Tag: Richard Childress Racing

Dover qualifying rained out; Busch to lead field to green Sunday

Kyle Busch will start Sunday’s Wurth 400 at Dover where he finished last weekend’s GEICO 500 at Talladega – first. Rain forced the cancellation of Saturday’s qualifying session for the Wurth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway, putting the two-time winner …

Kyle Busch will start Sunday’s Wurth 400 at Dover where he finished last weekend’s GEICO 500 at Talladega — first.

Rain forced the cancellation of Saturday’s qualifying session for the Wurth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway, putting the two-time winner this season and three-time Dover winner on the pole, the first time he’ll lead the field to green in 2023.

It’s the 33rd pole of his career, first since 2019 and first with Richard Childress Racing.

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Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski, Chris Buescher, Chase Briscoe, Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Chase Elliott — the defending race winner — round out the top 10 starters.

The field was set by metric, which weighs 15 percent of the fastest lap time positions of the last race, 25 percent of the driver finishing positions of the last race, 25 percent of the owner’s final race finishing positions of the last race and 35 percent of the owners points positions.

Filling in for Alex Bowman and having not raced last weekend in the Cup Series, Josh Berry had his driver-based numbers (fastest lap and finishing position) set to 41. He will start 23rd.

There are 36 drivers starting the Wurth 400.

Busch takes the right gamble to grab Talladega spoils

Kyle Busch is a Las Vegas native after all, so he was “all in” to stay on track instead of pitting for fuel during a pair of overtime restarts in the GEICO 500 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway Sunday afternoon. He ended up the big winner. Busch’s …

Kyle Busch is a Las Vegas native after all, so he was “all in” to stay on track instead of pitting for fuel during a pair of overtime restarts in the GEICO 500 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway Sunday afternoon. He ended up the big winner.

Busch’s No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet had just enough gas to make it back to the checkered flag as a half dozen other lead-pack cars around him were collected in a multi-car accident while maneuvering forward to challenge for the lead on the final overtime lap.

“We got to gamble,’’ Busch, 37, said he told his crew while contemplating whether to pit for fuel or stay in the lead pack for the final overtime restart – noting afterward he probably wouldn’t have been willing to be so daring if he hadn’t already earned a victory this season at California’s Auto Club Speedway. He didn’t even do a celebratory burnout after the race, convinced his Chevrolet didn’t have enough fuel at that point.

Busch and 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace exchanged the lead during the final two laps of the race but Wallace’s No. 23 Toyota was tagged by Ryan Blaney in the No. 12 Penske Racing Ford as those two vied for the lead just after the white flag flew, signaling one lap to go.

Wallace’s Toyota turned sideways, hit the wall and triggered a chain-reaction accident that eliminated several other of the front-running cars while the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Busch was able to continue forward and take his second win of the season and 62nd of this career. It’s Busch’s second career win at Talladega – the first coming 15 years (and 55 wins) ago.

“Sometimes you’ve got to be lucky, you know,’’ said a smiling Busch, who led only three laps in securing the RCR team its 13th Talladega victory. “Sometimes these races come down to that and you’ve got to take them when they come your way.

“The seas kind of parted there when they (Blaney and Wallace) went up the race track… They were trying to push-draft and these cars are just not stable enough to do that. I saw the No. 23 (Bubba Wallace) turn a little bit sideways, and I was like, ‘Just get out of the way.’”

Blaney, who led a race-best 47 of the 196 laps, looked poised to snap a 55-race winless streak at Talladega before the last lap incident. He was still able to continue after the contact with Wallace, but finished runner-up despite leading the most laps on the afternoon.

“It’s just you get big runs and you take them when you can,’’ Blaney said, noting of the contact with Wallace, “I’m glad everyone’s okay, but in my mind you can’t make a triple move like that, a triple block. You can’t block three times, I don’t know, the runs are so big and as the leader Bubba’s (Wallace) trying to block, which is the right thing to do. But I think he kinda moved three times. I got to go somewhere. I hate for cars to get torn up and I hate for us to be so close to the win.

