NASCAR has fined Kurt Busch $50,000 for his actions during the final NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
During the race Busch’s Dodge suffered mechanical problems and he was forced to the garage. While he was heading to the garage, Busch was seen on an in-car camera shot displaying an inappropriate gesture.
Monday a video posted on the internet showed Busch waiting to be interviewed by EPSN pit reporter Jerry Punch while Busch’s Dodge was being repaired in the garage.
The video shows Busch and Punch waiting to go live. While they are waiting a clearly upset Busch told someone nearby to ‘get this (expletive) out of my face. Later he says ‘Why can’t they tape this (expletive).
Punch then cancels the interview and Busch storms off into his hauler.
Tuesday the team issued an apology:
“Penske Racing extends its apologies to Dr. Jerry Punch, our media partners and our sponsors and fans for Kurt Busch's inappropriate actions in Homestead on Sunday. These actions do not represent Penske Racing and are inconsistent with the company's standards for behavior, respect for others and professionalism. This matter is being reviewed internally with no further comment at this time.”
Later in the day Busch issued his own apology in a statement.
"Unfortunately, our result in the season-ending race at Homestead on Sunday was not what we had hoped for as a team," he said. "In my frustration with the loss of my transmission early in the race, I let my emotions get the better of me. I regret having done this and apologize to the sponsors of Penske Racing, to NASCAR, its fans, to the media and in particular, Dr. Jerry Punch."
In September, Busch was accused of confronting a reporter after a race. He later confronted another reporter snatching a piece of paper from her hand and tearing it up.
Friday NASCAR issued the fine based violations of Section 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing – inappropriate hand gesture; abusive language) of the 2011 NASCAR Rule Book.
In issuing the penalty, NASCAR cited Kurt Busch's "poor judgment in making an inappropriate hand gesture" when he drove his car into the garage early in the race after it experienced transmission problems. In addition, NASCAR said Kurt Busch showed "disrespect towards a media member," an incident that followed similar inappropriate media confrontations earlier in the season.
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