“No Sh**s Given” – The Story Behind the Altercation Between Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr

In early 2003, Kyle Busch was an up-and-coming driver entering the sport. At that time, Dale Earnhardt Incorporated and Hendrick Motorsports were after him for recruitment. In the end, the young Busch opted to run with Hendrick Motorsports. A few years later, he joined Joe Gibbs Racing, with Dale Earnhardt Jr taking his Hendrick seat.

Soon, whatever rivalry they had was simple fodder for the media. It was a clash between NASCAR’s Golden Boy and NASCAR’s Bad Boy. Before long, the rivalry bled to the track, and it showed. In 2008, the two were battling for the lead at the Richmond Raceway, when they collided. Apparently, Busch got loose under Dale Jr, and the Hendrick driver backed it into the fence.

Obviously, the fans did not appreciate Busch’s stunt and made their displeasure well-known. When the race concluded, the fuming Hendrick Motorsports crew went to have a ‘friendly’ chat with Kyle Busch. Bear in mind, nobody got physical in the confrontation, but there was definitely tension in the air. Busch very eloquently put it, “In this moment, there was no shits given.”

What happened after the Dale Earnhardt Jr and Kyle Busch incident?

Honestly speaking, not much happened between the two drivers after that. However, the #18 driver had to address a new problem – the fuming fans of JR Nation. It even got to a point where he received death threats and was forced to hire a bodyguard to shadow him in the paddock.

Ironically at Richmond once again, Dale Earnhardt Jr gave Busch a taste of his own medicine. At first glance, the crash was pretty much an accident. However, Dale Jr would later confess that it was retaliation for crashing him out. It is also worth mentioning that neither driver ever cleared the air until Dale Jr’s retirement.

Interestingly, Dale Jr peeled off another layer of the feud. He recounted an incident at Phoenix during a practice session in 2014. As he slowed down to enter the pits, he happened to get into Busch’s way. In response, the temperamental driver ‘flipped him the bird’ as he passed by.

At that moment, Dale Jr just snapped and had an uncharacteristic moment. He admitted that he walked up to Busch’s hauler with the plan to confront him. In the lounge, he walked up to the driver and his crew chief and flat out threatened to ‘rip his head off’ if he ever flipped him off again.

READ MORE: THROWBACK: When Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr Reminisced Their Famous Rivalry at Richmond