The caramel-colored hills of Northern California have given way to the forests of central New Hampshire, but the hard feelings still remain. Whether the local delicacy is pinot noir or clam chowder, there remains a long line of drivers still angry with one another, either watching in their rearview mirror for the inevitable vendetta, or waiting for the perfect opportunity to exact some revenge.

“

NASCAR used to be looking over your shoulder when you had a run-in with somebody or you took it over the line too far, and they would step in. Now it seems like you can turn a guy over on his lid and get three-week probation.

”

-- KURT BUSCH

In that regard, not a lot has changed between the conclusion of last Sunday's rough-and-tumble fracas at Infineon Raceway and this weekend's Cup event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which contains more protagonists, antagonists, and subplots than an HBO original series. Jeff Burton called driver behavior at Sonoma "horrendous." Martin Truex Jr., who caught the worst of it last weekend, threatened to take a hard line toward anyone who races him a certain way. Kurt Busch was one of many lining up to take verbal shots at a driver he called Jeff "Bulldozer" Gordon. Inside the garage area, resentment lingered like patches of summertime ice at the top of Mount Washington.

And yet -- this is what everyone wanted, right? A hands-off approach? More contact and fewer ramifications? Boys, have at it? No question, there are a lot of frustrated drivers this weekend at New Hampshire, a lot of guys still stinging because they thought they were treated too roughly, taken advantage of, or forced to compete amid a flurry of needless grudges at Sonoma. But in a way, this is an atmosphere created by the drivers themselves, whom NASCAR effectively allowed to self-police its premier series with a flurry of policy changes in January.

That was when drivers got almost everything they wanted from NASCAR, which after a series of meetings with drivers and car owners acceded to its competitors on everything from permitting unlimited bump-drafting at restrictor-plate tracks to allowing slamming and banging at other venues with virtually no consequences whatsoever. NASCAR simply got tired of hearing drivers complain, so wiped its hands and told the competitors to handle things among themselves. This laissez-faire attitude was never more evident than at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March, when Carl Edwards intentionally wrecked Brad Keselowski, sending his adversary in a flip that left him upside-down on his roof. Edwards' penalty was three races -- of probation.

So no wonder drivers are hammering on each other like there are no repercussions. Because there aren't. (Continued)