“I’m not blaming anybody. It’s just hard racing at the end of this thing and unfortunate that cars got torn up and we missed out on another win.’’

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Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing driver Chris Buescher finished third, followed by Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe and RFK owner-driver Brad Keslowski, who leads all current competitors with six career Talladega wins.

Legacy Motor Club’s Erik Jones, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell, Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez and Front Row Motorsports’ Todd Gilliland rounded out of the Top 10.

It was, by all accounts, the typical, hard-nosed, tight-quarter racing fans and drivers have come to expect at the 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway. Sunday’s race featured 57 lead changes – the most at Talladega since 2011 (72 lead changes).

It was a markedly different top of the final leaderboard based on the afternoon’s efforts. SHR drivers Aric Almirola and Kevin Harvick each led 11 laps and ran among the front pack for most of the day, but were collected in a multi-car accident on the first overtime period. They finished 20th and 21st, respectively.

Wallace, who spent 35 laps out front in his No. 23 Toyota, finished 28th after the last lap accident.

Also noteworthy: Chase Elliott finished 12th and led seven laps – the first laps he’s led since returning to competition last week after missing six races recovering from a broken leg. Pole winner Denny Hamlin led seven laps on the day and finished 15th.

Ironically the race’s earlier mishaps didn’t happen from aggressive action on the race track but instead in slower miscues on pit road. Tyler Reddick spun his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota getting on pit road making his first stop of the race and only six laps later Briscoe spun his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford on pit road bringing out a yellow flag – only to recover and take that top-five finish.

Wallace, who earned his first career NASCAR Cup Series win here at Talladega in 2021, led the most laps (23) in stage one. But it was Hendrick Motorsports’ Elliott who ultimately drove forward to claim his first stage win of the season leading the final 11 laps.

There were 17 lead changes among nine drivers in stage two – with Almirola moving out front in the final feet to the finish line get around Elliott and claim that stage win.

As for the two victories in the opening 10 races of Busch’s tenure with Childress, the NASCAR Hall of Fame owner grinned.

“I think he’s helping us build RCR back up to where we want it to be,’’ Childress said, glancing with a smile at bottle of race-winning champagne he brought to the winner’s press conference.

Christopher Bell maintains the NASCAR Cup Series championship lead by 11 points over Ross Chastain as the series moves to the “Monster Mile” – Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway – for the Wurth 400 next Sunday at 2 p.m. (FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

RESULTS

Jeffrey Earnhardt looks to build on last year’s Talladega moment

Jeffrey Earnhardt returns to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for the first time since grabbing headlines in the same race a year ago with a career day. Earnhardt will again be sponsored by ForeverLawn but now …

Jeffrey Earnhardt returns to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for the first time since grabbing headlines in the same race a year ago with a career day.

Earnhardt will again be sponsored by ForeverLawn but now driving for Alpha Prime Racing. The fourth-generation driver is competing full-time for the organization this year.

A year ago, Earnhardt put a black No. 3 ForeverLawn Chevrolet on the pole at Talladega while driving for Richard Childress Racing and working with crew chief Larry McReynolds. Earnhardt is the grandson of Dale Earnhardt, who made the No. 3 car famous while driving for Childress and working with McReynolds.

Earnhardt turned his pole-winning run into a second-place finish. He led 10 laps.

Jeffrey Earnhardt on point for Richard Childress Racing last year. Rusty Jarrett/Motorsport Images

“I’m so excited to be back at Talladega,” said Earnhardt. “Last year’s opportunity in the No. 3 car was incredible, and we’re hoping to finish one spot better in our SouthPoint Bank x ForeverLawn Black and Green Grass Machine. They say ’Dega is Earnhardt Country, so we’re going to give them something to cheer for.”

Earnhardt enters Talladega (Saturday, 4 p.m. ET, FS1) searching for his first top-10 finish with the No. 44 team. Through eight races, Earnhardt has finished a best 18th at Richmond Raceway and sits 27th in the standings.

