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Ray Buck 
Kyle Busch is NASCAR's No. 1 Black Hat? Maybe or maybe not
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
Kyle Busch arrived at Texas Motor Speedway this week as NASCAR's reigning Black Hat.
The guy we love to hate...
But a funny thing happened on the way to foregone conclusion: Kyle Busch showed up all warm and fuzzy as a first-time visitor to Victory Lane at TMS on Saturday.
He led 126 of 200 laps in the O'Reilly 300, including the final 43 laps. He arrived on time for postrace interviews -- of course he did, he won -- and gave us a glimpse into his alter ego when he's not the crankiest man in racing.
"I've never won here... I proved that," he said, grinning once he found Victory Lane, "because I got lost coming over here."
NASCAR's all-time lightning rod for controversy and raw emotion was Dale Earnhardt. Suddenly, he was gone, too soon, and along came Tony Stewart to stir our passions.
Now it's Kyle Busch, a first-year Joe Gibbs Racing teammate of Stewart and one grouchy competitor beyond his years. (Kyle is still a month away from his 23rd birthday.)
He's brash. He's difficult. He's aloof. Plus, he's really, really good, and that doesn't sit well with other teams and their fans.
Kyle Busch -- younger brother of Kurt Busch -- showed a rare sensitive side as he thanked his own fans after Saturday's win.
"There are a lot of great reasons to give up on me -- for everybody," admitted the driver of the No. 18 Toyota, then adding, "It's hard enough for me to gain fans... hopefully we don't lose 'em."
Kyle Busch will be trying to become the first double winner in a TMS NASCAR weekend since the track opened in 1997.
He'll start today's Samsung 500 from the third position, fifth in points, and will try to win his second Sprint Cup race of the season.
Which Kyle Busch are we going to get today?
He's as likely to wreck you as shake your hand. Fans criticize him for ducking post-race interviews. Writers psychoanalyze him all the time.
Some say he needs AA -- attitude adjustment -- which makes it hard to imagine how he could be a model-anything for his sport.
Actually, he's what NASCAR chairman Brian France mandated before the season began: A sport that appeals to the more traditional fan; drivers and crew chiefs being allowed to be more expressive (without the cuss words, of course), and personalities shining through.
That's exactly what Kyle Busch is doing, and it was never more apparent than Saturday.
"I'd rather people like me for who I am than dislike me for who I'm not," Kyle Busch said. "I understand who I am. I'm out there to be a fierce competitor. I've got a fire inside me to be the best I can be, and to put my name in the record books each week."
OK, modesty isn't his strong suit.
"I think Kyle Busch is the fastest driver in the garage area," said ESPN analyst Andy Petree, a former driver, crew chief and team owner.
"Black Hat? Absolutely, we need one," added Petree, who was Earnhardt's crew chief for his sixth ('93) and seventh ('94) Cup championships. "And I think Kyle Busch is the best candidate for that."
Petree has "great respect" for Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon.
"They're great people. They're nearly perfect, if you look at the total package," Petree said, "But you don't want a full field of them."
Petree saw firsthand how intimidation became a "racing tool" for The Intimidator.
When asked which driver today makes other drivers afraid to see him in their rearview mirrors, Petree had a quick response: "Definitely Kyle Busch."
Fox Sports analyst Larry McReynolds, another former Earnhardt crew chief (for the Intimidator's '98 Daytona 500 victory), agrees with that assessment of Kyle Busch's driving ability, but wishes he would see the bigger picture.
"He's a fierce, fierce, fierce competitor. I mean, he doesn't like even finishing second," McReynolds said. "But I'd like to see him open up a little bit... give your fans respect. You told 'em how you felt when you won at Atlanta, but also tell them how you felt at Bristol and Martinsville."
McReynolds has a great analogy that should serve as a warning to any athlete who isn't interested what his or her fans think.
"Fans are like the IRS," McReynolds said. "It takes one situation to get 'em on you... and it takes years to get 'em off you."
One thing is for certain, Kyle Busch fits the Joe Gibbs Racing team far better than Hendrick Motorsports. That's a fact.
And just as the weather improved to picture-perfect for Saturday's O'Reilly 300, Kyle Busch's sunnier personality shone through after the race.
Could this be the new Kyle Busch?
I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Ray Buck, 817-390-7760
