Associated Press
FORT WORTH, Texas ó The exchange on the radio between frustrated Kurt Busch and car owner Roger Penske was far from cordial.
While neither resorted to yelling, their back-and-forth made it clear neither was too pleased with the other at that moment. But that was last week, during another long day on a short track.
“Roger and I are definitely on the same page, and I have the utmost respect for him,” Busch said Friday. “In the heat of battle, sometimes things are said that aren’t exactly the right thing to say. … That’s behind us.”
As are Bristol and Martinsville, for now.
After consecutive races on the tight half-miles, where Busch said the team will have to improve to compete for a series title, NASCAR’s Sprint Cup series moves this weekend to the 11/2-mile, high-banked Texas Motor Speedway. It is one of the fastest tracks on the circuit and similar to Atlanta, where Busch won three races ago.
“I feel like our mile-and-a-half program is definitely where we want it,” Busch said.
But he obviously didn’t have the same feeling last week in Martinsville, where he finished 18th after starting on the front row beside polesitter Jeff Gordon.
Coming off pit row after a stop, Busch bluntly told his crew on the radio that a “stupid adjustment” had been made and that there was no way to compete for the victory. Penske responded by telling him to do his best and that he would be fine. But that only led to a testy exchange between driver and owner.
“It’s the most frustrating thing in the world to think that you think that we’re better than we are,” Busch said.
“If you don’t blow yourself up, we’d be a lot better,” Penske said, referring to the driver’s mental approach and not the car. “So let’s get serious here, OK? You understand?”
Busch’s response: “10-4, dude. 10-4.”