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“We are thrilled to be back in Earnhardt Country for a great race like Talladega,” said Dale Karmie, ForeverLawn co-founder. “Jeffrey winning the pole and finishing P2 last year gathered an amazing response, and we hope to replicate those results with the Alpha Prime Racing Team and our No. 44 Camaro.

“We are also happy to have our partners along for the ride as the Black and Green Grass Machine hits the track.”

Dillon RCR team penalized following Martinsville

Austin Dillon’s Richard Childress Racing team was issued an L1 penalty Wednesday after Dillon’s Chevrolet was taken for further inspection at the NASCAR R&D Center and found to have illegal underwing components. Dillon’s No. 3 was one of two cars …

Austin Dillon’s Richard Childress Racing team was issued an L1 penalty Wednesday after Dillon’s Chevrolet was taken for further inspection at the NASCAR R&D Center and found to have illegal underwing components.

Dillon’s No. 3 was one of two cars taken for inspection after Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway. Dillon finished 12th in the NOCO 400. There were no issues found with the car of Stewart-Haas Racing driver Ryan Preece.

NASCAR cited sections 14.1 C&E&Q of the rule book for the Dillon penalty. The section is “overall assembled vehicle rules,” as well as section 14.6.1 A&D which is “underwing assembly mounting & underwing stay assembly hardware.”

Dillon has been docked 60 championship points and five playoff points. Keith Rodden, his crew chief, has been fined $75,000 and suspended from the next two Cup Series races at Talladega Superspeedway and Dover Motor Speedway.

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Wednesday’s penalty report also listed the expected two-race suspension for crew members from the No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports team. Chris Jackson (rear tire changer) and David Smith (jackman) have been suspended from the events at Talladega and Dover after the right-rear wheel came off of the No. 78 car with less than 100 laps to go Sunday.

Anthony Alfredo, who was driving the car, was held for two laps during the race as the penalty calls for in addition to the suspension. Alfredo finished 35th in the 36-car field.

Additionally, three crew chiefs in the NASCAR Xfinity Series were each fined $5,000 a piece after the Saturday race at Martinsville. One lug nut was not secure on the cars overseen by Mike Bumgarner (Josh Berry), Jeff Meendering (Sammy Smith), and Mike Scearce (Ryan Sieg).

Busch leaves Texas with grace after COTA second place

Kyle Busch is an all-or-nothing driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, but he gladly took a second-place finish Sunday at Circuit of The Americas. The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion put a lot of work into having the type of result he earned. Entering …

Kyle Busch is an all-or-nothing driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, but he gladly took a second-place finish Sunday at Circuit of The Americas.

The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion put a lot of work into having the type of result he earned. Entering the first road course race of the season, Busch said with all the simulator work and preparation he and his Richard Childress Racing team had done, if they didn’t win, he wasn’t sure what else to do.

The No. 8 was best in class behind race winner Tyler Reddick, who had been the fastest driver all weekend. Second was a respectable ending to an up-and-down day where the RCR team fell behind on pit strategy, leaving Busch fighting on older tires through multiple overtime restarts.

“Oh, no question, yeah, for sure,” said Busch of it being the best-case scenario result given the series of events. “Reddick, when we tested here, was super, super, fast. He was the best car here when we tested, and he just didn’t have the long-run speed, but then they went to work and figured out the long-run speed to go with the front-side speed.

“So we just didn’t find enough front-side speed to be able to contend with those guys. But he’s a really good road racer; he’s proven the last couple of years winning road races. So (it’s) cool to come home second and get a good one here.”

The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix needed three overtime attempts to decide the winner. Busch restarted inside the top five in each of them, also making it through what had been a wild and chaos-filled Turn 1 on each restart attempt all afternoon to stay in contention.

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On the final overtime restart, Busch, who was running second, chose to restart on the inside lane. It put him third in the running order behind leader Reddick.

