mick
Nitro Member
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Kurt Busch (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter Just Paul
- Start date
mw6789
Nitro Member
I respect your point Alan, but if you were paid over $1M dollars a year plus every perk imaginable, I would hope you could keep you mother f***er outbusts to yourself. Makes me wonder if Richard Pettry ever had an outburst like that--I seriously doubt it. Thats probably why he is, was, and will forever be the king. Busch gets paid to be a professional---not BUSH league. If he wants to act that way, go back to the Saturday night bull rings where that type of behavior is accepatable.
none
Nitro Member
Mike,
I understand what you are saying and I agree, but to compare Richard Petty would be a little like comparing any of Baseballs bad boys of today to Babe Ruth. I'm sure everyone knows the stories of his wild days, that went completely unreported. The scrutiny they were under then doesn't come close to what the drivers have to deal with today. And I'm not suggesting that RP wasn't the gentleman that he is, just that what happened even 15 years ago that was deemed acceptable wouldn't fly today.
And for the record, I'm not saying what Kurt did and said was OK I'm just saying that I understand the situation that led to it.
Alan
I understand what you are saying and I agree, but to compare Richard Petty would be a little like comparing any of Baseballs bad boys of today to Babe Ruth. I'm sure everyone knows the stories of his wild days, that went completely unreported. The scrutiny they were under then doesn't come close to what the drivers have to deal with today. And I'm not suggesting that RP wasn't the gentleman that he is, just that what happened even 15 years ago that was deemed acceptable wouldn't fly today.
And for the record, I'm not saying what Kurt did and said was OK I'm just saying that I understand the situation that led to it.
Alan
mw6789
Nitro Member
Probably not a fair comparision, but in todays youtube world, a highly paid athlete has to use better judgement. I too have let a few mf'ers fly in my shop for sure and have embarassed myself in the past. Maturity has taken care of a lot of it. Just seems to me the Busch brothers lack quite a bit in the maturity department. And I would pay money to see Scelzi have a go at giving an "attitude adjustment" to the Busch brothers---how bout you??
.
Nitro Member
How about this gem: Jack Hewitt - YouTube
I bet Richard Petty is glad cellphones and the Internet weren't around back then!
While this has been an interesting thread there is only one post here that’s critically important to this issue, and that’s Alan Reinhart’s.
I would like to confirm the things he’s written. I have worked many a finish line when an excited-to-win driver has been forced by commercial breaks to stand there so long that his enthusiasm has been replaced by anger and frustration.
I have also been in the pits when a racer has been forced to stand there for as long as 10 minutes before someone in the truck threw it to the pit reporter. And I can promise you that not one of ‘em were happy about the wait.
Does anyone out there really understand the time demands on a Cup driver? The public relations commitments are staggering. They have absolutely no time for themselves. They’ll race Sunday, do a remote radio interview Sunday night, then first thing Monday they have to be at the sponsor’s office, then that afternoon there’s a TV show in Baltimore. The next morning it’s “Good Morning, Cleveland,” and they have to be in the studio at 4:30 AM. It’s a killing grind, and the mere fact that more of ‘em don’t go off regularly surprises me.
We can’t be two-faced about this. While you might think Kurt is a jerk (I’m trying to give him a break), he’s certainly generating a heck of a lot of exposure. It might not be ideal exposure, but it’s exposure nevertheless.
Alan was also right about the interview thing. He was waiting for it to start, not doing it when he went off.
And how long was he supposed to stand there and wait?
I know this is blasphemous, but television isn’t the end-all and be-all of motorsports. Yes, it’s critically important, but for every Gary Gerould or Dave Reiff out there, there are a dozen others who are overly obnoxious, pushy and absolutely full of their own self-importance. Believe me, I have been doing an interview with a driver, with a recorder in plain view, when a TV person has walked right up, once actually shoving me aside, and begun talking to the driver as if no one else was even in sight. It’s not fun dealing with the self-important. And just in case, the incidents I’m referring to do NOT include the ESPN team currently working in drag racing. Yes, in past years there were some obnoxious people involved with our telecasts, but I’ve also worked Indy car racing as well as other series, so…
I don’t believe Jerry Punch is one of them, by the way. I believe he’s a real pro.
I can’t remember if it was last year or the year before, but the PR people had Juan Pablo Montoya – who’d dealt with an aggressive and abusive European motorsports press during his tenure in F1 and therefore knew all about how obnoxious those of us in the media can be – running from dawn to dusk. He literally had TV interviews for shows far smaller than my mythical “Good Morning Cleveland.” He was doing them for “Good Morning Sioux City!” and “What’s Hot In Fargo Today!”
At the end of the day there was one more to do. Montoya said, “You promised me I’d be done at five o’clock. It’s now 5:15. I’m walking.” With that he pulled off the microphone and walked out. The station that was supposed to be doing the five o’clock interview finally checked in at 5:30 – and were then miffed that Montoya stood them up, so they bashed him on the air – and it was their fault, not his.
Mike English, you may be right that a driver is a PR person for his sponsor, but he’s also a person, and there are times when you can only take so much before going off.
Lots of people here used to bash Whit Bazemore for his willingness to actually say what was on his mind. A lot of people apparently didn’t like that. They wanted an “everything’s-wonderful” kind of driver. Well, that wasn’t Whit, and it’s not Kurt.
And who are we talking about here? It ain’t Dave Blaney!
Brent Busch, knowing the tone of this thread you may have to prove that!
