Phoenix isn’t the first time Jeff Gordon’s found trouble. There was the infamous pit-road shove of Matt Kenseth in 2006; then, a few years later he and Jimmie Johnson butted heads at Texas. But this incident, in the fall of 2010 at that same Texas racetrack is the one most people remember. Gordon and Jeff Burton made contact as the caution came out and, regardless of who’s story you chose to believe, all hell broke loose. The end result was two totaled racecars and a Rainbow Warrior more than ready to throw down. Both had been through frustrating seasons, going winless, and each had already been “Chased” out of championship contention; but who would have expected the forty-somethings to start throwing punches? “I knew he was going to be mad,” said Burton… but that mad? Both drivers raced the next week, but NASCAR punished them in its own way: they had to ride to the infield care center in the same ambulance.

by Tom Bowles
 

Before the Jerry Punch incident, getting “inside Jimmie Johnson’s head,” the monkey-have-a-relationship-with-a-football comment, or even Maricopa County law enforcement finding out “who he was,” Kurt Busch had one main enemy: Jimmy Spencer. The two had gone back and forth for well over a year by the middle of 2003, ever since Busch roughed up Spencer to earn his first Cup Series victory at Bristol. But after they had wrecked each other multiple times at multiple tracks, what happened at Michigan was too much for the “Mr. Excitement.” Spencer, after hearing Busch had spent several portions of the day trying to cut down his tire, went right up to the No. 97 car after the race. On the in-car audio, you could hear Busch provoke and what followed was the punch heard ‘round NASCAR Nation. What was tough for Spencer was “Boys, Have At It” era this was not; he was parked a race for inappropriate behavior.

by Tom Bowles
 

Michael Waltrip may be a mild-mannered, sponsor-shrilling owner now but back in his driving days, he had his moments. Take this incident at Michigan, where he and Lake Speed battled for position in a last-lap scrape where Waltrip got the short end of the stick. It was Speed 11th, Waltrip 12th at the checkered flag, but Waltrip was determined to get the last word. Parking in front of the No. 9 car on pit road, he walked over, pulled down Speed’s window net and threw two punches to show how much he cared for their on-track contact. Both drivers would race the following week, although the incident did muddy Waltrip’s “peace and love” reputation among the fanbase.

by Tom Bowles
 

It may have been the Nationwide (then Busch) Series, but that didn’t make the race win matter any less to Kevin Harvick. He and Greg Biffle were fighting for position when Harvick was spun. None too happy about it, Harvick patiently waited atop the pit wall for the race to be over, and as soon as Biffle exited the car the sophomore Cup driver was waiting to deliver the message that type of contact wouldn’t be tolerated. Biffle held his ground, as shaky as it was, but despite no major punishments for either side, he ended up the big winner over the long-term. A few weeks later, Harvick endured the heavy hand of NASCAR, being suspended for a race after some hard, inappropriate contact with other drivers in the Truck Series.

by Tom Bowles
 

This clip goes to show that sometimes, the drivers aren’t the only ones who get to throw punches. After Kasey Kahne and Tony Stewart tangled on this restart in Chicagoland, the anger from the incident landed smack dab in the middle of pit road. Kahne’s crew, unable to control themselves after being spun out of first place, went right down into the Home Depot pit stall to show their displeasure. Chaos ensued, in a brawl that needed multiple NASCAR officials to untangle even though the drivers themselves didn’t seem as angry. Yes, everyone raced the next week but poor Kahne would have to wait nearly a year, until Richmond in 2005, to score his first Cup victory.

by Tom Bowles
 

How can you make a list like this one without including NASCAR’s Colombian temper tantrum? Montoya has had plenty of feuds over the years, including absorbing a punch from Ryan Newman behind closed doors, but this wreck seems to be his most infamous NASCAR incident. Ironically, it was Martin Truex Jr., not Montoya, who caused this multi-car crash entering Turn 1 at the Glen. Kevin Harvick (common thread?) being none too happy and under the impression that JPM was at fault, went up to the No. 42 and blamed him for causing it all. The helmet-grabbing and patty-cakes that ensued entertained the crowd — in part because it proved neither actually wanted to throw down — but over the long-term meant far more for Montoya than the oft-aggressive Harvick. From that point on in stock car racing it cemented the then-rookie’s reputation that he wouldn’t back down on the racetrack, under any circumstances. That’s a driving style that’s earned him few friends in the garage area.

