you. Go take those people who are talking and ask the people around them what kind of person they are, and they'll tell you. That's just the way it is.''