Busch Steals Big Bro's All-Star Thunder

Even though Kurt Busch held off the field for an impressive All-Star win Saturday night, he was once again upstaged by his little brother's red hot temper.

While some members of the press made an appearance in Victory Lane to interview the champ, there was also a large media contingent surrounding the No. 11 hauler.

Why, you ask?

The journos were assembled to see a potential smackdown between the irate Kyle Busch and his teammate Denny Hamlin.

When the ruckus began, Hamlin and Busch were first and second on the leaderboard Saturday night, when Busch got a run on the No. 11 and tried to pass .  Hamlin had other plans and blocked his teammate, causing Busch to slap the wall.  And this caused Busch to want to slap Hamlin.

Busch wrecked out a few laps later when his damaged car lost control and hit Kasey Kahne.  Per Busch's radio comments, "Somebody better keep me away from Denny. I'm gonna kill that $#@!."

Busch then proceeded to park his banged-up Toyota right outside Hamlin's hauler.  And wait. 

Once Hamlin arrived at the truck it was at least 20 minutes before the pair emerged from their conversation with team owner Joe Gibbs.  And although Hamiln left the meeting with a smile and positive things to say about his fuming teammate, I admit I disappointed.  I was hoping for something a bit more colorful.  After all, Hamlin's guys bested the No. 18 team at the Sprint Pit Crew Challenge, and then bested him again during the race.

In fact, the words of the great competitor Ricky Bobby come to mind, "you can't have two number ones, cause that would be 11."

However, the Busch/Hamlin kerfuffle was only one of the many story lines which emerged during last night's All-Star race.  In case you missed it, here's a recap:

Fans Doubt the Edwards Vote - Carl Edwards couldn't drive his way into the All-Star race, but he won the right to run after being voted in by fans.  However, conspiracy theorists abound online and accusations were flying via Twitter that the vote could have been rigged. Folks were even demanding a recount. If you believe the hype, there's almost as much mystery surrounding the Edwards fan vote as there is around "The Case of the Loose Lugnuts".

Truex Knows How - Could Martin Truex, Jr. be the sleeper of the season? Truex snagged a win in the showdown segment, which secured his spot in the All-Star main event.  Then he pulled off a second place finish in the big race.  That NAPA/Michael Waltrip Racing team is looking better and better.

A Prayer to Remember - Five-year-old Taylor Gibbs gave the invocation Saturday night and by the time he said  "Amen" I doubt there was a dry eye or a frown left in the house.  Taylor, who is the grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs, is now cancer-free after a three-year battle with leukemia.  His was the sweetest, most touching pre-race prayer ever.

Quite Possibly the Understatement of the Season - "We got somebody mad," Hamlin's crew chief Mike Ford explaining to his driver why he should stay away from his own hauler after the race.

Not an All-Star Night for HMS - The powerhouse that is Hendrick Motorsports didn't have the best of nights.  Heck, they didn't even have a mediocre one. Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon were entangled in the first on-track pileup, ending their evenings early. Then Jimmie Johnson made an uncharacteristic slip and slid through the infield turf, losing his chance at the checkers.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. brought home the best finish for HMS in 12th spot - and even that wasn't pretty.

Photo info: Kyle Busch and teammate Denny Hamlin battle it out on the track.

Logano's Made a Fan Outta Me

Joey Logano has made a fan out of me.

I'm sure there are legions of folks who feel the same. Back in February, I sat in the Daytona grandstand and decided that Joe Gibbs had a screw loose when he put Logano on the track at the 500. I mean, Joey didn't even have a full Nationwide season under his belt for heaven's sake! Surely Sprint Cup racing would would eat this neophyte alive.

But such thinking would be why Joe Gibbs owns a race team and I own a diecast.

Of course, I've never harbored any ill feelings toward Kid Joey. I just had my doubts--and lots of them. But after last Sunday's roller coaster ride down the concrete of Dover and this afternoon's pass of Kyle Busch for the win, Logano has zoomed meteorically in the humble opinion of NASCAR peons like me.

First, the kid is tough. Six days ago, he walked away from a wreck that would have left even a hardened driver questioning his choice of careers. And today, he got right back in a race car and proved he has the mettle to tangle with the big boys. And how.

