NASCAR: Kyle Busch says spotters, crew chiefs need to ‘do their job’

In response to Chad Knaus telling William Byron to wreck Kyle Busch, Busch has stated that NASCAR Cup Series spotters and crew chiefs need to “do their job”.

This past Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International was one to forget yet one to remember for Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch in a number of ways.

He was involved in two skirmishes throughout the 90-lap Go Bowling at The Glen around the eight-turn, 2.454-mile (3.949-kilometer) Watkins Glen International road course in Watkins Glen, New York, both with former Kyle Busch Motorsports Truck Series drivers.

The first of these skirmishes involved Busch and Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron. As Busch attempted to pass Byron for second place early on in the race going into turn one, he lost control of his car and spun out.

Busch saw this as Byron “chopping him” and spinning him out, although Byron disagrees and all of the replays back Byron.

But Busch being Busch, he went for retaliation, sending Byron off the track in the chicane before stage one came to a close.

https://twitter.com/NASCAR/status/1158103451869556736

As a result, Chad Knaus, Byron’s crew chief, stated the following.

"“If I see the 18 come back here without you knocking the f*** out of him, we’re going to have a problem.”"

Byron’s retaliation attempt ended up backfiring, as Busch brake checked him when the #24 Chevrolet was about to run into the back of the #18 Toyota, causing severe damage to the hood of the #24 Chevrolet when the two cars ultimately did make contact.

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But Byron, known for being “Mr. Nice Guy” after having been completely taken advantage of and effectively used as a prop by Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski in practice for the July race at Daytona International Speedway solely so Keselowski could prove a point about not lifting, was ultimately obedient to Knaus.

Busch ended up remaining competitive after Byron tried to retaliate while Byron was really never heard from at the front of the field from that point forward en route to a disappointing 21st place finish in a race he started at the front row.

But Busch took exception to Knaus’s demands, claiming that spotters and crew chiefs shouldn’t be telling their drivers to do “s***” and should instead “do their jobs”.

Here is what he had to say, according to NASCAR.

"“I think spotters and crew chiefs don’t need to encourage their drivers to do s***; they need to do their job. Focus on race strategy and focus on spotting. Then, when it comes down to the mental game and the mental aspect of it, you figure out how to do that off the track, behind closed doors.”"

Should spotters and/or crew chiefs tell their drivers to go for retaliation during NASCAR Cup Series races, or does Kyle Busch have a point? On a side note, when Chad Knaus sticks to “doing his job”, that’s been bad news for the rest of the field. His seven championships can attest to that fact, so Busch may want to be careful what he wishes for.