“I got plenty of help from behind and about ran over Reddick and pushed him off,” Busch said. “But just a lot of bumping and shoving and banging there up in the first turn, so you just try to get through there as best you can and then go race it after that. The No. 48 (Alex Bowman) got in front of me — got in between us — and then once I got by him, Reddick was gone. But I didn’t have enough to contend with him anyway.

“I had to get by (Reddick) off of Turn 1 or through Turn 2 before we got to the esses to have a shot to beat him. But he was so strong in all the braking zones and everywhere that I think he would have got back by me. All in all, just a great day for us. Good to come home second.

“Our Netspend Camaro was fast. It’s really good to bring home a runner-up finish for Netspend, being a local Austin, Texas partner.”

Although there were no stage breaks, the race had its fill of bunching the field back together. Busch said Sunday didn’t feel much different playing out organically because of how many cautions broke out at the end.

“Once you get one, you’re bound to get a lot,” he said. “That first one that came, I think we were running fourth, and I was like, ‘Ah, I’ll take a fourth, let’s just get out of here.’ And then we were able to get up to second, so we got a couple of spots on some of those restarts.”

Same philosophy, same desire for Busch and Burnett

Changing teams comes with changing scenery, but it’s also come with changing radio communication for Kyle Busch. “He’s been calling me pal and homie,” Busch said of crew chief Randall Burnett, who oversees the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing team. …

Changing teams comes with changing scenery, but it’s also come with changing radio communication for Kyle Busch.

“He’s been calling me pal and homie,” Busch said of crew chief Randall Burnett, who oversees the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing team.

They’re classic Burnett nicknames — more fitting for Busch, whereas “little buddy” was frequently used with former driver Tyler Reddick.

“I’m a homie,” Busch said. “I can be as good a homie as anybody. All good.”

The Las Vegas native spent 15 years at Joe Gibbs Racing working around the same people day in, day out, including crew chiefs. Busch and Burnett have started 2023 strong at RCR as the new duo develops chemistry together.

Burnett is a no-nonsense NASCAR veteran who has always gotten the best from his drivers, but Busch is the first champion Burnett has been a crew chief for and doesn’t need the same type of leadership as a younger driver. Even still, Busch discovered his new crew chief has many leadership qualities that he admires and responds to.

“Adam (Stevens) would probably be my best crew chief that I’ve ever worked with, and it’s probably just a little too early to give Randall that title because I haven’t been around him long enough,” Busch said. “And (Adam and I) also won two championships together, so he gets that accolade.

“But the things Adam would do and the intensity that he would have on a lot of stuff was something I really enjoyed and really liked and Randall has that as well. Randall gets frustrated with some of…our system and things like that, so we see the same things. We have similar philosophies, and we have similar desires. It’s just a matter of being able to go out there and achieve that.

“He’s been super great to work with. I really enjoy working with my two engineers as well. Andrew (Dickeson) and Nate (Troupe) have been super helpful and super receptive to a lot of my thinking and my ways, and we’re putting a lot of that together.”

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Busch said everyone talks openly and freely about bettering their equipment. A month into the season, through five points-paying races, Busch hasn’t found anything surprising one way or the other with the team’s performance.

“I think what’s been positive…is we do have top-10 speed,” said Busch. “What’s been frustrating is that we have top-10 speed, so the positive of it is sometimes you expect to go somewhere and it takes a little bit of time, and you might run (top) 15 to 20s to get your footing and then get into the top 10.

“But we’ve already been into the top 10, so now it’s a matter of finding our footing and getting into the top five. Once you’re there each and every week contending, then you’re going to be out there contending for wins.”

After earning a podium in the Busch Light Clash — their first race weekend together — Busch led the season-opening Daytona 500 at the 200-mile mark before coming up short in overtime. In week three, the second points race, Busch, Burnett and the No. 8 team had a dominant second half in Fontana en route to scoring the win.

Entering Sunday’s race at Circuit of The Americas (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX), Busch is seventh in the championship standings with three top-10 finishes. Settled in with a new team, he’s pleased with how things have gone but sees Sunday as an opportunity to contend as they need to.

