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Kyle Busch on contact from Corey LaJoie: 'Some don't lift'


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Kyle Busch was not particularly talkative after his fifth DNF in the past seven races, the most recent of which occurred at Pocono Raceway.

However, he had a blunt description of the incident that began when Corey LaJoie hit him from behind.

"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," Busch said in response to a question from Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass. "Sometimes, some don't lift. Kamikaze."

The incident that ended Busch's day began when LaJoie hit the No. 8 Chevrolet from behind with 40 laps left in the race. This contact sent Busch sliding into the grass. He then slid back up the track and collided with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. This incident also collected Ryan Preece, AJ Allmendinger, and Ryan Preece.

"You let him have it the first time," Ryan Sparks, Corey LaJoie's crew chief, said over the radio after the incident. "The second time, he got what he deserved."

LaJoie said after the race that he got a big run after "a shot" from Allmendinger and that Busch blocked his run once. The Spire Motorsports driver then said that"he held the wheel straight" and that he anticipated their bumpers lining up.

LaJoie said that Busch's second block turned the No. 8 across the nose of the No. 7 and that he didn't consider the multi-car crash the result of a "bonehead" move.

This is not the first time the two drivers have clashed on the track. Last April at Martinsville, LaJoie door-slammed Busch in what he later said was an attempt to bring out the caution. Busch responded by bumping LaJoie from behind multiple times.

The incident at Pocono only continued what has been a season of struggles for Busch and Richard Childress Racing. The two-time Cup Series champion only has two top-five finishes and six top-10s in 21 races.

Busch has finished 27th or worse in five of the last seven races while falling 102 points below the playoff cutline and Ross Chastain.