April 5th, 2010 
Journo Two incidents, two very similar stories. Two drivers enter a turn, two wide. The one on the bottom slips up and wrecks the one on top. The one who was wrecked has his car repaired and returns to track. He goes out and wrecks the one who wrecked him. One incident ends with a car on its top, the other ends with a car in flames.
Less than two months into the season and driver payback is quickly becoming the story of the year. This weekend at Nashville, we got our second taste of on-track payback in an incident between Jason Leffler and James Buescher.
These incidents have got you guys talking. Following the race a reader sent us a question. He asked:
“Do you think the time will come when some of the drivers get the message that “It was just a racing incident” won’t work and if you get loose it is your fault?”
Is that a message that needs to be sent?
The fact is the impetus for the payback on both occasions occurred because of accidental contact. No one means for these things to happen, and more often than not drivers are more than willing to take responsibility. Unfortunately we seem to be coming to a point where this type of incident is grounds for payback.
In the case of Carl Edwards I’ll give him a bit more credit because of the history between he and Brad K. That said, the contact in that case and the most recent one is not excusable.
I don’t think payback is deserved or OK when the contact occurs accidentally (I think it should be used sparingly in any case). These things happen during the course of a race; there are 43 cars moving at high speeds on a tightly packed racetrack. It happens. Jason Leffler’s and Carl Edwards’ careers are not free of contact that was unintended. I can’t recall their cars being destroyed by an angry competitor though.
At the end of the day all of these guys are adults and they need to start acting like it. It sucks to get wrecked. It sucks when you’re the victim of an inexperienced or over-eager fellow competitor’s mistake. But as I’ve already said, this is racing, it happens. The sooner these guys grow-up the safer everyone will be.
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Just an outsiders POV, but a lot seems to be related to the age of some competitors. More experience elicits neater/more appropriate dealings with problems. In racing and in life.
What’s surprising is more-mature owners allow their crew chiefs and drivers to engage in this behavior. What the hell is the missing link between Carl Edwards response to FOX right after seeing the replay and what he did with 6 to go? From saying it didn’t look malicious to crushing Brad K? And where was Jack Roush and Bob Osbourne? The way it stands now, it looks like someone talked to Carl. And if so, why wasn’t it Bob or Jack?
Same for Leffler. Braun doesn’t anticipate what might happen and call the bullpen to put the pulled-pitcher on ice?
If the owners’ money wants to keep bankrolling it, young guns will continue to make emotional, inexperienced decisions. Giddy-up!
While the result of the retaliation in both cases was somewhat similar, the initial shot was no where close to similar. In Atl, BK is no way “moved up” into CE. Carl even lamely half admitted it on TV. Yet, still went out to retaliate. For what? His own mistake?
Leffler, on the other hand, was in fact taken out by a James in what amounted to a “loss of control”. Very obviously not on purpose, but so what? Still taken out. Still a stupid move on Jason’s part.
Now had NASCAR parked Carl (1) race, you could now park Jason (1) race and I’m pretty sure the message would be heard throughout.
I agree w/ RAEckart here. Was there ever a discussion from Rousch or #38 team while in the garage patching up a battered car? Something like “hey Carl or Jason” the boys are fixing this thing as best they can so “we” can go out and get as many points as possible”. Not, “hey Carl or Jason” the boys are fixing this thing as best they can so “you” can go out and wreck that guy, but you probably beat this thing up even worse and likely get parked”?
Not sure how NASCAR scores parked cars, but IMHO they should get goose egg in the points column.
I’m sorry folks…this isn’t racing..it’s stalking. I love a little rubbin and rivalries and trash talk…but bringing an already wrecked car many many many many laps down back in both cases it doesn’t seem either “first incident” was intentional or premeditated.) on track to stalk and take out the one who wronged you…is just ridiculous! The owners need to get a grip on this or they will be crying poor before the middle of the season…it looks like NASCAR is really into the “go at it boys” even if it makes racing look more like wrestling….
I didn’t see the Nationwide race so I don’t know how many laps Leffler lost as a result of being parked. I”m going to guess alot more than what Carl was penalized for putting someone on their roof.
Somehow the punishment doesn’t fit the crimes and it doesn’t really surprise me considering how inconsistent they are in dealing with rules enforcement.
I wonder if Leffler was a Cup regular who did that, if that same Cup regular would have been parked like Leffler. Past experience leads me to think he wouldn’t have.
Thanks Leffler for giving Buescher a taste of what he did to Trevor Bayne at Bristol!!!
Lefler was a cup regular a couple of times in his career. I think NASCAR needs to stop allowing wrecked cars back onto the track. If the car cant be fixed on pit road, then it should be retired for the race. This will alleviate some of these issues.
I’ll argue again: “the casual viewer and potential fan is not going to buy the claim that these are the best drivers in the world when they tune in and see cars (or trucks) crashing all over the place. They will laugh, tune out, and never watch again.”
Even my four year old daughter, who has never heard me comment on this subject, said while I was watching a recent race and ‘a big one’ happened: “daddy, they aren’t very good”…
So maybe someone needs to tell the drivers how their paybacks only server to reinforce the stereotypes of NASCAR that stupid movies like “Talledega Nights” give us? There is a bigger picture than just their offended egos…
I tell ya; two things:
1. Lefler is immature. he is just a weapon. He couldn’t make it in Cup (Hamlin got right in that A-1 car and ran up front and won) and he is marginal at best in Nationwide, but he still gets employed…Go figure. Got to be at least a dozen guys out there with no rides that are way better. Braun is a good organization. They deserve better. Hair, aka Jason Lefler, needs his walkin papers.
2. James Buescher is over his head. He may be a good kid I dunno. And everyone has to start somewhere. But the kid and the team are outa control every week and they are over their head. They need to goto ARCA or USAC or ASA or somewhere and find car control and then come back…Again may be a good kid, just way out of his league at the moment.
My personal belief is that drivers need to settle this stuff on pit road. Only cowards use deadly weapons, such as those heavy unforgiving cars, to deliver paybacks. Be a real man and settle it on pit road, like a man. Oh, and take your helmet off.
I’m not saying the sport needs to turn into Hockey, but not many people have died because of a little pushing and shoving and some colorful language. A lot of people have disagreed with me on this because they say drivers could then get in lawful trouble or they think it would be worse than intentionally wrecking someone.
I’m not educated enough to agree or disagree with the first argument because I’m not sure if a driver could sue another driver for getting punched in the face on pit road…but as far as the second one goes: I think that if we continue wrecking people at high speeds like this someone will die. It WILL happen, eventually. I think NASCAR would rather have a bloody nose over a dead driver…or fan.
It’s not like this has never happened before, it has, many times. But personally, I have always frowned on a laps down car coming after the one who wrecked him, intentional or not, especially if that one is a lead lap car. Settle it after the race face to face.
In this case, Buescher did not do anything intentional that I could see. His car simply got loose and Leffler was unfortunately next to him. That’s called racing luck. Go ask Steven Wallace about that, could as easily been him or anyone else. Buescher deserves his NNS chance as much as any of the other young drivers. Leffler was in the wrong going after him on the track.
A few weeks ago, it was Edwards doing the track payback. Again I thought he was in the wrong to go after Keselowski because of my laps down/lead lap payback bias. Edwards should’ve been waiting for him in the parking lot instead.
IMO NASCAR acted correctly in both cases by parking them. I didn’t agree with any further penalty.
Edward: Leffler is a talented driver. Maybe not at the Cup level, but he is very talented. He was THE best Nationwide-only driver in 2009 (and 4th overall), and it wasn’t even a close contest. He finished hundreds of points ahead of the next driver in the final standings.