@nascarcasm: Memorable NASCAR driver heel turns

In honor of Wrestlemania 41 in Las Vegas this weekend, we’re taking a look back at some memorable "heel turns" in NASCAR. In professional-wrestling parlance, that means the moment a wrestler did something to solidify himself as one of the bad guys. In this context, we’re thinking it’s more the moment that a driver became known for being aggressive and confirmed said aggression. Many of these happened long ago, and said drivers retired, or have since changed their approach. We will enjoy the feistiness nonetheless.

Freshly minted NASCAR Hall of Famer Carl Edwards was somewhat of a mystery. He was crisp and clean. He always removed his sunglasses before an interview. His superpower was on-camera presentability. But while hints of Carl’s aggressive side had become apparent, it all came to a head in 2010 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In the Cup Series race, Carl intentionally sent Brad Keselowski airborne and, unfortunately, into the catch fence — apparent retaliation for a pair of prior incidents between the two. Carl was black-flagged and sent to the hauler. Don’t push this man over the edge.

Matt Kenseth’s aura of Midwest Zen was one of his most noteworthy attributes. He was just … chill. But every man's got his breaking point, and sometimes those breaking points manifest in the form of a blind-side tackle in between haulers after a race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2014. Brad Keselowski raised the ire of more than one driver that day, but we, unaware that Matt Kenseth possessed a stealth mode, did not know Matt had such aggression boiling within him like a cauldron of hot Wisconsin cheese. 

At this point if you search “Joey Logano Incident” on YouTube you probably get curated playlists. But we trace the aggressive tendencies of "Sliced Bread" all the way back to Pocono Raceway in 2012. Sure, it’s where the famous and quoteworthy argument with Kevin Harvick occurred in 2010, but in 2012, Logano executed a bump-and-run on Mark Martin in the closing laps to earn his second career victory in the Cup Series. MARK MARTIN. The most widely respected driver in the garage. The guy who can probably get you included on Kendrick Lamar’s next diss track. Brave move, Joey.

Remember back when Carson was just that tall, young kid wearing the pimp and pirate hats to the track? That was his thing. He was the hat guy. Now he’s the aggressive guy, whose last name has become a verb. “Hocevar-ed” is a thing. While this development has certainly become prominent in the past couple of years, the first big “OH NO HE DID NOT” moment that comes to mind is back in 2022 at Lucas Oil Raceway. Carson seemed to very much exact revenge on Colby Howard in the form of a right rear hook. Give this kid a hat that says “No More Mr. Nice Guy.”

There are many ways to make a heel turn. You could play the long game and exude an aura of sinister intentions that gradually builds over time. Or, if you’re looking to save time, you can spin the sport’s most popular driver umpteen times like Denny did in 2017. Gotta be fair — it looked like a standard "racing deal" that many have been victimized by within Martinsville’s close quarters. But it was the on-track confrontation that really sealed the deal. From that point began Denny’s quasi-villain era, where boos would rain down mercilessly at driver intros while he ate it up. Granted, his winning didn’t stop — not at all. In fact, he embraced the role. 

We didn’t realize how gargantuan a challenge it would be to pinpoint one solitary incident for Kyle Busch. Polarizing, outspoken and insanely good at what he does. There were some before, and there were some after, but the one that stands out most was the spin of Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Richmond in 2008. Kyle, at the height of his perceived villainy, and Dale Jr. being, well, Dale Jr., tangled late in the race and oh my, the reaction. There are on-track incidents all the time, but few make you think: "Maybe do witness protection for a few weeks, Kyle."

In case you didn’t know it already, Kevin Harvick’s nickname, "Happy," is meant to be somewhat ironic. Kevin Harvick’s a surefire future Hall-of-Fame driver, but he also has a delightful ‘tude. You’ve seen it in the past — Chase Elliott at Bristol, Ty Dillon at Martinsville. But the first big indicator in our opinion was the incident with Greg Biffle at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2002. Greg wrecked Harvick, who waited for him all race, standing atop a pit box like Batman surveying Gotham. The incident itself is worth finding on YouTube. Harvick ran across the hood of Biffle’s car after the race and jumped off of it to confront Biffle. Never have rage, conflict and parkour been so awesomely intertwined.

This driver, owner, doting husband and father of three was once a magnet for trouble. His fault or not, Brad was viewed as the unapologetic aggressor during his early days at Team Penske. There were on-track skirmishes here and there, but the true "heel turn" moment may have been 2014 at Texas Motor Speedway. In the closing laps, Brad thought Jeff Gordon had left a hole for him, and Jeff Gordon, as you can see from the picture in the background, did not agree. It led to a pit-road melee that rivals most Royal Rumbles. But it never would have happened had Brad not made that move on track. As someone who appreciates great content, we thank you for that.

When, oh when, did Ross’ give a damn first shatter into a million pieces? When did this watermelon-smashing, occasionally-crashing, Gragson-fighting and Martinsville wall-riding superstar first raise the ire of other drivers? Hard to pinpoint just one, but for some reason, we’re steered toward the Xfinity Series race in at Darlington Raceway in 2018. Kevin Harvick got into Ross which forced Ross into the wall. Ross, welllllll did not take kindly and the end result was spinning out KEVIN HARVICK who as you know wasn’t the “Let’s discuss this over coffee on Monday” type. To us, it was the definitive “Meet Ross – the one who isn’t a pushover like the one on ‘Friends’” moment.

Ty Gibbs really made a name for himself in the Xfinity Series in 2022 — won the championship, and had two very, very ... VERY eventful races at Martinsville Speedway. We’re gonna declare the first one as the moment we realized that if we were to ever have a problem with Ty, let it slide because the dude can scrap. Helmet-less Sam Mayer found this out the hard way after the race. His face absorbed a jab from Ty Gibbs that impressed in in both speed and force. From that moment forward, drivers knew that if they ever had to go face to face with Ty, keep the helmet on. It’s still technically face to face — there’s just helmets between the faces.