KANSAS CITY, KAN. ? Dale Earnhardt Jr. will turn the big 3-0 today, and he will have the chance to celebrate his birthday with a bash in victory lane after the Banquet 400 at the Kansas Speedway.

But Earnhardt Jr. probably wishes he would have received a gag gift a week ago from a friend. Or at least a gag order.

After winning his fifth race last weekend at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Earnhardt cursed on NBC during a postrace interview.

The feed was live, and nearly 7 million homes heard Earnhardt slip. NASCAR responded with a $10,000 fine and docked Earnhardt 25 championship points — creating quite a buzz in the sport. The penalty knocked “Little E” back to second place, 12 points behind Kurt Busch.

Talk hasn’t subsided this weekend at Kansas Speedway. Fans, media, other drivers and, of course, Junior himself are willing to weigh in on the issue.

Team owner Richard Childress, who had two drivers fined and docked points earlier this season for cursing in live interviews, said it was harsh.

“I’ll say the same thing that I said when they fined our two drivers (Johnny Sauter and Ron Hornaday): I don’t think it’s right to take points from the drivers and penalize everyone for it. Put a dollar fine on it. Hit them in the pocket.”

This issue probably won’t quiet down soon considering Earnhardt’s influence within the sport. If he were to make a run at the championship but fall short by 25 points or less, No. 8 fans surely would be livid.

But not rival Jeff Gordon, who joked he would make sure that scenario didn’t come true.

“I would hate it for him. That’s why our goal is to win this championship by more than 25 points,” Gordon said. “I’d like to do it to make Junior feel better.”