Kyle Busch and the 14 Biggest Egos in NASCAR

We all see it at one point or another during the season—the egos that swell bigger than Talladega. But who are the 14 drivers, and some other NASCAR personalities, that nearly everyone can think of when it comes to big egos both on and off the track?

I'll admit that it was hard to find people to fill up the bottom slots due to NASCAR's more down-home feel, but here are some of the biggest egos in NASCAR today.

No. 14: Robby Gordon

Robby Gordon loves toeing the line and even attempts to step over the line at times, sometimes succeeding, other times failing. Gordon also has a habit of feeling more important than he really is and pulling some stunts on the track, but then getting upset when drivers pay him back.

Gordon is a good all-around driver, but his ego sometimes shines bright both on and off the track.

No. 13: Brian Vickers

Brian Vickers is a NASCAR playboy, and while we don't hear much about his ego due to his lack of success on the track, it is well known and has even been talked about in Maxim magazine.

Sure, Vickers doesn't talk about how great he is on the track or even really show his personality to the public. But his off-track party behavior definitely lifts eyebrows when it comes to the ego department.

While Vickers' ego isn't directly in the NASCAR limelight, his playboy lifestyle and attitude compared to driving success put him on this list.

No. 12: Greg Biffle

Greg Biffle and ego go hand in hand when he is successful. His ego does have a tendency to shrink in public minds when he's not in the spotlight, but he does sometimes act like he is God's Gift to Racing.

Biffle also has had meltdowns on the radio, feeling that his crew is embarrassing him, telling them just to put it on the truck in some instances.

Biffle has had some altercations on pit road in the past (Kevin Harvick fight), but he has calmed with age and experience. Those that have been in the way of Biffle's ego, however, never forget it.

No. 11: Carl Edwards

Carl Edwards is probably the best guy in the garage when it comes to putting on the nice guy act, and he truly can be a nice guy at times.

But Edwards can also show a mean, "I deserve to go by you with no effort" attitude at times that tears at his good guy image. While most drivers do have the feeling that they should be able to pass lap cars without fighting them, Edwards sometimes feels that he deserves this treatment from those he's actually racing.

He also has moments where he feels that he shouldn't be bumped and battered by other cars and takes it to an extreme measure, such as going after these drivers on pit road to start a fight or after them on the track.

In addition, there are some cars he can't stand to be passed by (Brad Keselowski, anyone?) and will do anything to make sure it doesn't happen and openly admits it.

Edwards does a good job of keeping his ego in check most of the time, and during those times he deserves his good guy name. But when the ego comes out, everyone needs to watch out because he takes no prisoners.

No. 10: Danica Patrick

Danica Patrick has toned down her ego in NASCAR, but it's definitely still there. Patrick complained whenever she had a rough time last year, always blaming it on the other driver, and has made comments in the IndyCar series that have helped the perception of her ego along.

Now that Patrick knows a bit of what it takes to drive a stock car, she realizes it's not as easy as she may have thought in the past. But there is little doubt from those that have seen her ego and temper in IndyCar that as soon as she becomes successful, her ego will flare back up for everyone in the NASCAR series to see.

No. 9: Kevin Harvick

Kevin Harvick has had a record of his temper and his ego getting the best of him.

At a truck race a few years ago, Harvick was angry that his teammate (and driver of the truck he owned) wouldn't let him pass to win the race. Harvick has also made comments recently on Twitter about some people not being able to drive cars (warning for language), although that could probably be anger from those people costing his cars a good placing.

Harvick definitely doesn't always know when to keep his mouth shut, and though most of his comments come from frustration, his ego over his driving skill and expecting teammates to give up spots definitely sticks in people's minds often.

No. 8: Wally Dallenbach Jr.

Wally Dallenbach makes the perfect television guy. He's handsome, he usually knows at least a little of what he's talking about and he has an ego that outshines the knowledge he has.

