NASCAR’s Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway saw plenty of crashes, and several of them involved Kyle Busch. On just the second lap of the 500-lap race, Busch hit Ryan Blaney, spun into the middle of the track, created a pile-up, and lost his rear bumper and back panel as a result:
But Busch was allowed to continue after some repairs despite that damage, even if it led to fueling issues for him. And he managed to stay in contention despite being two laps down at one point, but with less than 100 laps to go, he caught Martin Truex Jr.’s rear bumper, sending Truex into the wall and leading to him losing a tire:
WOW. Kyle Busch gets into the back of Martin Truex Jr., sending the No. 78 into the inside wall at @BMSUpdates!
Less than 100 to go at BRISTOL! Watch on @NBCSN or stream here: https://t.co/WTwvY7sMVl pic.twitter.com/7S3NU43dgW
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 19, 2018
And Truex was not happy about it:
"It's a shame."
Martin Truex Jr. shared his thoughts after being taken out by Kyle Busch late at Bristol. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/AF6e1Cqgva
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 19, 2018
Busch has been involved in plenty of controversial NASCAR incidents over the years, including a post-race fight with Joey Logano in 2017 and booing from fans after his close win over Kyle Larson at Chicagoland earlier this year. And as he said to fans there, he’s a supporter of close-contact racing, saying “If you don’t like that kind of racing, don’t even watch.” Well, Busch brought that approach to Bristol, and while he may not have been trying to hit Truex (he told his team on the radio “I just misjudged it by six inches — maybe less”) or Blaney, he’s created more controversy with his actions here. And he’s definitely working towards heel status, with the “All I Do Is Win” and “What? I don’t need no introduction” entrance as more proof of that:
https://twitter.com/BMSupdates/status/1030940403757920256
After these incidents, there may be even more NASCAR fans at Bristol sharing Brad Keselowski’s 2010 sentiments about Busch:
One of the loudest crowd reactions in #NASCAR history came when Brad @Keselowski let @BMSUpdates know how he felt about Kyle Busch. pic.twitter.com/wcHPUtxsdR
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 17, 2018
But the night didn’t end well for Busch either, as he made some further contact in a three-wide with Chris Buescher and Jimmie Johnson on lap 481 and wound up blowing a tire, spinning out and needing a push to pit row. And his exit got plenty of cheers and some #karma tweets:
The cheering in the stands after Kyle Busch wrecks is hilarious… that’s what he gets. #NASCAR #BristolNightRace
— Jen Barbee-White (@jenni4asu) August 19, 2018
Karma is a bitch. How's that flat tire feel @KyleBusch
— HoosierDaddy (@gregory1980) August 19, 2018
https://twitter.com/la_sommers/status/1030994198982418432
https://twitter.com/DWMonson/status/1030994144125235200
In any case, while it was Kyle’s brother Kurt who won the race, Kyle certainly wound up as one of the biggest stories of the night.
Update: And, after the race, a fan apparently tried to fight Kyle:
Longtime Twitter follower @Whit_R saw a fan confront Kyle Busch at the exit of the tunnel. She says Busch was signing autographs and got on his cart, then suddenly was in a physical confrontation with a fan who apparently hit Busch on the arm. Cops then stepped in.
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) August 19, 2018
Fan tries to fight Kyle Busch after Bristol race #nascar
h/t r/NASCAR pic.twitter.com/ZSyvCUehbT— BrakeHard (@BrakeHardBlog) August 19, 2018
Well, that one definitely doesn’t look to be Busch’s fault, but that’s only going to add to the chatter around his night.
He is the best thing to ever happen to NASCAR. he makes every event way more entertaining