Brad Keselowski was criticized by some fans – and even a high-profile driver (Tony Stewart said he had a "death wish") – after some hard racing for the lead at Texas Motor Speedway last week.
But Keselowski battling Jimmie Johnson for the championship and Jeff Gordon blatantly wrecking Clint Bowyer at Phoenix were two completely different circumstances in his eyes, and he couldn't help but notice the difference during his post-race press conference on Sunday.
Keselowski, who has a 20-point lead heading into the final race of the Sprint Cup Series season, said he was "ashamed to be a part of" what happened at Phoenix.
"What offends me is the double standard that I spent a whole week being bashed by a half-dozen drivers about racing hard at Texas and how I'm out of control and have a death wish, and then I see bullshit like that," he said. "That's fucking bullshit! That's all you can call that.
"These guys just tried to kill each other. You race hard and I get called an asshole for racing hard and called with a death wish, and I see shit like that and it just pisses me off. It's just fucking ridiculous, and they should be ashamed. It's embarrassing."
Keselowski said he knows people want to see drama, but the best drama is the result of racing for the lead – "not a retaliation for sixth place of whatever it might be."