In Defense of David Reutimann

Having just read more of Dale Junior's comments after the race yesterday, I would like to come to the defense of my driver, David Reutimann. I've been pulling for David since his Truck Series days and Junior longer and to me, yesterday's incident was nothing more than a racing deal. And most of Junior Nation will obviously see this as a personal attack to Junior, an attempt to ruin one of the best cars he's had all year and somehow make his abysmal season even worse. I can almost guarantee that next week at Dover, at least half the crowd will erupt in a chorus of boos and hisses when D-Reut is introduced to the masses during pre-race festivities. But I will not be one of them. I'll be in the minority cheering for Reutimann through all 400 miles.

This wreck was not intentional in the least bit. And if Reutimann wanted to run someone over intentionally, he has a lot more sense than to spin the sports most popular driver. Reutimann has been run over several times before in the past and this isn't the last time either Dale or David will get run into. Lets all jump in the Wayback Machine and look at the second Pocono race from this year. Reutimann was in Chase contention and was on his way to a top 5 finish when Denny Hamlin blatantly turned the #00 into his teammate Marocs Ambrose, ruining both of their day. Hamlin went on to win the race while Reutimann was left to think about what might have been. Did anyone say that Hamlin was in the wrong for bumping Reutimann through Turn 1 and pushing him from the exit of Turn 3 down the first part of the straightaway? No. Has Reutimann payed Denny back yet? No. Will he ever? Probably not. Because that isn't the way he races. David races with respect and doesn't take other drivers out on purpose. That was evident at the Memphis Nationwide race last season. Reutimann had three or four good chances to at least move Carl Edwards out of the way, but he didn't. He didn't want to race unfairly and so he settled for second. Now would a guy like that take Someone else out on purpose?

Like I said yesterday, I'll cut Junior some slack and assume he was just mad after the race. And he had every right to be. But he shouldn't have come out of the care center and said that "...he ain't got enough talent to run in the top five, I guess" or that "He ran down int the side of me and spun me out" or that " You've to know how much car you've got and you've got to know how much talent you've got before you go down in the corner. He never knows." Junior, you can be mad and talk about it being disappointing for you and you're team, but trash talking a nice guy like Reutimann is just uncalled for. I think you need to take a look at your own abilities first before you criticize other people's. Reutimann's crew chief, Rodney Childers, raised a great point after the race. Between Junior and Reutimann, who has more top fives? Who has more top tens? Who was in Chase contention longer? And most importantly, who has a win? I rest my case.