NASCAR Cup Series

Kyle Busch shows he is learning his manners

Published Jun. 4, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Given his reputation, it is unlikely Kyle Busch will get a pass from the competition.

The 25-year-old relishes his “Rowdy” moniker. With 18 wins in 199 Sprint Cup starts (and 71 total wins in NASCAR’s top three tours), Busch has earned the right to be called anything he wants.

But when it comes to earning favor on the racetrack, that’s not something Busch is banking on in the near future.

“You know I don’t get the benefit of the doubt — ever,” Busch said. “So it’s all my fault.”

In his sixth full season competing at the Cup level, he’s accustomed to receiving the blame whenever he’s involved in an incident — not that it makes the medicine any easier to swallow.

His latest altercation, Sunday night with Jeff Burton, is just another in a long list of accidents in which the shadow of culpability is cast on Busch. After reviewing the tape, Busch had a better understanding of the situation and accepted his part .

“I apparently got into him and cut his tire down,” Busch explained. “He didn’t cut his tire down himself. It was just an unfortunate circumstance that it happened and hopefully we can look forward and try to move on and race each other well here on out.”

Burton admits he was fuming behind the wheel after the contact. He’d been running in the top 10 all race long until the incident, when he was forced to pit for new tires with 17 circuits remaining, leading to a 25th-place finish.

“I was just pissed off, man,” Burton acknowledged. “I didn’t go looking for a fight, I was just pissed off. I had 15 laps or whatever it was to get calmed down and I didn’t. I felt like I needed to handle it and address it right then. I was just mad and it’s not more complicated than that.

“I wasn’t mad Monday morning when I woke up. It was over. Ten years ago, I would have still been mad today. What I’ve learned is that this is an emotional sport and everybody tries hard. Kyle didn’t set out to cut my left rear tire, he set out to go try to win the race. That’s what he’s supposed to do. All I was asking for was just a little more respect.”

The 42-year-old Burton has earned that respect. Certainly, he wasn’t nearly as mellow when he first arrived on the Cup scene 17 years ago. Although Burton came from privilege, his Cup career didn’t start out in Hendrick equipment like Busch did. Burton was 28 before he was drafted by Jack Roush to drive the No. 99 Ford. Fifteen seasons later, Burton has amassed 21 career Cup victories.

In six seasons, Busch is three short of Burton’s win tally.

But Burton has evolved into a very pragmatic individual and earned the reputation as a level-headed racer. And, for all intents and purposes, he is the driving force among the racers at Richard Childress Racing.

So it stands to reason that Busch was startled to find the No. 31 car parked alongside his on pit road and the confrontation that took place after the race.

“Jeff Gordon is normally a well-mannered guy too, and he was awfully frustrated earlier this year with (Jimmie Johnson),” Busch said. “I don’t know if that just comes out of not being able to get to Victory Lane after having great race cars or not. They’ll get there. Jeff Gordon is not not going to win a race again. Jeff Burton is the same way.

“I don’t know his age, but I presume it’s 40. He can still be here as long as he wants to. Mark Martin is 50-something. He’s got a long time that he can still win races. Yeah, it’s frustrating when you are running as good as you are and you feel like you have a shot to win and you miss out on the opportunity, but those guys' last opportunity has not gone by.”

Although Burton has seen Busch make moves similar to the one on Sunday night in the past, he doesn’t anticipate the two of them racing any differently together. Burton insists it’s a new week and both drivers are professionals. With Burton’s goals centered on qualifying for the Chase for the Sprint Cup and winning the championship, he doesn’t have time for a brewing feud.

“I’m coming to Pocono to race Pocono, I’m not coming to Pocono to race Kyle,” Burton said. “I’m not interested in a weekly confrontation. I don’t like them. I don’t like yearly confrontations, much less weekly. I’m here to race Pocono and go out and win this race and that is what he’s here to do too.

“I understand it was heated. To his credit, he handled that pretty well. It’s hard when somebody is in your face; he handled it well, his crew handled it well. It’s a new week.”

While it may be premature to say there’s a new Kyle Busch, certainly the current one has fewer outbursts and is more consistent on a weekly basis than he has been in the past. Busch is second in the point standings, a position he hasn’t held since 2008. Busch’s average finish this season has been a stellar 10.077. He‘s led 594 laps, the fourth most on the tour.

On Sunday, Busch makes his 200th career Sprint Cup start. He has grown tremendously since landing in the Cup Series in 2004.

“Every week it’s a lot different,” Busch said. “You just keep trying to learn and keep trying to pick things out that I can do better and keep trying to learn different scenarios.

"For us, this M&M’s Camry team have done a really, really nice job for me. That’s helped me become a better racer this year and look a little bit better towards the big picture and try to keep going where we can knock some wins out and keep having some steady finishes.”