by Tom Bowles
 

Happy Harvick was a little bit of a misnomer in the closing laps of this short-track shootout. Fighting for second with Ricky Rudd, his No. 29 car got spun out in one of those “racin’ deals” down the stretch. While Rudd went on to a top-5 finish, Harvick’s goals were realigned quickly: park next to that No. 21 car on pit road and let him have it. Jumping on, then over, Rudd’s Ford, Harvick didn’t stop until both crews were involved in a little melee. Who came out the big winner? Well, Harvick in the long run: he kept on contending for a championship while Rudd, despite coming close never won a race in three years driving for the Wood Brothers.

by Tom Bowles
 

For years, Darrell Waltrip was the bad guy, unable to do anything right in the eyes of the fans. That ended in an instant at age 38 near the end of the 1989 All-Star Race. Rusty Wallace, while battling for the lead off Turn 4, spun Waltrip’s No. 17 in what many considered to be a dirty move. While Rusty went on to take the checkers, the crews went at it on pit road while Waltrip was “robbed” of what could have been a $200,000-plus payday. More importantly, from that moment on there appeared to be a paradigm shift; suddenly, Waltrip was the popular elder statesman while Wallace became the fast-talking, aggressive heel.

by Tom Bowles
 

If you think Jeff Gordon ruined Clint Bowyer’s title chances (as remote as they may have been) you’ll be beside yourself after seeing this video. Dale Earnhardt, fighting for the win with Ricky Rudd had Rusty Wallace far behind him at the back half of the top 10 and poised to open up a big lead in the championship over his rival. But Rudd was looking for a victory and dove underneath the No. 3 car hard entering the final lap. As the cars hung tight into Turn 1, the brakes started squealing, Bob Jenkins’ voice started cracking and suddenly, both cars were heading towards the wall. While Geoff Bodine went on to win, some say the points lost that day cost Earnhardt the title. No wonder why the crews went at it after the race. In the end, more verbal assaults were thrown than physicalities, but the damage would define the 1989 championship race. Earnhardt, who had some colorful language on-air, wanted Rudd suspended for the year but NASCAR, especially back in the ‘80s, would have none of it. Both raced (cleanly) the next time out.

by Tom Bowles
 

NASCAR fans debate a lot of things, from fuel mileage finishes to mystery debris cautions, but this brawl is pretty much a unanimous No. 1 on any list. Let’s set the scene for you: Last lap. Daytona 500. Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison banging sheet metal down the backstretch for the win. Wreck. As Richard Petty streaks by to take the checkers, both drivers have to sit and deal with what could have been. As brother Bobby Allison comes to check on Donnie, emotions have a chance to boil over ... and punches follow. As Ken Squier so eloquently put it: “They’re angry. They know they have lost.” But you know who won? The sport of NASCAR. With record ratings due to a blizzard along the East Coast, its first flag-to-flag telecast was a roaring success that produced a generation of racing fans that would remain loyal for decades.

by Tom Bowles
 

Like the tortoise and the hare, sometimes the fastest car doesn’t always win in NASCAR. In 166 Cup Series starts, journeyman Paul Menard had collected just five top-5 finishes, leaving critics claiming his career was more a product of his moneymaking father than raw talent. Even after landing a ride driving for a powerhouse team, Richard Childress Racing, Menard was seldom considered a threat to win. But in last year’s Brickyard, saving a little extra gas put his No. 27 Chevy in the lead down the stretch, keeping the driver off pit road while other lead-lap cars were forced to stop. At one point, a hard-charging Jeff Gordon was gaining more than two seconds per lap on Menard but ultimately came up short, with the 30-year-old earning his first and only NASCAR Cup victory in a major upset. It was an emotional moment for Paul’s father, John, who had pursued the Indy 500 dream for decades as a car owner but was never able to win open-wheel’s biggest prize. “My heart was going 1,000 miles a minute,” he said. “I don’t know if I can take it. It’s unbelievable, a wonderful place. Our family has spent so much time here and now, to have Paul’s first victory here… it’s incredible.”

