Thursday, May 26, 2011

Kyle Busch apologizes in press conference

Kyle Busch answered questions about his “128 mph in a 45 mph” speeding incident on a public road Thursday, and to me he sounded an awful lot like he was running for office.

I’m not sure I’ve ever heard an athlete take every question in the allotted time – which Busch did – and never say “no comment’ but stick so closely to what had to be preconceived talking points.

In a nutshell, Busch apologized repeatedly for his “lack of judgment” and said he would make this a “learning experience” and then “move forward.” In one way or the other, Busch answered almost every question with those same phrases. It sounded pretty canned.

An example from Busch:

“I’m certainly sorry that it happened.... It was a lack of judgment, all I can do is apologize to the public, my friends, my fans, my sponsors, everybody – I’ll look at this as a learning experience and move forward.”

Busch sounded chastened and not at all like his ornery self (which did occasionally exhibit itself, but only in questions about other subjects, of which there were a surprising number).

Busch also managed to throw in lavish praise to both the police and the military during his news conference. If there had been an American flag nearby, I wouldn’t have been surprised to see him wrap himself inside.

The closest thing Busch said that sounded like the way he usually talks came in a response to a question from The Observer’s David Scott, who asked why Busch had called the fancy Lexus he was driving a “toy” to the trooper who issued him the citation.

Busch said the $350,000 Lexus wasn’t a toy, but a high-performance vehicle that was on loan to him from Lexus. He said it was a car that should be driven with caution, which he hadn’t shown. He said that when you see car commercials that note at the bottom that the stunts done were by a professional driver on a closed course that there’s a reason for that and “mine was not that.”

Five-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson noted later in another interview that owning a high-performance car is a natural temptation, which is why he doesn’t get in them much.

“Everybody who has a high-performance car stands on the throttle at some point,” Johnson said, adding that wasn’t an excuse. Johnson also said he had never been in “triple digits” on a public road.

Busch drives his Sprint Cup car for Joe Gibbs, and Gibbs did address the media shortly after Busch did. Gibbs said this was a “serious issue” but did not specify what punishment, if any, Busch would receive from him.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Busch was prob on pain pills and had a flashback thinking he was in a big race so that slow 128 mph was coasting compared to the normal 200 mph it takes to win.

Anonymous said...

He is a spoiled brat who was probably told to say "Sorry".
If he hit someone at that speed then what would he say.
Why does he think he can do what he wants and not be punished.

Anonymous said...

Hey Kyle, just say this and that and this whole thing will go away.

Love ya mean it, Bruton.

Anonymous said...

Damn. And in the early 70s before the new big 4 lane I-77 was open everybody with a hot ride used take their 396 Chevelle or Camaro or big Hemi Plymouth and race at 150 mph from Trade St down to Tyvola Road at midnite and the cops didnt do a thing. Times have changed.

Rhyno said...

Punk.

Anonymous said...

What is a mugwump? NASCAR,or someone that sits on the fence with their mug on one side and their rump on the other side.NASCAR's refusal to take a stand would indicate they condone rogue drivers and the publicity they bring. If Nascar wants to save their sport they need to clean up their image and become a good citizen by supporting the laws designed to protect the public. Don't suppoet someone that has a total disregard for public safety and the lives he could have taken.

Anonymous said...

KB just sold BS 30k more ticks with this speed tick that has gone i'national in the media.

NASCAR should pay him for all the free publicity that shook it out of the rut or maybe it was a setup.

Anonymous said...

Please. You'd think this was the first time a NASCAR driver got out of hand. I'm an OLD fan from way back, when you expected them to be rowdy and racy on and off the track. I think even The King got nailed a couple times for blowing out his street car on the back roads. This is way overblown by politically correct media and new age fans. Busch did stupid for sure, but he's one out of a million who do stupid every day. You'd think he drowned a kitten or shot the Pope. It's easy to see how little there is to cover in NASCAR when a speeding ticket makes all the front pages. And what ever happened to the Michael Waltrip deal when he ran his SUV off the road at night, walked home barefoot and then avoided the authorities who came to investigate?

Anonymous said...

Please. You'd think this was the first time a NASCAR driver got out of hand. I'm an OLD fan from way back, when you expected them to be rowdy and racy on and off the track. I think even The King got nailed a couple times for blowing out his street car on the back roads. This is way overblown by politically correct media and new age fans. Busch did stupid for sure, but he's one out of a million who do stupid every day. You'd think he drowned a kitten or shot the Pope. It's easy to see how little there is to cover in NASCAR when a speeding ticket makes all the front pages. And what ever happened to the Michael Waltrip deal when he ran his SUV off the road at night, walked home barefoot and then avoided the authorities who came to investigate?

Newton plug said...

Kyle Busch answered it really well. It was really interesting read it in detail and also the feedback of people. Thanks for sharing

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