Kyle Busch

— When the news broke in early June, the public vitriol aimed at NASCAR driver Kyle Busch burst into view. Reports had surfaced that NASCAR team owner Richard Childress, fed up with Busch running into this drivers in recent races, grabbed Busch in the Kansas Speedway garage and punched him. NASCAR then levied a $150,000 fine on Childress. But in the court of public opinion, it was Childress, 65, who was presumed innocent and the temperamental Busch, 26, who had it coming.

Georgetown University guard Fred Brown absent-mindedly threw a pass to North Carolina's James Worthy in the NCAA men's basketball championship game 30 years ago and handed the Tar Heels a championship. Hoyas' coach John Thompson never wavered in his faith in Brown and two years later the story ended in a national championship bear hug. Whether driver Kyle Busch and crew chief Dave Rogers share a Sprint Cup Series championship bro-hug remains to be seen. They won't get a chance this season, in large part because Rogers' call that Busch not pit during a rain caution at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday began a slide that ended in Busch not making the Chase.

By Marty O'Brien Few have ever questioned Kyle Busch's talent. How could they? Only 24, Busch has won 45 races in NASCAR's three major series since the start of 2008. The knock on Busch has been patience, or more precisely, his lack of it. His petulance, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s availability, led to a falling out at Hendrick Motorsports and a move to Joe Gibbs Racing. His brilliance was evident en route to eight wins in his first season at JGR in 2008. But his inconsistency — some would argue impatience — was evident in a failure to qualify for the 2009 Chase despite four more wins.

Johnson proven winner Shawn Courchesne Hartford Courant Kyle Busch? Brad Keselowski? Jeff Gordon? Kevin Harvick? No, no, no and no. Sure, it has become the fashionable thing to pick against Jimmie Johnson when it comes to the NASCAR Chase for the Championship. Here's a tip: Don't do it. Until Johnson and his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team don't win the championship, it's impossible not to predict them to win it all. After five consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series titles, the Hendrick team has proved its has mastered the 10-race NASCAR playoff format.

Georgetown University guard Fred Brown absent-mindedly threw a pass to North Carolina's James Worthy in the NCAA men's basketball championship game 30 years ago and handed the Tar Heels a championship. Hoyas' coach John Thompson never wavered in his faith in Brown and two years later the story ended in a national championship bear hug. Whether driver Kyle Busch and crew chief Dave Rogers share a Sprint Cup Series championship bro-hug remains to be seen. They won't get a chance this season, in large part because Rogers' call that Busch not pit during a rain caution at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday began a slide that ended in Busch not making the Chase.

You'd think the exhilaration of becoming the first driver to sweep all three NASCAR national series races at the same track on the same weekend would last a few days, weeks or even months. But that's not Kyle Busch. No, the perfectionist in Busch tells him he is only as good as his next race. So even if he finishes second when he races an off-road truck later this week, the perfection of Bristol will be a far-off memory. "We just won. It's awesome. It's great for the team," Busch said after winning the Irwin Tools Night Race on Saturday at Bristol.

Good on ya, David Reutimann. He isn't one of those "have at it" guys wreckin' havoc on the racetrack. He simply is applying sound principles of driver etiquette. "If you mess with me, I will mess with you. " Reutimann did nothing wrong when he intentionally slammed his car into Kyle Busch's door in Kansas on Sunday. The contact caused Busch to bounce off the wall, and was considered more than just a chippy shot because both guys drive Toyotas. Tough cookies for the Toyota brand.

Are we supposed to celebrate Kyle Busch's recent "triple play"? Or bemoan the fact he is cherry-picking easy victories against less-experienced and less-talented drivers? There are lines of demarcation in all sports, which is why you never will see the Florida Tuskers of the UFL taking on the Indianapolis Colts of the NFL. But it's a little different in NASCAR, which allows drivers to mix and match in three different series. It makes for an odd mix like we saw last month, when Busch completed an unprecedented sweep of three national races.

However rocky the relationship is between Richard Childress Racing and Kevin Harvick, one thing is clear: There aren't lot of better options for Harvick. RCR is now, even if it hasn't been in the past, the perfect fit for Harvick. "We're very excited to have Kevin back," Richard Childress said in announcing a multiyear contract extension. "He has written a lot of history for RCR." Harvick is grateful to Childress, who, after all, started his Cup racing career.

Same rules for all Jim Peltz Los Angeles Times Of course not, if we're talking about decking someone in the garage or otherwise causing harm (or potential harm). Owners, drivers, crew members, Brian France, Mike Helton — they all should be held to the same standard. Did you notice how Helton, NASCAR's president, described Kyle Busch when Helton took up the matter with the media last weekend at Kansas Speedway? He referred to Busch as "another NASCAR member.

