Kyle Busch speaks out about fallout from Parker Retzlaff drama at Daytona
Last week at Daytona, there was a huge controversy after Kyle Busch lost the race to Harrison Burton, thanks to Parker Retzlaff. The NASCAR world has been debating who was in the wrong for a week.
Parker Retzlaff was driving the No. 62 car for Beard Motorsports. That team has an alliance with Richard Childress Racing. Many felt that Retzlaff did not line up correctly on the final restart, choosing the line behind Harrison Burton and not Kyle Busch.
For the most part, the optics look worse than what really happened. A Chevy pushed a Ford to the win. But, how does Busch feel about it?
According to Kelly Crandall of RACER.com, Rowdy doesn’t seem to have any hard feelings for the 21-year-old racer.
“Not me,” Busch said about a potential apology, “but I don’t know what business relationships there are behind the scenes.”
Kyle Busch also clarified that Retzlaff was not in the Chevy key partner meeting before the race. So, he would not know what to do in an end race situation like the one that played out last week. If Busch is fine with it, shouldn’t the rest of us be?
Kyle Busch needed a win at Daytona. He can’t point himself into the NASCAR Playoffs. So, he had the most to lose and the most to be upset about last week.
I think that Busch understands what it is like for a young racer to have an opportunity like Retzlaff had. While it didn’t look good in the moment, what was he supposed to do? Give up P4 so he could line up behind Busch and Christopher Bell in the third row back?
Parker Retzlaff raced for the win, and I think that Kyle Busch respects that.
Kyle Busch has to worry about Darlington
For a two-time champion like Kyle Busch, this season is a huge disappointment. It didn’t help that he had five DNFs in a seven-race period at one point this season. Even then, Busch is 16th overall in points, but those outside winners have pushed him out of the picture.
Darlington is not the best track for Busch. It isn’t a great track for when you NEED a win and nothing else will work. But that is the hand that the No. 8 team has been dealt this season and they have just enough money for the small blind and play one final hand.
Richard Childress Racing has not had a great season in the Cup Series. There is no denying that. Even though Austin Dillon did win a race, he had his playoff eligibility taken away for his reckless driving that earned him the win.
So, what can you do? Kyle Busch is in a tough spot and has one more regular season race to make the playoffs. It feels like a little too late, but we might see Rowdy shock the world on Sunday.