Johnny Sauter is starting to make a name for himself. Unfortunately, it's not in a good way.
At the Daytona 500, Sauter, a Nextel Cup Series rookie and Busch Series regular, was involved in a couple of incidents that drew the consternation of his fellow competitors.
First, he was the catalyst of the chain-reaction crash the sent Michael Waltrip flipping down the track. Then, later in the race, as leaders were pitting, Sauter came in too hot and caused a near calamity screaming down pit road.
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| Michael Waltrip is growing tired of Johnny Sauter's antics.(Getty Images) |
Kenseth, who went on to dominate Sunday's Nextel Cup race, limped home to a sixth-place finish, and Sauter wound up 16th.
Afterward, Sauter blamed Waltrip, who was a lap down at the time, for the accident.
"Michael Waltrip's pretty much an idiot, a lap down racing out there, going three-wide, doing stupid (stuff)," Sauter said.
But Waltrip, who rallied to finish fourth, had a different opinion.
"I wonder if he remembers in Daytona when he wiped out about 12 of us and I did a barrel-roll down the back straightaway. If Johnny Sauter doesn't run another race, it won't mean sweat off my rear end."
Waltrip isn't alone in his assessment of Sauter, another wild child in the stable of Richard Childress Racing (though he drives for Brewco Motorsports in the Busch Series). Ken Schrader said he sees a few DNFs in Sauter's future.
It's still early. Perhaps Sauter was in the wrong places at the wrong times. But if he keeps running into trouble, ruffling feathers along the way, his growing reputation as a reckless driver will be well earned.
Veterans don't take kindly to hot shots running off at the mouth and causing accidents every other weekend. And if it gets too bad, don't be surprised if NASCAR officials eventually step in.
