Don't expect him to apologize or to make excuses. If he loses his temper _ and he has at times this year _ Edwards says it's about passion not petulance.

``I worked awfully hard to get here,'' Edwards said Wednesday. ``I think that maybe what people are seeing is hopefully they understand that I really care about what I'm doing. I'm going to stand up and point out when I think something is wrong.''

If he has to, Edwards will ram the point home. Just ask Earnhardt.

NASCAR fined Edwards $20,000 US on Tuesday and placed him on probation for the rest of the year after he intentionally rammed the side of Earnhardt's car on the final lap of last Saturday's Busch race at Michigan International Speedway.

Edwards was leading the race when Earnhardt spun him out of his way with one lap to go en route to a victory under caution. It was the latest dustup for 26-year-old Edwards in a disappointing follow-up to last year, when he won four races and finished third in the Cup points race.

He's not complaining about the penalty, says he isn't holding a grudge against Earnhardt and insists he's focused on racing not his image. That doesn't mean he's entirely comfortable with some public perception going the other way after last season's feel-good story line of a former teacher turned star in his first full season in NASCAR's top series.

``It's a little bit frustrating to read or hear what some people say or how they perceive me,'' said Edwards, who was in Alabama on Wednesday to publicize the October race at Talladega Superspeedway. ``I think that some of the things that have happened lately, it would be like, What am I supposed to do? Just stand there and take it when somebody wrecks me on purpose?

``I don't really strive for any certain type of image. I'm just going to do whatever I feel like is the right thing.''

Even if that means standing up to fan favourite Earnhardt, who received a rare round of boos on Victory Lane in Michigan. The two also had a heated argument during the post-race ceremonies.

Edwards, who's 13th in the Nextel Cup standings, still feels Earnhardt's actions were wrong but stopped short of saying they justified his reaction.

``It would be easy for a person in my position right now to say, `Oh yeah, he should be fined,''' he said. ``But what if at Bristol next week, it's the last lap and my front bumper ends up causing somebody to spin out?''

Well, it wouldn't be uncharacteristic of his season.

He threatened on his radio to beat up Tony Stewart at Pocono and was penalized one lap for a retaliatory spin of Stewart on pit road.

His other troubles included a crew member's time-sapping dropped jack in the other Pocono Cup race and a wreck that led to a last-place finish at the season-opening Daytona 500.

Although it has been a frustrating season, Edwards considers it a learning experience.

``I think I'm a lot better racer than I was last year, and I think there's a lot of good things to look forward to,'' he said. ``Fortunately, it's early enough in my career, I feel like I've got a lot of good years in front of me. Even if this year doesn't end up as a good one, it will hopefully be an anomaly.''