Go read Alan’s last post. Who among us (other than, say, one of the Kardashian sisters) would want their worst moments put on YouTube?
Jon Asher
I would like to confirm the things he’s written. I have worked many a finish line when an excited-to-win driver has been forced by commercial breaks to stand there so long that his enthusiasm has been replaced by anger and frustration.
I have also been in the pits when a racer has been forced to stand there for as long as 10 minutes before someone in the truck threw it to the pit reporter. And I can promise you that not one of ‘em were happy about the wait.
Does anyone out there really understand the time demands on a Cup driver? The public relations commitments are staggering. They have absolutely no time for themselves. They’ll race Sunday, do a remote radio interview Sunday night, then first thing Monday they have to be at the sponsor’s office, then that afternoon there’s a TV show in Baltimore. The next morning it’s “Good Morning, Cleveland,” and they have to be in the studio at 4:30 AM. It’s a killing grind, and the mere fact that more of ‘em don’t go off regularly surprises me.
We can’t be two-faced about this. While you might think Kurt is a jerk (I’m trying to give him a break), he’s certainly generating a heck of a lot of exposure. It might not be ideal exposure, but it’s exposure nevertheless.
Alan was also right about the interview thing. He was waiting for it to start, not doing it when he went off.
And how long was he supposed to stand there and wait?
I know this is blasphemous, but television isn’t the end-all and be-all of motorsports. Yes, it’s critically important, but for every Gary Gerould or Dave Reiff out there, there are a dozen others who are overly obnoxious, pushy and absolutely full of their own self-importance. Believe me, I have been doing an interview with a driver, with a recorder in plain view, when a TV person has walked right up, once actually shoving me aside, and begun talking to the driver as if no one else was even in sight. It’s not fun dealing with the self-important. And just in case, the incidents I’m referring to do NOT include the ESPN team currently working in drag racing. Yes, in past years there were some obnoxious people involved with our telecasts, but I’ve also worked Indy car racing as well as other series, so…
I don’t believe Jerry Punch is one of them, by the way. I believe he’s a real pro.
I can’t remember if it was last year or the year before, but the PR people had Juan Pablo Montoya – who’d dealt with an aggressive and abusive European motorsports press during his tenure in F1 and therefore knew all about how obnoxious those of us in the media can be – running from dawn to dusk. He literally had TV interviews for shows far smaller than my mythical “Good Morning Cleveland.” He was doing them for “Good Morning Sioux City!” and “What’s Hot In Fargo Today!”
At the end of the day there was one more to do. Montoya said, “You promised me I’d be done at five o’clock. It’s now 5:15. I’m walking.” With that he pulled off the microphone and walked out. The station that was supposed to be doing the five o’clock interview finally checked in at 5:30 – and were then miffed that Montoya stood them up, so they bashed him on the air – and it was their fault, not his.
Mike English, you may be right that a driver is a PR person for his sponsor, but he’s also a person, and there are times when you can only take so much before going off.
Lots of people here used to bash Whit Bazemore for his willingness to actually say what was on his mind. A lot of people apparently didn’t like that. They wanted an “everything’s-wonderful” kind of driver. Well, that wasn’t Whit, and it’s not Kurt.
And who are we talking about here? It ain’t Dave Blaney!
Brent Busch, knowing the tone of this thread you may have to prove that!
Go read Alan’s last post. Who among us (other than, say, one of the Kardashian sisters) would want their worst moments put on YouTube?
Jon Asher
Von Halen
Nitro Member
Well, if he can't handle the demands of his CHOSEN profession, that he is very well paid to do, maybe he should choose another career path.
Really Jon? That outburst is because he has no time for himself?
I really don't have a problem with the outburst itself, but some of the excuses for it amuse me.
paoldtimer
Nitro Member
I love the holier-than-thou attitude of some here. So quick to lay blame on people and shoulda-coulda-woulda's. It's so easy to sit here and pass judgment on others when those in the business give you examples of others that do/did the same thing and you are still *****ing about it.
Give it a rest! You hear worse language on the scanner every single week!
Give it a rest! You hear worse language on the scanner every single week!
It's a message board! You can say what you want as long as it's within the rules of the site.
I like what Jon Asher, Alan Reinhart and other "higher profile" figures have to say both here (and other places like TV and print) normally. On this subject (The Busch Bros.) I completely disagree. Doesn't mean I want to butt heads with them. Just "chiming in" on a message board with my outlook on the subject.
Dave
Nitro Member
I bet Richard Petty is glad cellphones and the Internet weren't around back then!
But in-car cameras sure were! How about this from his last race? "Get the f--- fire extinguisher.. "
Richard Petty crashes out of the 1992 Hooters 500 - YouTube
Student of the sport
Nitro Member
Oh the carnage!!!!
mw6789
Nitro Member
Bottom line for me is I dont care how pressed your are for time (and I have a great deal of respect for your opinion Jon Asher), NO OTHER HUMAN DESERVES TO BE TREATED LIKE BUSCH TREATED DR PUNCH. Hard for me to feel sorry for a millionaire prima donna that has a dream job that millions of others would give anything to have. Both these guys needed their a** kicked when they were kids and just maybe they could act decent.
mw6789
Nitro Member
I do and my jaw about hit the ground. At least he had a big smile on his face.
Rajunz
Nitro Member
There's a reason that transmission blew up......
.
Nitro Member
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Bullard Anderson
Nitro Member
Millions $$$ bankrolled and a Pro Stock License. I welcome Kurt Busch to Pro Stock!!
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