“My emotions were up and down” - Ricky Stenhouse Jr. reveals his mindset before punching Kyle Busch 

JTG Daugherty Racing driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. opened up about his altercation with Kyle Busch after his NASCAR All-Star Race attempt went south on Monday, 20 May. While Team Penske driver Joey Logano ended his 2024 winless drought by dominating 199 laps to bag his second All-Star Race win, the North Wilkesboro Speedway witnessed Stenhouse Jr.'s #47 Chevy, the only JTG Daugherty entry in the race, succumbing to a Lap 2 exit.

Richard Childress Racing driver Kyle Busch retaliated after the opening lap move and as the battle for contention ensued, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. crept into the small gap between Kyle Busch and Michael McDowell, brushing the #8 Chevy's front left. The move didn't sit well with the two-time Cup Series champion and he pulled a similar move on the next lap, ending the Mississippi native's run at NWS.

Enraged by the early exit, Stenhouse Jr. waited for Busch to wrap up his run and shortly after that, a violent altercation between the duo occurred as Stenhouse Jr. threw the first punch. NASCAR slapped a $75,000 fine on the #47 Chevy driver and suspended several of his key people including his father Richard Stenhouse, along with the racer himself, who is indefinitely barred from races as of now.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. spoke on NASCAR Race Hub and revealed the roller coaster of emotions he went through in his hauler while the remaining 19 cars battled for the million-dollar paycheck. He said (via NASCAR on FOX's YouTube channel):

"I was sitting in the hauler wishing I could leave for one thing and then obviously I couldn't so I thought, 'Well, while I'm here we'll go and have this conversation.' I think my emotions were up and down. At some points, I was probably over it and then at other points, I was still frustrated that I was still sitting there and not in the race. [1:36]

"We didn't get that opportunity to try out one of our new short-track setups, you know we've been struggling at short tracks all season, so you know, that was a bummer," Stenhouse Jr. added.

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Kyle Busch reveals going "into an ambush" while he headed for the post-race talk with Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Shortly after winding up his 200-lap run and finishing tenth, Kyle Busch headed toward Ricky Stenhouse Jr.'s hauler. However, the RCR driver was unaware of what the JTG Daugherty Racing driver had in store.

The duo exchanged a few words and argued about who was to blame but instantly after that, the verbal feud turned into a fistfight, where Kyle Busch was at the receiving end of the punches.

Even though the 39-year-old tried to fight Stenhouse away, the barage was eventually blocked by Stenhouse Jr.'s father, Richard Stenhouse - hence the latter's indefinite suspension from NASCAR for violating the Member Code of Conduct.

Speaking on how he had no idea what Stenhouse Jr. and his crew had worked up, something beyond his comprehension, Kyle Busch told former NASCAR driver and broadcaster Kenny Wallace:

“I had no idea of his comments of ‘Hold my watch’ or ‘Hey, if you want to see something afterwards hang out’, until afterwards. Nobody told me so I felt like I went into an ambush blind with him and his team.” [5:15]

“Tried to hold my own the best I could, fighting off five different guys and came out of there with no black eyes,” Busch added.

With no change in points since the All-Star race doesn't award anything other than a famous million dollars in prize money, Kyle Busch retains his 13th spot and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. maintains his 26th place in the Cup Series standings.