Wally Dallenbach seems to think Spencer needs to be suspended for his behavior in the Brickyard:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/790173.asp#BODY
Spencer’s bullish style must stop
Driver deserves stiff penalty for wrecking Busch at Indy
by Wally Dallenbach
Aug. 5 — There’s no question in my mind that Jimmy Spencer intentionally spun Kurt Busch in Turn 3 of Sunday’s Brickyard 400. The two have had an on-going feud since last year at Phoenix and this was just the latest episode in their soap opera. However, while drivers have been settling scores between themselves for the last 50 years, going 200 mph at Indianapolis was neither the time nor the place for Spencer to even the slate. And I think NASCAR missed the boat by not penalizing him right on the spot.
MR. EXCITEMENT IS MR. DANGEROUS
Busch’s car was strong enough to have given eventual winner Bill Elliott a run for his money. Instead, he ends up getting parked by a driver and a car that finished 31st.
Had Elliott done to Busch what Spencer did, I honestly could have believed it was an accident, because Elliott doesn’t race that way. But a guy like Spencer, who carries the nickname “Mr. Excitement” for his aggressive driving style, has a long history of pulling stuff like this, and not just with Busch. So when there’s a definite pattern, then it’s not accidental. And with Spencer, it’s too much of a coincidence for NASCAR not to see that.
HISTORY OF THE FEUD
Last October in Phoenix, Busch claimed Spencer intentionally bumped him. At Bristol earlier this season, Spencer moved Busch out of the way to grab the lead with 56 laps remaining, only to have Busch nudge Spencer on the next lap to win his first Winston Cup race.
That evened the score and the two should have moved on.
But Spencer, whose second at Bristol denied him his first victory in eight years, vowed that he wouldn’t forget. Now he’s taken it to a higher-profiled race on a very fast racetrack. Those are two reasons it shouldn’t have been done. And I’m not buying Spencer’s excuse that Busch slowed down and caused Sunday’s accident. Spencer should be reminded that there happens to be a left pedal in his race car. It’s called a brake.
Afterward, Busch probably fanned the feud’s flames by referring to Spencer as a “decrepit old has-been.” But that still was not a threat to anyone’s well-being. What Spencer did on the racetrack was, and that’s the big difference. In this case, the actions far outweigh the words and that’s what NASCAR must keep in mind when it meets with Busch, Spencer and their respective car owners — Jack Roush and Chip Ganassi — on Friday at Watkins Glen.
A TIME AND PLACE FOR EVERYTHING
Drivers should get the beatin’ and bangin’ out of the way at the short tracks. It’s one thing turning a guy at Martinsville or Bristol going 90 or 100 mph; it’s a totally different thing when you do it at Indy running 200 mph.
There have always been feuds between drivers, from classics like Richard Petty-Bobby Allison to Dale Earnhardt-Geoff Bodine. But the problem today is that cars are carrying a lot more speed and consequently hitting walls a lot faster than they were 10 or 15 years ago. We’re getting into a very dangerous area when it comes to intentionally taking out another car on the racetrack. Somebody is going to get killed and then it’s really going to change our sport. And the last thing this sport needs is to be changed by a guy with an acknowledged past of making stupid moves on the racetrack.
NIP IT IN THE BUD
The only way it’s going to stop is for NASCAR to take action. At Martinsville earlier this year, the overly-aggressive Kevin Harvick recklessly got into Coy Gibbs in the truck series race and NASCAR parked Harvick for that weekend’s Winston Cup event. The move was immediate, decisive and forced Harvick to think twice the next time.
Make a driver watch a race on TV and I’ll guarantee there will be an adjustment in his attitude. Fining them or taking away points are minor deterrents. Does a guy like Spencer, who’s 24th in the standings and earns a couple million dollars a year, really care if he loses some points or gets hit with a fine? If NASCAR, however, sits him down for a weekend, that not only gets his attention, it gets his sponsor’s attention as well.