Who says Sprint Cup Series drivers like Kyle Busch are bad for NASCAR's lower series like Nationwide and Trucks?
Not track owners.
Not fans of those drivers who get to see them compete in other NASCAR events at a lower cost than in Cup races.
Not NASCAR itself, which actually promotes their appearances.
Oh, fans who don't like Busch ... and the media.
Well, it's a wonder the whole idea wasn't quashed a long time ago then.
Take a good, long look at where the comments originate about whether Cup drivers should be allowed to compete in NASCAR's lower levels (and forget for a moment they have been allowed to do so since NASCAR's inception).
The complaints come from fans, almost universally not from the driver involved in the discussion. And the questions come from media, who ask because of the complaints directed at them by fans, almost universally not from the driver involved in the discussion.
After Busch received yet another question about his participation in a Truck race following his win Wednesday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, I asked him a serious question. In the course of his career, has any driver in any series other than Cup ever said anything to him complaining of his participation in that series?
Here is his entire response (It's not a surprise for those who actually listen to what Nationwide and Truck drivers say week in and week out):
"Probably a couple times I've had them say it jokingly. They would see me walking in the gate or something like that and walk in with me and say something like, 'Aw damn, you're here again,' or something like that. Other than that, no. Seriously, when I talk to any of the guys -- Matt Crafton and I, we're pretty close friends, probably the closest friend I have in NASCAR. After every practice we're like teammates. I'm trying to help him with his truck and with what those guys are doing and seeing if we can't help them achieve their ultimate goal of winning a championship this year," he said.
"I think that when you have people that are true to you and respect you for who you are then you want to help those guys, but everybody else that isn't that way you don't give two craps about."
Follow up question: "So, for all practical purposes, the complaints you hear are not from other drivers?"
Busch: "Right. It's fans or from the media."
Shocking.
