Sure was hot in Kentucky Friday. Shortly after Kyle Busch threw some shade at Ricky Stenhouse Jr. for a crash at Daytona last week, Stenhouse took a shot back at Busch.
Friday at Kentucky, Busch said Stenhouse did not reach out to him Monday of during this week after the crash last Saturday that left Busch with a DNF.
“I am disappointed that he did not,” Busch said.
“You wipe out half the field and pretty sure there would be a pretty busy Monday for him,” he added, “But there wasn’t, so apparently he just doesn’t care.”
Busch was then asked if the lack of communication would change the way Busch races Stenhouse moving forward.
“I can’t – I can’t worry about people that far back in the field,” he said.
After Friday evening’s qualifying session, Stenhouse and Busch could be seen talking. Later Stenhouse was asked if he had had a change of heart about reaching out to Busch.
“Not really a change of heart,” Stenhouse said. “I just told him why I didn’t reach out.”
Whatever was said between the two drivers, it would appear that pleasantries were not exchanged.
“I felt like he ran his mouth enough on his radio and then after the race, so I didn’t really have anything to say to him,” Stenhouse said. “I honestly feel like I normally do reach out to people when I make mistakes and I clearly made a mistake, but with him running his mouth I just felt like I didn’t really need to call him. I just let him know that.”
Stenhouse added: “I told him, ‘You’re right. You do run a lot further up front, but pick and choose your battles wisely because you’ll have to deal with me sometime, whether you’re lapping me or we get our cars better and you’re up there racing with us.’ I told him if he wanted to keep running his mouth, he could come over and do it around me and I’ll stop it for him.”
So is the feud between the two over?
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Stenhouse said. “But if he wants to keep running his mouth, he can come over right to me.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
- NASCAR to debut new short track package at Phoenix - February 28, 2023
- The Wrench Who Stole Racing - December 16, 2022
- Matt DiBenedetto’s excellent run comes to abrupt, violent end - February 17, 2019