The Hendrick Motorsports empire will celebrate its sixth consecutive Sprint Cup title in November. One person will be conspicuously absent: Jimmie Johnson. The five-time champion will finally be dethroned, not by any of his archrivals named Busch or anybody else. His good friend and teammate Jeff Gordon is going to bring him down. And so it is written. In his own words, Gordon is "rejuvenated" after three regular-season victories, including a thrilling run at Atlanta Motor Speedway in which he held off a furious charge from Johnson in the last 10 laps.

Certainly there have been worse transactions in the history of sports. Take your pick: The Red Sox selling Babe Ruth so they could finance a Broadway musical. The Baltimore Colts forcibly dumping pouty Sanford rookie QB John Elway for Mark Hermann and a couple of offensive linemen. The Dodgers trading promising Pedro Martinez for second baseman Delino DeShields. But somewhere down the line, in the zip-zip world of stock car racing, comes this one: Dale Earnhardt Jr. for Kyle Busch.

— When the news broke in early June, the public vitriol aimed at NASCAR driver Kyle Busch burst into view. Reports had surfaced that NASCAR team owner Richard Childress, fed up with Busch running into this drivers in recent races, grabbed Busch in the Kansas Speedway garage and punched him. NASCAR then levied a $150,000 fine on Childress. But in the court of public opinion, it was Childress, 65, who was presumed innocent and the temperamental Busch, 26, who had it coming.

Ryan Newman capped off a banner weekend for Stewart-Haas Racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway by winning Sunday's Lenox Industrial Tools 301. Newman, the pole sitter, conserved enough fuel and then held off his Stewart- Haas Racing teammate, Tony Stewart, in the closing laps to snap a 47-race winless streak in the Sprint Cup Series. He did not pit during a round of stops under caution with less than 60 laps remaining. Newman finished 0.8 seconds ahead of Stewart, as SHR claimed its first 1-2 finish since the racing organization made its debut in the series at the start of the 2009 season.

Now that Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch are out of probationary prison, it's Game On again. Although Busch wants to move forward and symbolically sign some kind of truce and drive nice, Harvick is ready to rumble again. "He knows he has one coming," Harvick said after finishing fifth at Pocono on Sunday, only two spots behind Busch. The two got tangled up briefly when Harvick forced Busch down the track early in the race. "I just wanted him to think about it," Harvick said.

Same rules for all Jim Peltz Los Angeles Times Of course not, if we're talking about decking someone in the garage or otherwise causing harm (or potential harm). Owners, drivers, crew members, Brian France, Mike Helton — they all should be held to the same standard. Did you notice how Helton, NASCAR's president, described Kyle Busch when Helton took up the matter with the media last weekend at Kansas Speedway? He referred to Busch as "another NASCAR member.

Sunday's race in Martinsville, Va., will mark the first Car of Tomorrow race for NASCAR with a spoiler instead of a wing. Stock car purists have to be pleased at the change. The spoiler makes the car look more like a traditional stock car. As for the changes in racing? Even the drivers don't know what to expect. "There's not a lot of characteristic difference from the driver's seat because they did a good job making sure, from an aero standpoint," said Kevin Harvick, who participated in a test at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Tuesday.

Johnson proven winner Shawn Courchesne Hartford Courant Kyle Busch? Brad Keselowski? Jeff Gordon? Kevin Harvick? No, no, no and no. Sure, it has become the fashionable thing to pick against Jimmie Johnson when it comes to the NASCAR Chase for the Championship. Here's a tip: Don't do it. Until Johnson and his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team don't win the championship, it's impossible not to predict them to win it all. After five consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series titles, the Hendrick team has proved its has mastered the 10-race NASCAR playoff format.

Kyle Busch has a problem. He has a problem with Kevin Harvick. He has a problem driving on city streets, going 83 mph faster than the posted speed limit. He has a problem keeping any sort of gentleman's decorum on the racetrack, assuming he has a free pass to play bumper cars with anybody who gets in his way. Busch is like a 2-year-old without adult supervision. His owner, Joe Gibbs, certainly isn't up to the task. And neither are folks like Brian France and Mike Helton from NASCAR, who have given Busch a "probation" for some of his antics.

There were a few "oh-oh" moments in the press box Sunday night in Charlotte. The obvious one was when Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran out of gas on the last lap. But there were also a few intertwined before then, particularly when Kyle Busch was out in front. NASCAR's notorious bad boy led twice for 55 laps and ran in the top 10 for much of the night before a couple of late-race spins took him out of contention. He finished 32nd. If Busch had won, there undoubtedly would have been a few uncomfortable moments during the interview session.