“I wish I had something I could’ve shot through his window.” It’s fair to say that this sentence by Ward Burton is among the most legendary ones. Coming back in 2002, it was directed at a rookie Dale Jr., who was the prime target for Burton’s frustrations after he crashed into him at Bristol. For a long time, the duo did not see eye to eye, and Dale Jr. felt rather disappointed in himself. However, it looks like they have finally made peace with each other.

Ward Burton admits that he spoke too much in anger

It was a rather difficult moment for both Burton and Dale Jr. On one hand, Dale Jr. was still a rookie trying to learn the ropes of NASCAR. On the other hand, Ward Burton was a NASCAR veteran who did not forgive easily.

In fact, the tensions were so high that Ward Burton patiently waited on the apron for around 30 minutes for Dale Jr. to come around so that he could throw his heat shield at his car. While it did not damage Jr.’s car or his race, it did result in a $5,000 fine for Burton.

Talking about his emotions from that day, Burton recently revealed how angry he was at Dale Jr. “I should’ve brought my slingshot; I didn’t mean to actually shoot, although I was probably mad enough—I probably would have. I don’t know, man, getting a microphone stuck in your face is about immediately after something happens. It is hard to predict sometimes what’s going to come out.”

His intentions were quite clear. Dale Jr. was fortunate that Burton did not get back on the track with his car, as he was hell-bent on trying to wreck Jr. out of pure spite.

“If my car would have cranked up, that No. 8 car wouldn’t have finished. I can tell you that, that’s how pissed off I was,” Burton said back in 2023.

Eventually, the two parties did come to an agreement. Now, Burton has fully accepted that his words were not suitable and that he shouldn’t have reacted that way. The moment was the epitome of adrenaline taking over, and he still regrets it to date.

“That was not proper wording… Interesting thing, when I did Dale’s podcast, which I had no idea what a podcast was, that’s the most we had ever spoken. I knew he had messed up because he didn’t have a position on me. After he reviewed it before I showed up, he agreed. So anyways, hey man, we have all made mistakes, and I have made my share too. That was just a heated moment, and that’s in the past now.”

And as for why Burton didn’t throw his helmet instead, he had admitted to Dale Jr.: “I liked my helmet. If I can get a helmet to fit, the last thing I’m going to do is mess that helmet up.”

Well, after a rather challenging 2002 season, Dale Jr. was finally able to claw back in 2003. He finished 3rd in the driver standings, which is his career-best finish in the NASCAR Cup Series. His popularity skyrocketed to the point that he won the Most Popular Driver award consecutively from 2003 to 2017.

Still, that didn’t erase the shock and conflict in his mind that followed after his on-track run-in with Ward Burton. It was quite evident in his words when he talked about the same many years later.

Dale Jr. was upset after the incident with Burton

While Dale Jr. was the one who crashed him out of the race, he did not really face any difficulty himself. Jr. was comfortably able to finish the race in P4, adding to his top-5 streak from Atlanta and Darlington. However, during his podcast, Dale Jr. Download, he admitted his part in how the incident unfolded.

“I’m trying hard to get by Ward, and I had a run up to his bumper. I think I had about three inches. He went down. We went down in the corner, and he’s coming down,” Dale Jr. said in 2023.

“I was like, ‘We’re gonna hit.’ … I was like, that never happened to me before. Where somebody was that mad at me. I hate conflict and hate arguing and fighting. I was just disappointed.”

It is quite understandable why Dale Jr. would think in that manner. To add to that, he was also carrying the legacy of his late father in the Cup Series, and did not wish to tarnish it. His father was the ‘Intimidator,’ but Dale Jr. had no interest in confrontations or arguments.

Well, the strategy clearly worked in his favor. Ward Burton humorously commented on his social media yesterday, writing, “Dale and I laugh about it now.”