Wednesday, August 18, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Kyle Busch fined $100 after incident

Speedway also bars Clark until he apologizes

By JEFF WOLF
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Kyle Busch, a 19-year-old Las Vegas native and a rookie in the NASCAR Busch Series, was fined $100 by Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Tuesday for his role in a brief skirmish Saturday night after competing in the NASCAR Racing Series.

Busch, who left the Legend Cars Pro/Master feature race early with mechanical problems, waited for race winner Spencer Clark, 17, to arrive in the post-race inspection area of the Bullring.

Reports vary as to whether Busch tried to punch Clark, grab Clark by his driver's suit or was just pointing toward him as Busch leaned into the car to confront Clark, who lives in North Las Vegas with his family.

The incident was quickly stopped and Busch was escorted out of the tech area by track security.

Busch, who resides in Concord, N.C., has won four Busch Series races for Hendricks Motorsports this year and is second in the standings. A Hendricks team official would not allow Busch to comment on the incident.

According to a speedway statement, Busch was fined for "conduct and actions detrimental to the betterment of the sport."

Clark was not fined. But speedway general manager Chris Powell told Clark's father, T.J. Clark, that the family would not be permitted to compete at the speedway until it issues an apology for comments in a news release it had distributed Monday that contained what Powell called "misinformation" about the incident.

Powell said what bothered him the most in the release was a sentence that stated "Kyle was fined and suspended indefinitely" for his actions. At the time, neither was accurate.

"I told (T.J. Clark) the people to whom they sent whatever they sent included information that was not right and I want it corrected," Powell said.

"There is a (Bullring) rule that speaks to be what's in the best interest of the sport, and it's my belief -- my very strong belief -- that putting out erroneous information is not in the best interest of the sport.

"All I asked them to do was correct that which was put out incorrectly and to send it to the same people it went to originally."

Debbie Clark, Spencer's mother and team manager, said she issued the release to publicize that her son had broken a track qualifying record for Legends Cars and also to tell those on her mailing list her son was not guilty of any wrongdoing in the incident.

"That press release was based on conversations I had with several track officials and witnesses," she said. "At the time they indicated there would be a fine and suspension.

"It was my misunderstanding. I jumped the gun and didn't give LVMS the opportunity to finalize their decision."

The incident put a damper on Clark's night of racing. Clark, a 2001 national champion in Legends Cars, won the premier Legends Cars Masters race that included Busch.

Clark will not be permitted to compete in Saturday night's Super Late Models stock-car race unless his family provides a satisfactory apology to the speedway and issues it publicly.

Clark, last year's rookie of the year in the Super Late Models division, is sixth in that division's season points standings.