NASCAR great Kyle Busch has avoided postrace sanctions after wrecking Cup Series rival John Hunter Nemechek during Sunday’s showdown at Texas Motor Speedway.

The two-time champion has come in for stern criticism in many quarters following the controversial flashpoint in the Wurth 400, when he appeared to intentionally wreck Nemechek.

The pair got together on corner exit, with Busch moving up before fully clearing the No. 42 and both thumping into the wall, but it was the second part of the sequence - with the No. 8 veering up and fully wrecking Nemechek in apparent retaliation at the next corner - that drew attention.

Busch continued to the finish, clearly with damage to his car, to end what had been a strong afternoon in 20th place as the last car on the lead lap.

Afterwards Kyle looked to shift blame for the incident as he reposted a FOX clip with a screenshot of some SMT data, writing indignantly: "I did not start this. The 42 apparently doesn’t know where the RS of his car is and where he is in relation to the outside wall.

"There was 2 ft outside him and I was judging my left side tires to the hash marks. Always know who your [sic] racing beside."

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NASCAR penalty report, Busch avoids punishment

Fast forward 48 hours and the NASCAR world waited with anticipation for the postrace penalty report coming out of Charlotte, but when it arrived there was no mention of Busch or that incident with Nemechek. Instead it was Ryan Preece as the headline act after his beef with Ty Gibbs.

Despite Busch escaping without sanction, he is receiving significant heat for his actions and his postrace comments. Great rival Denny Hamlin for example described the incident as “unacceptable”.

Hamlin also touched on the anger Busch had displayed towards Carson Hocevar earlier in Sunday’s race as he reflected on what happened.

Denny Hamlin blasts ‘unacceptable’ Busch

Speaking on his Actions Detrimental podcast, Denny said: "I mean, God bless Derek Kneeland, his spotter. I thought he's just doing a great job of trying to just put some chill in his life. I don't know, it just seems like everyone's going at everyone over there right now.

"But you know, as far as the incident, I didn't see anything, no matter who's at fault for what down the back straightaway - like, what happened in Turn 3 was certainly unacceptable. It should be viewed that way as unacceptable."

What did Nemechek say about Kyle Busch?

Nemechek meanwhile posted a short, sharp message expressing his displeasure on Twitter once he was out and clear of his car, writing: "Not freaking clear. Great day going, and just got wrecked. What an ass."

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