Give Kyle Busch credit for sticking around to answer the questions this time – even though his answers might not have elicited the information being sought.
After being bumped from the lead by Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Carl Edwards on the final corner Sunday at Richmond International Raceway, Busch was asked – twice – about the contact that cost him the win.
He gave two answers that would have left Rasheed Wallace, Marshawn Lynch or more recently Russell Westbrook smiling.Q: Did you have any expectations that he was going to make contact with you for the win?
Busch: Our Banfield Camry was real awesome today. We had a great race car. My guys made some awesome adjustments to it. It was really good for us to have an opportunity to run and race for the win like that.
Q: Carl said maybe he felt a little bit differently about it because you both had wins, because you both were already in the Chase. Do you feel like these races are different with both of you holding a win?
Busch: My guys give me great racecars each and every week. We continue to have fast Camrys. We’ll be continuing to run up front and race for wins.
It might not have been helpful to the news media covering the event, but it could be viewed as a cost-savings maneuver (as well as another chance to weave in some sponsor plugs) by Busch, who was fined $10,000 for skipping postrace media obligations a second in an Xfinity race at Fontana, Calif., last month.
JGR teammate Denny Hamlin, who finished sixth, could appreciate Busch’s frustration after passing teammate Matt Kenseth for the win on the last lap of the Daytona 500.
“I think every driver is trying to win for themselves,” Hamlin said. “Ultimately if you give yourself an opportunity to win, you know you’re not going to wreck your teammate
“I think it’s OK. That’s the biggest thing – you can’t wreck a teammate for a race win, that’s for sure.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. said Edwards’ winning move entirely was justified.
“It was awesome,” Earnhardt said. “I know Kyle was probably disappointed, but it’s short-track racing, man. The fans come to see something like that. If you can reach them, if you can get to them on the last lap, you better be leaning on them a little bit. He didn’t wreck him. As long as you don’t put a guy in the fence. I think the fans really enjoy it, and that has always been good for the sport for 50 years. Hopefully, we have more exciting races come up in the next several weeks.”