“I don’t think you’re ever happy unless you’re winning every week, but relatively speaking I feel like we’ve done a good job,” he said of the season-to-date. “There have definitely been some things that we’ve done in (the simulator) that haven’t correlated to the racetrack and that’s been frustrating, so it’s all about fixing that tool and continuing to work and evolve on that.

“We’ve done a lot of work on that – especially with COTA. It’s almost like with as much work as we’ve put into this race, if we don’t win then I don’t know what else you can do. That’s kind of where we’re going to stack up and see how we are against the competition Sunday.”

Hill escapes chaos to take yet another Xfinity win at Atlanta

In a race that started in chaos and ended in bedlam on the last lap, Austin Hill won his third NASCAR Xfinity Series race of the season, beating Daniel Hemric to the checkered flag in Saturday’s RAPTOR King of the Tough 250 at Atlanta Motor …

In a race that started in chaos and ended in bedlam on the last lap, Austin Hill won his third NASCAR Xfinity Series race of the season, beating Daniel Hemric to the checkered flag in Saturday’s RAPTOR King of the Tough 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

With his family in attendance, the Winston, Ga., native, led three times for a race-high 103 laps and dominated an event that featured a record 12 cautions for 68 laps.

NASCAR called the final yellow on the last lap, after a multi-car wreck erupted as Hill and Hemric approached the finish line.

Parker Kligerman made a race of it until the cars entered the frontstretch dogleg on the last lap. At the end of a two-lap dash to the finish, Kligerman’s Chevrolet turned sideways across the front bumper of Hemric’s car and hit the right rear of Hill’s No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevy.

Hill maintained control and took the checkered flag with Hemric trailing by 0.085s. Kligerman slid backwards across the finish line in fourth, as Ryan Truex edged him for the third spot by 0.001s.

“They knew we were here,” Kligerman radioed to his Big Machine Racing team.

The defending race winner, Hill came to Atlanta with victories at Daytona and Las Vegas and, understandably, the Xfinity Series lead. The win was Hill’s second at Atlanta and the fifth of his career.

The only thing that shook Hill all night was the contact with the right rear of his car in the final 100 yards.

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“I have no idea how I saved it coming to the line,” Hill said, after his young daughter ran out to greet him at the finish line. “What a start to the season. Everybody at Richard Childress Racing, ECR engines—we’ve just had such a fast start with Chevrolet. This has been special, for sure.”

Riley Herbst finished fifth, followed by Brett Moffitt, Josh Berry, John Hunter Nemechek, Sam Mayer and Justin Haley.

Hill won the first stage, and Kligerman gave Big Machine its first-ever stage victory in the second.

In the first two stages combined, the race featured more caution laps than green-flag laps—49 to 31, to be exact—the result of nine yellow flags.

Josh Williams’ No. 92 Chevrolet sustained damage in a lap 27 accident with the No. 02 Chevy of Kyle Weatherman, and when Williams dropped debris on the frontstretch to cause the fourth caution moments after the subsequent lap 32 restart, NASCAR parked him under the Damaged Vehicle Policy.

Instead of driving his car to the garage, however, a frustrated Williams parked it at the start/finish line. NASCAR ordered Williams to the hauler for a discussion of the incident, after he was released from the infield care center.

RESULTS

Kyle Busch’s signing bonus from Richard Childress was a hilarious reference to his new boss once punching him

Of course, NASCAR fans loved this joke.

Welcome to FTW’s NASCAR Feud of the Week, where we provide a detailed breakdown of the latest absurd, funny and sometimes legitimate controversies and issues within the racing world.

Our latest NASCAR Feud of the Week is actually a throwback to an 11-year-old incident that came full circle this week, ending with a fabulous joke.

Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch will have a new team and new ride beginning in the 2023 season, and, of course, that also means he’ll have a new boss. Busch announced Tuesday that he’s leaving Joe Gibbs Racing after 15 seasons with the powerhouse team to join Richard Childress Racing.

