via Getty
AUSTIN, TEXAS – MARCH 27: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Skittles Lime is Back Toyota, walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Echopark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on March 27, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
via Getty
AUSTIN, TEXAS – MARCH 27: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Skittles Lime is Back Toyota, walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Echopark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on March 27, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
On Sunday, the NASCAR Cup race at the Bristol Motor Speedway concluded with Kyle Busch winning. In the process, he is now tied with the legendary Richard Petty for the most consecutive seasons with at least one win. However, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver made a rather polarising declaration, comparing himself to the late Dale Earnhardt Sr.
Kyle Busch should never ever compare himself to Dale Earnhardt. Ever.
— Staci2⃣4⃣ (@Stacitwofour) April 18, 2022
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This seems like some kind of sacrilege or blasphemy or something. Kyle Busch ≠ Dale Earnhardt. One is an icon who is respected and the other is a guy who is hated by all of nascar except a niche group and is not respected.
— larson fanboy (@Lar5on542) April 18, 2022
Naturally, many fans were a bit outraged at Busch’s bold proclamation and called him out on it. One response read, “Hated when he said that. You will never be a 7x champ ser“. There were many others who shared the same opinion, that Busch should never compare himself to Dale Sr. A lot of people considered it sacrilegious, as Busch is a completely different person compared to Earnhardt.
— Sim Racers For Mental Health (@SR4MH) April 18, 2022
All jokes aside, this is so disrespectful. I would love to hear @DaleJr ‘s thoughts on this. This coming from a guy that will never come close to the legacy Dale Sr. has in this sport. https://t.co/64OcP2qe2i
— Jesse Sperling (@JesseSperling13) April 18, 2022
According to the fans, Dale Earnhardt Sr is a well-beloved figure in the NASCAR community and a legend. On the other hand, Kyle Busch is a driver who more often than not faces criticism from fans. The #18 driver is easily the most polarising driver in NASCAR and is prone to controversial comments. However, he has come dangerously close to crossing a sacred line with his comparison with Dale Sr.
What was Kyle Busch actually talking about?
Interestingly, his quote was actually taken out of context and it unintentionally stirred the pot. Apparently, Busch was referring to the number of people booing him, just for winning the race. The Dale Earnhardt connection was because The Intimidator punted Terry Labonte out of the race in 1999. As a result, the legendary driver also received his fair share of boos from the crowd.
He was referring to the boos he was getting when he said that, as it was like the boos Dale got for wrecking Terry Labonte to win there.
— Mike Johannes (@1stClassDesigns) April 18, 2022
Not on backing into a win. On… how the crowd received him winning. Sr didn't back into wins. He won 7 chips buddy. Maybe the crowd likes a villian
— Joe Mama (@JoeMama75045979) April 18, 2022
Pretty sure it was because the crowd was booing him. "I didn't even do anything!"
— Denise Holmes (@decebfsfan) April 18, 2022
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Really Kyle? It doesn’t matter how you win? I guess as long as it’s you. But let someone else get a last second win and they’re backing into one. That’s why the boos.
— Thomas Hillrich (@Caddy59Tom) April 18, 2022
He said I feel like Sr getting booed when I wasn’t even involved in the wreck. They left off most of what he said and then added stuff he didn’t to get a big response outta twitter lol
— heath gerrald (@GerraldHeath) April 18, 2022
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Apparently, all of that started in 1995, when Labonte was leading and Earnhardt was hunting him down. At that time, Earnhardt was quicker and on the last lap, he bumped Labonte. Somehow, the #5 driver held on and managed to win the race, despite his car being out of control. Four years later, Dale Sr decided to finish what he started and successfully dumped Terry Labonte out of the race. Unfortunately, the fans did not appreciate that and booed him, so Kyle Busch probably had some sense of déjà vu.