Dallenbach did have a little success on the track with 23 top-10 finishes in the Sprint Cup series from 1991 to 2001. But for someone that most people don't know, other than his TNT appearances, Dallenbach tries to make himself seem super smart. Instead, some of his comments during the race make people want to ask if he's ever even taken racing lessons.

Dallenbach does give some good information and provides entertainment, but with the way he acts, most would think he was a Sprint Cup champion, not someone with no wins in Nationwide or Sprint Cup (26 top-10 finishes in 242 races between the two series). Dallenbach is a good television guy, but checking back his talking may bring him more credit than his constant chatter, even when not needed.

No. 7: Kurt Busch

Like his little brother, Kurt Busch had quite the ego on him when he was younger, and it definitely shows up on the radio these days when he has issues with things on the track.

Busch did go through some media/public relations classes after some personal problems in his younger years, and this keeps his ego in check out in public on most occasions. But once an ego, always an ego, and it can appear in Busch's interviews when people are least expecting it.

No. 6: Juan Pablo Montoya

Juan Pablo Montoya came to NASCAR with a hardcore style of racing...and an ego.

While Montoya's ego has shrunk in the past year or so, there was a time where he was good for a comment that showed how important he thought he was.

At one point in his career, Montoya called NASCAR a step down from F1 (and compared NASCAR to F1 by saying it was pretty much comparing a truck to a Ferrari) before moving to the series and even blasting drivers from the F1 series. Montoya definitely lives up to the little man, big ego stereotype.

No. 5: Tony Stewart

Team ownership was said to calm Tony Stewart down from his wild ways, and it did, for a while. But now that "Smoke" has settled into his role on the team, his ego is back, especially when it comes to the media.

Even the Stewart-Haas Twitter account makes light of this by making comments about Stewart messing with the media during required questioning in the media center after a race if he's had a bad run (or bad practice, qualifying, etc.).

Teachers may have told us that no question is a stupid one, but Tony Stewart doesn't agree when he decides a question isn't good enough for him to answer. Stewart may have calmed the ego around other drivers, but the media may feel that he's the most egotistical guy in the garage after interviewing him.

No. 4: Jimmy Spencer

Jimmy Spencer is willing to give his honest opinion on anything, even if it is not wanted. Spencer does have a better race record than Dallenbach (15 wins in the top three series), but his arrogant nature chases more people away than Dallenbach could ever do.

Like most of the guys on this slideshow, Spencer has a lot of information to provide, and his non-watered-down opinion is a breath of fresh air, but his arrogance can chase people away from listening to him, even if they need to hear what he has to say.

No. 3: Darrell Waltrip

Darrell Waltrip had an ego on the track, and it's followed him off the track, keeping the "once an ego, always an ego" truism alive and well.

Waltrip is an expert at sneaking in his opinion on something that he wasn't asked about or interrupting someone to give his input, even if the person speaking is a qualified source.

Waltrip is one of those been there, done that men that is a wealth of knowledge if people can get past his ego, but that's definitely something that's hard to do when it is thrown in your face every other sentence.

No. 2: Bruton Smith

Bruton Smith's ego may be even bigger than his stack of money. Smith doesn't just keep up with the Joneses—he makes them look like they live in the slums.

Biggest TV screen. Check.

Attempting not to take blame for a Kentucky Motor Speedway fiasco. Check.

Smith may not be a very public figure in NASCAR circles, but everyone knows who he is and what he'll do to be on top. Smith wants to be the best, even if it means making things up (he told the media center that Kentucky had the largest crowd of the year, ESPN reports) to make himself feel better.

There's no bounds with Smith's money and apparently with his ego if people look at what he does and says.

No. 1: Kyle Busch

Kyle Busch does get credit for calming down since he put a ring on his finger, but at one point he was NASCAR's biggest ego. Between making comments about the most popular driver (and others), and being controversial no matter what step he takes, Busch loves being in the spotlight.

While we are seeing the "New Kyle" most of the time this year, he has a long way to go before his epic ego of his single years is forgotten.