Rusty Wallace, the 1989 Cup champion was NASCAR’s short track ace but a bridesmaid in the races that seemed to count the most. Never a Daytona 500 winner, he finished second at Indy three times, leading 148 laps but could never pull off the big trophy. His third and last chance came in 2002, leading for 12 circuits and holding crucial track position and clean air entering the final 50 miles – you want to be out front at one of the sport’s most difficult tracks to pass. But NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver, Bill Elliott would not be denied as his No. 9 Dodge scuffled with, then slipped by Rusty en route to claiming victory. Why is this one so memorable? It was a “last hurrah” of sort for both men, front and center in this race but who would win a total of just twice more (one for each) before retiring full-time from the Cup Series.

Kurt Busch and Jimmy Spencer had a long and sordid history by the time the 2002 Brickyard 400 came around. And after getting shoved out of the way at Bristol that Spring, a move that made the difference on Victory Lane Jimmy Spencer reminded an audience of millions he never forgets. Hitting Busch’s rear bumper hard entering the corner, the move left Busch losing control and slamming the outside wall hard, totaling his No. 97 Ford. The younger Busch, then only in his second Cup season went on a rant against Spencer during and after the race, a feud that would simmer and boil over by August of 2003 in another incident that ultimately lead to Spencer’s infamous one-week suspension from the Cup Series.

Goodyear? More like Good God when it comes to the 2008 version of this event. With a tire compound incapable of lasting at high speed, steady blowouts kept the longest green-flag segment of the race at 13 laps. Big names like Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, and Juan Pablo Montoya were among the innocent victims, ugly wrecks that turned the race into a game of low-speed, single-file survival. Jimmie Johnson took the checkers during a final “sprint” where simply keeping yourself from spinning out was considered successful. How bad was it? Some of the race’s top finishers admitted that even on the white-flag lap, they were driving at no more than “80 percent” of top speed to ensure their car made it to the checkers in one piece.

Tony Stewart lives and breathes Indy. The Indiana native, an open-wheel convert had always put the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400 at the top of his career list of races to win. But while the 500-miler has always been elusive, bad breaks and a full-time transition to NASCAR keeping him out of Victory Lane it took just seven years to claim success in a stock car. Passing Kasey Kahne in the race’s final 15 laps, Stewart pulled away to a convincing margin of victory and then celebrated by climbing the fence to the delight of 200,000+ hometown fans chanting, “Tony, Tony.” Sometimes cantankerous in public, it was a “let his hair down and relax moment” that helped spark a summer surge, one which ultimately propelled him to a second Cup Series championship by November.

The second Brickyard 400 took almost two days to complete, rain pushing the start of the race back several hours. When it did go green, it stayed there with just two caution flags, letting the cream rise to the top as it gave limited chances for drivers and teams to adjust their race cars. There is no better person to handle that strange scenario than NASCAR’s Intimidator, Dale Earnhardt; rising from his 13th starting spot, he took the lead for the first time with 28 laps remaining and held off a hard-charging rival in Rusty Wallace to take the checkered. After going 0-for-16 years at the sport’s other big race at the time, February’s Daytona 500 it was a relief for Earnhardt to get the monkey off his back for this prestigious race in start number two.

Racing brothers having bad blood between them? That’s nothing new; just ask Kurt and Kyle Busch. But having their argument play out on one of NASCAR’s biggest stages? Now that’s something different altogether, especially when it happens while battling for the lead. With 60 laps to go, Geoff’s No. 7 and Brett’s No. 26 made contact off Turn 4, spinning Geoff in front of the field of 40 cars coming right at him. Dale Jarrett couldn’t avoid it, causing a mess on the frontstretch and ending the hopes of perhaps the only car that could have run with Jeff Gordon that day. Brett? He finished second, but didn’t talk to his brother for a long time afterwards. "We've had some family problems,” said Geoff afterwards, “Some personal problems between the two of us, and (Brett) unforunately took it out on the race track and never expected he'd do it. He's my brother I love him, but he spun me out."

Heading into NASCAR’s first race at Indy, Jeff Gordon had the number “one” on the most important line on his resume: Victory Lane. Just 23, the man with Indiana roots and a superstar label so desperately wanted to put his name on the map; and for most of the day, it looked like it would be a walk in the park. But as the laps wound down, Ernie Irvan’s No. 28 creeped up, taking the lead with 11 laps remaining and setting up a frantic finish between the two. But it was then, just as the duo started slicing and dicing it all went kaput for the Texaco/Havoline Ford; a flat tire sent him scurrying to pit road while Gordon was left to cakewalk to Victory Lane.