Did You Notice? … Ryan Preece lost 25 driver points Tuesday (May 5) and was fined $50,000 for intentionally wrecking Ty Gibbs in last weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway? A similar incident between Kyle Busch and John Hunter Nemechek happened on the second-to-last lap of the race; NASCAR chose to take no action over the contact.
It’s a disparity that has more than a few people asking: what’s the difference?
Mike Forde of NASCAR Communications tried to explain why the sport came to two wildly different conclusions. FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass provided a perfect summary from Forde’s (and the sport’s) Hauler Talk podcast: the Preece wreck was viewed as intentional by NASCAR officials while SMT data appeared to show Busch’s car was damaged, causing the late-race contact with Nemechek to appear worse than it actually was.
“[Preece] said what he said,” Forde explained on the podcast, “And then he did what he said. So, in our view, it was intentionally wrecking another vehicle.”
When asked about Preece’s radio versus Busch’s lack of intent, Forde was very clear: “That is the difference [here].”
Should it be?
Let’s start with Preece’s radio itself: that’s hard to argue. His words are filled with anger mid-race, showing he was not only frustrated with Gibbs but looking to get even. There’s a long trail of audio evidence, paired with damning video that’s hard to refute any Texas contact wasn’t premeditated.
“When I get to that 54,” Preece says in the X clip listed above, “I’m done with [Gibbs].”
And when the wreck between them happened? The sheer force of the contact was hard to ignore. Shane van Gisbergen, racing right behind the duo, said of Preece’s move, “Holy sh*t! He just committed a murder!“
Preece later expanded on what happened in an exclusive post-race interview with Frontstretch’s Dalton Hopkins.
“I’ll be honest with you,” Preece said. “I hate that he wrecked. But decisions you make on the racetrack, there are repercussions. And I try to race everybody with an amount of respect that I’d like in return, and when you don’t do that, I’m not going to cut you a break.
“And that’s what happened.”
Preece later followed up in a SIRIUS XM interview, saying, “he was not going to cut [Gibbs] a break, because in the past, him and I have had problems.“
Those quotes are a little toned down from the radio. But it’s clear Preece was not happy at moves Gibbs made on track and was at least looking to “rattle his cage,” as Dale Earnhardt might say back in the day.
There’s enough precedent here for NASCAR to do something with Preece. But what gets interesting, if you keep listening to Hauler Talk, is why Busch was spared in a way Preece was not.
Forde claimed that not only did Busch not say anything on the radio, the SMT data showed his car made it impossible to turn following initial contact with Nemechek on the backstretch. (“He was turning the wheel all the way left… to go straight…,” Forde said. “There was zero things, in our opinion, that said he did this intentionally [from the data].”
The problem for NASCAR is that data, if true, directly contradicts what fans saw with their own eyes. Everyone in the industry must now buy into the theory that it’s an illusion Busch slammed into Nemechek entering turn 3.
In this video, Busch slows down several seconds before Nemechek entering the turn. Continuing to further slow his car would have cost Busch more spots but lessened the risk of him sliding into anyone else. Instead, Busch pushed into the flat part of the turn and attempted to hold his line, positioning his car to where it was near impossible not to slide up the track and into Nemechek.
At best, Busch still tested the waters, couldn’t hang on and hit Nemechek as the car drifted right. At worst? As Kevin Harvick says on the FOX broadcast: “He just wrecks him.”
The contact happened so fast it would be impossible for Busch to provide any type of evidence on the radio this wreck was intentional. Of course, when Busch found himself sliding into Ron Hornaday Jr. back during a 2011 NASCAR Truck Series race at the same racetrack, there were also no radio transmissions.
What happened as a result of this wreck? A one-weekend suspension for Busch for intentionally knocking out one of the Truck championship contenders at the time. And, like Nemechek, the incident was caused by contact Busch blamed (fairly or unfairly) on the other driver.
Was Busch’s move Sunday as egregious as what happened back then? Certainly not. The infamous “right hook” was involved back in 2011, which is a move we’ve seen lead to a one-race suspension for everyone from Chase Elliott to Bubba Wallace in recent years.
But what it does show is Busch has a long, storied history of aggressive driving that’s gone back decades. It’s why he’s gotten in continuous hot water with everyone from Brad Keselowski to Joey Logano through the years.
It’s a history NASCAR appears to have forgiven. That, or maybe there’s a case of amnesia as Forde made clear the sport is giving Busch “the benefit of the doubt.”
“This is the second time in the last four weeks,” Forde said, “Where’s there’s been discussion post-race whether or not [Busch] should have had a penalty (the first was over contact with Riley Herbst at Bristol Motor Speedway)… maybe let’s not have to be having a conversation as often as we are.
“The benefit of the doubt is running out pretty quickly.”
The incidents will still lead to Busch and Richard Childress Racing leadership having “a talk” with NASCAR Cup Series Managing Director Brad Moran. Last I checked, a wag-your-finger conversation costs zero points compared to the 25 which just got taken away from Preece’s quest to make the 16-driver Chase for the Championship.
