L- KANSAS CITY, KS - OCTOBER 16: Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Dollar General Toyota, speaks to the media during a press conference prior to practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on October 16, 2015 in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by Chris Trotman/NASCAR via Getty Images) R- TALLADEGA, AL - OCTOBER 23: Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, stands in the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series CampingWorld.com 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on October 23, 2015 in Talladega, Alabama. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth have a lot in common: They are the only two drivers to win five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races this year. Both are top-caliber drivers with championship teams and both usually are nice guys.
Right now, though, they have strongly differing opinions on what happened last week, when Logano won at Kansas Speedway after contact with leader Kenseth sent the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota spinning out in the closing laps.
This isn't the first rodeo for either of these cowboys. The pressure of championship racing brings out strong emotions, especially when one driver feels like another has done him wrong. Here are half a dozen of the most contentious moments these two have had with other drivers.
Auto Club Speedway, 2013 -- Logano and Denny Hamlin were racing for the victory when Logano got loose in Turn 3 and put Hamlin in the wall. In the crash, Hamlin suffered a fractured vertebrae. But after the race, it was a furious Tony Stewart who tried to punch Logano for running him down to the apron. As an angry Stewart marched through the garage after the race, he told the late FOX pit reporter Steve Byrnes, "I'm going to bust his ass."
Charlotte Motor Speedway, 2014 -- After being struck on pit road by Brad Keselowski as he was unbuckling his seatbelts after the Bank of America 500, Kenseth ran through the garage and put Keselowski in a headlock. "There's no excuse for that," Kenseth said of Keselowski. "He's a champion, he's supposed to know better than that. I don't know, I just don't really have anything else to say."
Bristol Motor Speedway, 2012 -- The half-mile Bristol bull ring is always a place where tempers run high, and the August night race in 2012 was no exception. Kenseth and Stewart had contact on track, resulting in Stewart being knocked out of contention. The three-time champion aired his displeasure by throwing his helmet at Kenseth's car on pit road and vowing to "'run over him every chance I get for the rest of the year.'' Kenseth, meanwhile, said, "'I guess he (Stewart) just wanted to do all the taking, so that's where we ended up,."
Pocono Raceway, 2010 -- After a run-in with Kevin Harvick, Logano said "It's probably not his fault. His wife wears the firesuit in the family and tells him what to do." Harvick's wife, DeLana had the last laugh, though. First, she sold a line of t-shirts with the slogan "I wear the firesuit in the family." Then she gave one to Logano's then-fiancée Brittany as a wedding gift.
Michigan International Speedway, 2010 -- Logano and Ryan Newman had an angry confrontation after the race, during which Logano had gotten loose and spun Newman out. At one point, Newman yelled, "Learn how to drive!" and when Logano appeared to put his hand on Newman, Newman shoved Logano in the midsection and said, "Don't touch me!" NASCAR officials quickly stepped in.
Bristol Motor Speedway, 2006 -- Yes, Bristol again. This time, it was Jeff Gordon who was mad after getting turned and spun out by Kenseth late in the Food City 500. Gordon went after Kenseth on pit road following the race, shoving him angrily with both hands. "He just wrecked me," Gordon said. "I'm sure he didn't mean it and all that stuff, but I'm unhappy about it and I showed it to him after the race." To his credit, Kenseth accepted the blame, saying, "I went over to his car to apologize. I probably should have waited a little longer."
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