Busch takes bullying to another level

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By B.J. Bethel, Staff Writer Updated 3:26 PM Monday, September 12, 2011

Don’t let the detractors of NASCAR driver Kurt Busch fool you. He isn’t a bully — he’s a bully’s bully.

Somewhere, there is a fifth-grade class terror watching Speed Channel, taking notes. There’s a fourth-grade hooligan — who should be a freshman — brandishing his Kurt Busch T-shirt as he strokes his five-o’clock shadow and shakes down classmates for lunch money.

Busch is a good NASCAR driver, but he’s a better bully — which is why he is known less for the former than the later.

The latest example was the press conference following Saturday night’s Sprint Cup event at Richmond, Va. According to a report from Yahoo! Sports Jay Busbee, Busch — who finished sixth in the race — began his portion of the conference by getting into a verbal confrontation with a reporter. Once other drivers arrived, he settled down.

Soon after, he was asked by Associated Press reporter Jenna Fryer about a previous comment he had made — that he was “inside the head” of fellow racer Jimmie Johnson, Busch’s main antagonist and chief rival.

Busch denied making the statement, which also makes him a liar. He made the statement on ESPN — on camera — and when presented with a transcript of the interview, preceded to take it from Fryer, tear it in half, and dump it on the desk in front of her.

Acting tough to reporters, who will never hit you back, or getting into confrontations with drivers with security around does not a tough guy make. What it does make you is what one would find at the heart of every bully — a coward.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2250 or at bjbethel@coxohio.com.

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