“I’m excited to announce that I’ll be taking my talents to Welcome, North Carolina to drive the No. 8 car for Richard Childress Racing starting in 2023,” 37-year-old Busch said in a statement reminiscent of LeBron James in 2010.

So instead of Joe Gibbs, he’ll be reporting to Richard Childress — an interesting pair if you know you’re NASCAR history.

Basically, in what’s now known as the “hold my watch” incident, then-65-year-old Childress and then-26-year-old Busch tangled after a Truck Series race at Kansas Speedway in 2011. Now, Busch is no stranger to (sometimes physical) altercations in NASCAR, but in this instance, he wasn’t really the instigator.

A refresher on what happened, via The Athletic:

After a 2011 NASCAR Truck Series race at Kansas Speedway, team owner Richard Childress was livid over how Kyle Busch had made contact with Joey Coulter — who was then driving a Richard Childress Racing entry.

Childress infamously told grandson Austin Dillon to “Hold my watch,” because you wouldn’t want to mess up a nice timepiece in a fight. Then, according to witnesses, the much older man proceeded to place Busch into a headlock and punch him in the head several times before Busch fell to the ground. Childress was later fined $150,000 by NASCAR.

Fast forward 11 years later, and Busch and Childress are now on the same team and will be indefinitely, as the current No. 18 Toyota driver said it’s a multiyear deal.

During Busch’s announcement Tuesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, Childress even had a little fun over their shared history. After Busch shared his plans for next season and beyond, Childress joined him on stage and with a gift for his new driver.

“Well, you know, Kyle, the other week when we signed our contract, there was something I forgot to give you,” Childress said. “It was your signing bonus, so I’ve gotta give you your signing bonus.

“Will you hold my watch?” he asked, handing Busch a Rolex box.

“Absolutely,” Busch responded.

“That’s all we’re gonna talk about that,” Childress added. “That’s history.”

Clearly, Busch and Childress have moved far beyond the “hold my watch” incident more than a decade ago, and they made that clear recently, as uncertainty and speculation about Busch’s future was really heating up.

Saturday at Kansas, Busch also made a joke about their history. He said, via FOX Sports:

“Who is to say he hasn’t punched me again in any of these conversations?” he said. “Whenever you go into negotiations, it’s never fun, so you’re duking the whole time.

“You grow up, and you work through things. It was fine the first time I sat down with him.”

That’s a nice-looking signing bonus…

Tyler Reddick is joining 23XI for 2024 NASCAR season, and his current team had a stunningly blunt reaction

“…the timing of this announcement could not be any worse.”

Tyler Reddick was a surprise guest during a 23XI Racing/Toyota virtual press conference Tuesday, and it was for a surprising reason.

Once Reddick joined, Denny Hamlin, a co-owner of 23XI, and the team announced that Reddick will join the squad beginning in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season. The upcoming contract is a multiyear deal, the team said.

Reddick is still set to race for his current team, Richard Childress Racing, for the remainder of the 2022 season, and presumably in 2023 as well, with Richard Childress previously noting that Reddick is under contract for 2023.

Hamlin and 23XI president Steve Lauletta highlighted the team — whose first Cup season was in 2021 — is on a five-year plan with the ultimate goal of winning a championship, and they believe Reddick will help get it there.

Whether Reddick’s addition to 23XI means the team will field a third car or if he’ll replace one of its two current drivers, Bubba Wallace and Kurt Busch, remains unclear. Lauletta said that’s one of several “unanswered questions” at this point.

“All we know is we wanted [Reddick],” Hamlin added.

But both Lauletta and Hamlin emphasized that the team plans for Wallace and Busch to be part of the organization for a long time.

From Reddick’s perspective, he won his first career Cup race over July 4th weekend at Road America in Wisconsin. But he said he was “extremely interested in 23XI” and likes what he’s seen from the team and where it hopes to go.

However, one party seemingly far from excited about this announcement is Richard Childress Racing. The team released this statement not long after Reddick’s announcement.

It reads:

“We’re proud of the success Tyler Reddick has found at Richard Childress Racing. We’re focused on winning a championship in 2022 and 2023, although the timing of this announcement could not be any worse.”

