“I didn't feel like it was a bonehead move”- Corey LaJoie defends himself amid a controversial day at Pocono

Corey LaJoie's #7 Chevy came into contact with Kyle Busch's #8 car as the field spread out at Pocono Raceway, but LaJoie defended his actions. He explained that he received a shove from the #16 car from behind, and after Busch attempted to block him twice, their bumpers met, causing Busch's #8 car to spin out.

Corey LaJoie had a strong restart and quickly moved to the inside of Zane Smith past the start/finish line. He then targeted Busch but encountered resistance as Kyle Busch made a blocking move, leading to contact between the two. At this stage, the field was racing five-wide, and Busch maintained his trajectory into turn 1 following the initial encounter with LaJoie's #7.

Based on footage from his onboard camera, Corey LaJoie appeared to steer right heading into the turn, which caused Busch to spin off into the grass and back into traffic. The incident heated up communications, with both sides airing frustrations over the radio.

LaJoie and his crew believed that Busch had essentially wrecked himself by blocking excessively. Corey LaJoie defended his actions, stating:

"I’m sure he’s mad. I’m sure there were guys that got caught up that was made, but I didn’t feel like it was a bonehead move. I had a run, I got to the left rear, he blocked it twice, and the second time it spun his a** out."

He detailed the events leading up to the collision, explaining that he received a push from the #16 [AJ Allmendinger], emphasizing the chaos typical when racing in the middle of the pack. Corey LaJoie said he had a bit of a run and then #16 gave him a big shot. He got to the left rear of the #8 [Kyle Busch].

Busch blocked it once and LaJoie held the wheel straight. Corey LaJoie was almost anticipating their bumpers lining up and giving Busch a little bit of a shove. But when Busch blocked the second time, it turned him across.

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Kyle Busch wasn't happy with Corey LaJoie's non-bonehead move

The former multiple-time Cup Series champion is facing one of the toughest stretches in his career, teetering on the edge of missing the playoffs this season. Already burdened by a 41-race winless streak, his Pocono race was cut short due to what he perceived as LaJoie's poor judgment. Reflecting on the incident in a post-race interview, Busch expressed his exasperation:

"It doesn't matter what I think. [...] You have mirrors and cameras and everything else. So you try to get in front of the run that's coming and I was trying to get in front of that run and sometimes, some don't lift."

Additionally, Kyle Busch had shared with Bob Pockrass after qualifying that he's been encountering issues with his #8 Chevrolet, specifically with something bearing down at the bottom of the firewall. While the steering seemed normal, it wasn't performing up to his standards.