from a Team Chevy Transcript:
Burton: “Coming off of turn four, he (Jeff Gordon) drove underneath me. I should have let him go and I didn’t. The caution came out and he pulled up next to me to tell me he was upset at me and he went on. Then I went to pull up next to him to acknowledge him, to say he was right and I turned left and he was turning left and we just hung up. When we hung, off we went. I honestly don’t know what happened. It was my fault. 100% it was my fault. It was like once we got together, I couldn’t get off of him. I didn’t mean to hit him. I meant to pull up to him and tell him he was right because he was upset with me for what happened off of turn four. I should have let him go. You can’t see off of there right but you can’t see over there right now. You don’t to be side-by-side. I don’t blame him for being for mad. I’d have been mad too.”
Q) WHAT HAPPENED AFTERWARDS WHEN I SAW HIM WALKING TOWARD YOU?
Burton: “Well, like I said, I knew he was going to be mad and I don’t blame and I don’t blame him for being mad. He didn’t do anything that he shouldn’t have done. He was upset and he should have been upset. I wrecked him under caution. I didn’t mean to wreck him but I wrecked him under caution. He meant to tell me he was upset and that was ok. I don’t have a bit of problem with what he did. He was mad. He should have been mad.”
Q) DID YOU HAVE WORDS IN THE MEDICAL CENTER?
Burton: “I have a lot of respect for Jeff. I think he has a lot of respect for me. We talked and he is still upset and like I said, I don’t blame him. He understands what happened more now. It is what it is.”
Q) WHAT LED UP TO THE SITUATION?
Burton: “Honestly, I came off turn four with Jeff underneath me, the sun is really bad off of turn four and it is really hard to race over there right now and I should have let him go and I didn’t. Caution came out and he pulled up next to me to express his displeasure and he was right. We don’t need to be racing side-by-side right there right now. I went to pull back up to him to acknowledge him and when we did I was turning left and I don’t know, we hooked somehow and around we went. We just got hooked up together. I think it is the stupidest thing I think I might have ever done. Like I said I was pulling up next to him to acknowledge him to say ‘Look, I’m cool, I got you’ and we just got together and wrecked both cars.”
Q) HOW SURPRISED WERE YOU WHEN JEFF CAME AFTER YOU WITH FISTS?
Burton: “I wasn’t at all surprised. I went to go see him because I knew he was going to be mad and I fully expected it. I don’t blame him. Hell, I would have been made it I had been him too. I really don’t blame him. He was mad and I was right there and he wasn’t some of it.”(Team Chevy PR)(11-7-2010)
