CUP: SPEED Crew Reacts To Kurt Busch Keeping Ride

Sprint Cup

CUP: SPEED Crew Reacts To Kurt Busch Keeping Ride

SPEED on-air analysts offer their perspective on the news that team owner James Finch has retained Busch as his driver...

SPEED Staff | Posted June 12, 2012 Charlotte, NC

Kurt Busch would be wise to choose his words carefully going forward. (Photo: Getty Images)

SPEED CREW REACTS TO NEWS KURT BUSCH WILL REMAIN WITH PHOENIX RACING

Kurt Busch on Tuesday met with James Finch, owner of Busch’s No. 51 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, to discuss Busch’s suspension from last weekend’s race at Pocono Raceway and how the duo will move forward.

Following their meeting, Finch and the team released a statement indicating Busch will remain with the team, although other details of the conversation will remain between them.

Below, SPEED on-air analysts offer their perspective on the news that Finch has retained Busch as his driver:

“I think retaining Kurt is a classic James Finch move. He’s a colorful character but also a man who, after you shake his hand on a deal, you’ve got to do something pretty bad to break that bond. Maybe Finch took into consideration that the Dover deal with a reporter happened in a Nationwide race and not in his car, although what a driver does and says affects all his teams. I’m glad Kurt isn’t losing another ride because he doesn’t need that, and hopefully Finch is able to talk some sense into him and he can figure out what is causing these outbursts and do something about it.”
--Darrell Waltrip, NASCAR on SPEED and FOX analyst

“The sport needs single-car teams like Phoenix Racing and we need a winning, championship driver like Kurt. I hope sitting out and watching somebody else drive his car has finally impacted Kurt, because monetary fines, losing two rides and past probation haven’t affected him before. Nothing had really moved the needle on Kurt.

“I’m a huge Kurt fan. He’s so dang talented but he has to figure out how to control his emotions, and I think he will need some help to do that. And when he thinks he can’t control his emotions, he should just walk away. The media will still write about you when you walk away, but you don’t put yourself in jeopardy.

“If he wants to drive for Finch for the rest of his career and sign a sponsor, he’s going to have to rectify himself because a sponsor wouldn’t touch him with a 10-foot pole right now. Kurt is not auditioning his talent to a sponsor – he is auditioning whether or not he can change his behavior and represent a company in a respectable manner.

“I just want to shake Kurt when I look at my son, who has some talent but can’t get the right opportunity because we don’t have a briefcase full of money, while Kurt has had that opportunity and was able to capitalize on it, but now is throwing it away. Now he needs to continue to capitalize on it and not throw it down the drain.”
--Larry McReynolds, SPEED analyst

“Kurt can keep doing this only so long before he really finds himself out on the curb. I think James Finch is a great fit for him, but the race still went on Sunday without Kurt. The sport will go on without any one particular driver, so it’s time for Kurt to wake up to the fact he has problems he needs to fix. But until he admits it, we’ll be talking about him in a couple of weeks when he blows up again. Hopefully, he won’t, but I won’t be surprised if he does.”
--Jimmy Spencer, SPEED analyst and former driver

“It would be a tragedy to let Kurt’s talent go to waste. Finch is the right person for Kurt at this time because they don’t have a sponsor to answer to. If Kurt had a major sponsor, he would be gone just like he was with his previous two teams. Therefore, Finch is the perfect match for him and hopefully they can get Kurt straightened out so NASCAR fans can enjoy watching his talent behind the wheel.

“But Kurt cannot move forward and improve himself unless he gets help. He has already had two chances with two of the largest car owners in the world and they both fired him. This has become a broken record with Kurt and the only reason he‘s getting away with this is because he is so talented. If he wasn’t, he would have been gone four years ago.”
--Kenny Wallace, NASCAR Nationwide Series driver and SPEED analyst

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