CONCORD, N.C. — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has cooled off and no longer plans to wreck Kyle Busch at the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
But that doesn't mean he and Busch are back on speaking terms.
Stenhouse said he spoke to Busch's team owner Richard Childress — who had threatened to go after Stenhouse himself if he retaliated against his driver in NASCAR's longest race of the season — and said they are fine.
Stenhouse threw a punch at Busch that started a melee following Sunday night's All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway after he felt Busch wrecked him on purpose on the second lap of the $1 million exhibition race.
''It was the heat of moment,'' Stenhouse said Saturday about punching Busch, which resulted in a record $75,000 fine from NASCAR. ''You never want to wreck anybody on purpose, especially somewhere like Charlotte.''
Several drivers have said the fine was excessive, including Chase Elliott.
Stenhouse said he had a ''ton of respect'' for what Busch has accomplished during his career, but added he's now lost some of it "for wrecking us on purpose, especially in that moment. (But) I'm not going to waste my time trying to get him back.''
Busch said the two drivers haven't spoken since the fight, and his focus is on winning.