There is plenty of time for Memmer to spend repairing the perceptions about himself that people now have. He has the benefit of time and the promise of more opportunities to adjust his behavior when faced with something he perceives as an unfair break. All this is true, and provided he uses this humiliating exposure of his unhinged behavior to develop a deeper understanding of protocol and sportsmanship, he may make amends simply by showing contrition and exemplifying a steady, even-tempered competitor from here forward.
But spare me the "you-must-walk-a-mile-in-his-shoes" angle. Spare me the "You-have-to-go-talk-to-him-before-you-comment" nonsense. Or the "judge-not-lest-ye-be-judged"-philosophizing.
I HAVE done stupid things when I was Memmer's age. I was called stupid for having done them, and, perhaps as a result of being from the Universal ball-busting capital of the country, in the Northeast, I was called every variation of "idiot" for lesser things than threatening to use an 800-horsepower car as a cudgel. The point is: I've spent the decades trying to evolve so as to not be that same kind of thickheaded selfish person. There is no reason Memmer can't progress out from under this, so long as he looks at this moment as his behavioral abyss, and gives genuine effort towards becoming a better person. Because if you are a racer, then what you do On The Racetrack serves to define you more than what your friends come to know of you, for better or worse.
I wish him luck. Only if he applies himself to turning his behavior and thus his life around, because if he pulls this kind of stuff again, he's probably gonna need a shock or a torsion arm or a hammer in his hands quickly. He now carries a scarlet letter on his uniform and will get mostly doubt instead of the benefit of people's doubt.
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Steve Eckert