Motorsports Venue News - Busch, Harvick Bring Added Drama To The Monster Mile

DOVER, May 9, 2011: The tension in the air will be potent this weekend as the eyes of the NASCAR world focus on the First State for race weekend at Dover International Speedway, following a wild weekend at Darlington Raceway that saw tempers flare between drivers Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick.

The two drivers are included on an early entry list at Dover that includes a number of wily veterans and young up-and-comers for the “Lucas Oil 200” NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race May 13, meaning Busch and Harvick won’t have to wait until the May 15 “FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks” NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race to be on the track together again.

Busch and Harvick tangled both during the “Showtime Southern 500” at Darlington and afterward, and the crews of the drivers’ two teams exchanged heated words and a few shoves in the garage area before being separated by NASCAR officials.

The duel began on the track, but escalated after the race concluded, when Harvick approached Busch’s car on pit road and attempted to throw a punch through Busch’s driver’s side window. Busch immediately hit the gas to escape, plowing into Harvick’s car and sending it smashing into an inside retaining wall. Shortly thereafter, Harvick approached Busch’s hauler — which coincidentally was parked right next to his own — and got into a confrontation with Busch’s team.

Both drivers were then called to the NASCAR hauler along with their respective team owners, Richard Childress and Joe Gibbs, where the situation finally deescalated for the night. No additional discipline has been handed down as of yet.

The feud sets up a sure-to-be exciting race weekend at Dover International Speedway, where Harvick and Busch have the chance to battle it out twice, beginning with Friday’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race that will set up the Sunday “FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks” NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Those two races will sandwich the “5-hour ENERGY 200” NASCAR Nationwide Series race, which will feature a number of notable stars, including Busch, who is again pulling the weekend tripleheader at Dover; Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne; current NASCAR Nationwide Series points leader Justin Allgaier; Brad Keselowski, Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards, all of whom are previous NASCAR Nationwide Series winners at the Monster Mile; Elliott Sadler and David Reutimann.

Tickets are still available for the May 13-15, 2011 race weekend. For information or to purchase tickets, call 800-441-RACE or visit DoverSpeedway.com.