Kurt Busch hoists a glass of the champion’s cabernet wine in the winner’s circle after his victory on Sunday at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Kurt Busch says he's seeing a sports
psychologist to address "personal issues."

Busch was fined $50,000 by NASCAR last week for verbally abusing an ESPN reporter and making an obscene gesture in his race car during the season finale at Homestead. NASCAR also cited a pattern of previous incidents with reporters for fining Busch.

Now in his hometown of Las Vegas for the season-ending awards ceremony, Busch acknowledged Thursday he's been seeing a psychologist for two months and needs to work on improving his behavior.

Busch also said his actions at Homestead were inappropriate. He was angry because a transmission issue sent him into the garage early in the race and he knew he was guaranteed to finish 11th in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.