Other drivers are taking note in part of an increasing push to keep their mouths shut, dare they rub sponsors or NASCAR officials the wrong way. Notably, Busch refused to play up the drama through the media after the race; he declined comment to Frontstretch and other outlets while Preece was willing to face the music, being honest about his frustrations. Busch and Nemechek chose to control the story through their own back-and-forth on X instead of giving others the chance to report.
Doing such reporting in the Dale Earnhardt days would lead to a marketing burst for the sport, people everywhere debating who was at fault, for why, and finding themselves able to relate to one side or the other. That’s what happens when drivers truthfully state their opinion on camera.
But if I’m Preece, I just learned…
- I shouldn’t talk about what I’m trying to do
- I shouldn’t be honest about my feelings
He also might be wondering, if I was more popular, would I get the benefit of the doubt, too? Tuesday marks the first time Preece was penalized in any of the sport’s top three series for aggressive driving. It was also the first time I can remember Busch might have found himself escaping.
Four years ago, Preece found himself holding the short end of the stick in an incident with NASCAR’s rising superstar, Carson Hocevar, and let his frustrations out after the race.
Preece has thought for years younger drivers give no respect. Turns out those feelings boomeranged into consequences for himself.
In the end, is it NASCAR that might not be giving enough respect to him?
Follow Tom Bowles on X at @NASCARBowles
The author of Did You Notice? (Wednesdays) Tom spends his time overseeing Frontstretch’s 50+ staff members as its majority owner and Editor-in-Chief. Based outside Philadelphia, Bowles is a two-time Emmy winner in NASCAR television and has worked in racing production with FOX, TNT, and ESPN while appearing on-air for SIRIUS XM Radio and FOX Sports 1's former show, the Crowd Goes Wild. He most recently consulted with SRX Racing, helping manage cutting-edge technology and graphics that appeared on their CBS broadcasts during 2021 and 2022.
You can find Tom’s writing here, at CBSSports.com and Athlonsports.com, where he’s been an editorial consultant for the annual racing magazine for 15 years.
You all are forgetting one very important thing about these situations.
NASCAR is a Chevy whipping boy compared to Ford. Go back through the decades and find many instances where a driver in a Ford gets some kind of penalty for an infraction but a driver in a Chevy that is either same or at minimum similar gets nothing.
Same thing just happened here.
I do not care what the data “shows” that can be manipulated by the driver using physics.
Busch was what 10 car lengths ahead of the 42 and slowed so dramatically the 42 got there in 1 second and the 8 car just happens to go right even with the data showing left steering. That is driver craft at its finest. Busch should have gotten the same penalty as Preece. Forde’s line that this is the 2nd time in a few weeks should have solidified that.
NASCAR once again has opened themselves for playing favorites, be hypocritical, and the big one fans are fed up with INCONSISTENCY especially when the video is pretty obvious.
True that.
You have the right to say anything you like, as you should. Preece exercised his right. Others have the right to react accordingly, as they should. NASCAR exercised their right. This is not, and has never been complicated. There’s a reason Earnhardt Sr. said “rattle his cage”, not “I wrecked him on purpose”.
Honestly, I feel a little dirty coming out on the side of agreeing with both decisions, as I have little use for Gibbs or Busch.
NASCAR has set the precedent they will penalize drivers for intentionally dumping a competitor. Some may not like it, but it’s still the precedent. The exact same thing played out with Hamlin a year or so ago, when he admitted to dumping Chastain. Preece admitted he dumped Gibbs. Do I think Gibbs deserved it? Sure. The mistake wasn’t dumping him. The mistake was telling everyone about it. Would have been as simple as keeping quiet, then saying after “he checked up more than I thought he would for the turn”.
I absolutely think Busch dumped Nemechek as well. But, despite throwing a tantrum, Busch never admitted to this. Steve Letarte did a great breakdown of the SMT data. He felt it was inconclusive. I agree. The data shows Busch was steering left during most of the contact. I’d guess Busch just intentionally over-drove the turn, when he knew it would cause him to slide up and wipe out Nemechek.
Only Busch knows his intent. I’m not a fan of convicting someone based upon what we think happened. In Preece’s case, we know what happened, because he told us.
I remember the good old days when Dale was intentionally wrecking half the field, excuse me, I mean “rattling their cage”, and NASCAR never said anything about it.
NA$CAR was fine with Ironhead “rattling their cages” but when Jeremy “rattled” Dale’s cage at Pocono what happened to Jeremy? Ironhead even gave him the one finger salute on the cool down lap meaning “You’re number one.” Let me guess! Dale fans protested “That ain’t racin”.”
What happened to boys have at it? The simple truth is crashing is what the fans want to see, no different than fans only watch hockey for the fights. NASACAR fans would be fine with 2 to 3 drivers getting killed each season, as long as it wasn’t their favorite driver. Think I’m wrong? Just look back a few years. Adam Petty? Not one fan cared. Kenny Irwin Jr. ? Same. Tony Roper, same. ARCA driver Blaise Alexander? No one cared, no one.
You’re wrong, as is your habit.
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