Second, the kid is focused. Logano hung around in the top five for most of the race, just biding his time, waiting for his chance And then he took his No. 20 car to the outside and went around his teammate Kyle Busch and ended up with the "W". Even the TV talking heads were surprised, nay, shocked. After all, they had called the race for Kyle Busch about 50 laps earlier.
But pundits have been wrong before.

Finally, the kid has class. Sure, he's young. And at times he still sounds like your 16-year-old cousin talking about the hit he took at football practice. But Logano manages to always speak to reporters, look at the camera even on an off day, all while exhibiting a smile and a controlled demeanor--a demeanor which seems to belie a fiercely competitive spirit.

So kudos to Joey from your brand-new fan. Oh, and my sincerest apologies to Joe Gibbs.

Is Kyle Busch Rowdy-ing On Down?

Are we witnessing the emergence of a kinder, gentler Kyle Busch?

Sure, he was his arrogant, hot-headed self at Daytona, but ever since the "wreck that will live in infamy," Rowdy's on-camera remarks have been disappointingly blase. Last year, you could always count on Wild Thing to fire off a controversial answer to almost every on-camera question. But now, he's saying surprising things like he has learned a lot since last year and is trying to take "the bad days easier."

Good lord, the Kyle Bush fans either love or hate doesn't take bad days--period. I want him throwing a helmet and shaking his fist at the Jumbotron. Heaven forbid he turn into an uber-talented gentlemen driver.

Unfortunately, the pre-race press release from Busch's team leads one to believe that some enterprising brand manager at Joe Gibbs is trying to give bad boy Busch a gradual image makeover.

Take, for instance, Busch's take on losing races this year: "Losing isn't a lot of fun, but you've got to deal with it better. You've got to learn that every day isn't your day, but you can make the most of losing, sometimes, and try to turn it around and win the next week. It's kind of a double-edged sword because you want to win badly, but it's just trying to take those days where you have a third-place racecar and bring it home in third place."

And then there's Busch's ruminations on what he has learned since 2008: "I think to probably take the bad days a little easier. But I hate bad days. I'm still not going to take them as easy as I should. It's unfortunate we weren't able to capitalize on our great season in the Chase (in 2008), and run in the Chase the way we wanted to. But I feel like we've been able to not let the bad days haunt us and maybe also turn some days that should be bad into something better than we should have had. We didn't let Daytona haunt us. We went to California, ran a smart race and finished third. We went to Las Vegas and didn't have the best car, but we ran a smart race and ended up winning. We weren't the best car at either place, but we were the best car in Daytona, and I felt like we missed out there. You're never owed one in this sport. You've always got to take what you can get. Unfortunately, some days are bad days and you just put it behind you and look forward to the next week."

I'm all for racing smart. But come on Kyle, don't lose your talent for drama. NASCAR needs you as its resident villain--now more than ever.

Joey Logano: Give the Kid a Break

Joey Logano is just a kid. But he's playing in a man's world.

At 19 years young, Logano has taken over the coveted ride of one of the most talented drivers in motorsports. He's been profiled, photographed and marketed to within an inch of his life. And his arrival on the Sprint Cup scene has been fraught with words like "boy wonder," "racing phenom" and the infamous "sliced bread."

With such massive hype comes massive expectations. But in this case, such high hopes aren't entirely fair.

Logano is running his first full Sprint Cup season with only 23 races under his belt, and that's counting all of the top three series combined. Not much experience--even if you are a wunderkind. Daytona came to a crashing halt early on. Then, in Fontana, he pulled out a top 20 finish.

Compare that to hotshot uber talent Kyle Busch. In his first full Cup season, Busch had already made 54 starts on the Craftsman, Busch and Nextel circuits. That's a heckuva lot more schooling than Logano. And by year's end, it paid off. Busch finished '05 twentieth in points and never looked back.

I say that if Logano fails to live up to the hype this year, the blame isn't his. After all, as Logano himself has said, who would pass up a ride with Joe Gibbs? Experience comes with time. Opportunity only knocks once. Besides, if he's really got the goods, the results will follow soon enough.

So let's give the kid about 30 more races before we start calling him a disappointment.

And then, let's give the kid a break.