That last phrase isn’t one you typically hear from NASCAR teams — or any sports team for that matter.

When asked about RCR’s statement, Reddick said:

“It’s always a difficult thing whenever two partners or two pieces or our relationship is going to come to an end. But I feel like it gives everyone time to figure out what lies ahead. What is the next step? Where do we go from here?

“So, for me and in my opinion, I feel like it’s better to do it now than in the playoffs. It’s better to do it now. There’s no there’s no reason to kick the can down the road. We know what lies ahead, and we now all know what’s in front of us and what we need to do.”

Still, RCR’s blunt statement caught many in the racing world by surprise, and they shared their astonished reactions on Twitter:

Breaking down the NASCAR crash that led owner Richard Childress to say he can kick Brad Keselowski’s ‘[expletive]’

Richard Childress was not happy with Brad Keselowski at NASCAR’s Michigan race.

Welcome to FTW’s NASCAR Feud of the Week, where we provide a detailed breakdown of the latest absurd, funny and sometimes legitimate controversies and issues within the racing world.

Our NASCAR Feud of the Week series took a little break during the season, but it’s back just in time for the end of the regular season and 10-race playoffs this fall.

In this edition, we’re looking back at Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway, where Brad Keselowski and Austin Dillon tangled on the track, leading to a (probably not real) threat from NASCAR team owner Richard Childress.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves, so let’s break it down.

Sunday at Michigan’s two-mile track, Keselowski in the No. 2 Team Penske Ford and Dillon in the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet were racing to the end of the second stage in the 200-lap race. Dillon passed Keselowski to finish sixth in the stage, while Keselowski on the No. 3’s bumper was seventh.

But as the pair crossed the start-finish line, Keseslowski made contact with Dillon’s car, sending the No. 3 card hard into the outside wall. It was a violent crash that ended when Dillon’s car spun and slid down to the inside of the track.

While Dillon took responsibility and told his team, “My bad, guys,” Keselowski seemed to as well and said over the No. 2 team’s radio: “Oh man, I didn’t want to do that! Damn it!” The No. 2 driver later added:

“Man, tell him I’m sorry. I had no intent to do that, man. I didn’t think he was coming back up [the track].”

But it was Childress, Dillon’s grandfather, who had the most fiery response. On the No. 3 team’s radio, the 75-year-old team owner said:

“Wrecked him on purpose. I’m an old man, but I can kick his ass.”

The crash and what led to it — along with teams’ radio audio — can be found at the 1:45 mark in FOX Sports’ compilation of radio highlights:

With one checkered flag so far this season, Keselowski — who finished ninth at Michigan — is already qualified for the 16-driver playoffs, which begin in September. Dillon, however, is not qualified, and with one race left in the regular season — the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway — he’s in a must-win situation now after not finishing at Michigan.

After being cleared by the medical team in the infield care center, Dillon said:

“I was just trying to get as many stage points as I could get right there and did a good job of side-drafting and came down to the apron. And I’ve seen just one quick replay, but it was after the start-finish line. I was starting to come up off the apron because it’s so rough down there, but I figured by that point, he would have given me a little room.

“I hate it. I’m thankful that the good Lord kept me safe today. That was a heck of a wreck, but I feel fine. I hate it for BREZTRI and my guys, most of all. The built a rocket ship. They really wanted this one, and I did too. Just working our tails off right there. I think we would have had a shot to do something there at the end with that race car. Best race car we’ve brought to the track at RCR this year, I feel like. It’s just a bummer, but we’ve got Daytona left and just hate it. I don’t know why it happened, really. I thought I had a little room to come up, and he just held me down there a little bit too long, I guess.”

After the race, Keselowski said of the wreck, via NASCAR.com:

“I am bummed. I wanted of course to get a win and I hate that I had that contact with the 3. … That really sucks for everybody. It really hurt our day and obviously ruined his. That was crappy. So it goes.”

The Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona is Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on NBC.

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