The cars of two of the biggest names in NASCAR made contact during Saturday night's race in Kentucky, reportedly due to brake problems.

Danica Patrick's No. 10 green race car was hit at the back by Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s blue vehicle.

Nascar's official website said that the incident happened at Lap 206 of the 400-mile race when Earnhardt again had trouble with his brakes, which had haunted him the entire night.

"Patrick retaliated by shoving into the No. 88 car on pit road. Earnhardt Jr. reciprocated the gesture immediately by cutting her off," according to the same report.

Yahoo Sports reported that the male racer had a hard time slowing down because of his brake problem. He reportedly hit a wall to prompt a caution flag during the earlier part of the race.

"[The brakes] got worse and worse and worse and I probably shouldn't have been racing as hard as I was when we ran into the back of Danica," Earnhardt Jr. told Yahoo! Sports. "But I went into that corner and mashed the brakes to the floor. I pumped it three times all the way to the floor and then ran into her. "

"There wasn't anything I could do. It sucks. I don't like running into Danica because it gets a little too much attention, but I'm sorry for that."

The incident obviously irked Patrick, who reportedly radioed her team and threw expletives at Earnhardt Jr.

"(Expletive) 88. Did he (expletive) hit me? Go (expletive) yourself. Really?" Patrick said to her team via radio, as quoted by the Nascar report.

According to USA Today, Patrick even told her team that Earnhardt should have decided to use a different lane.

In response, the male driver said he "recognized and understood" the fury of Patrick since he is also a racer but defended that it was out of his control.

"What am I supposed to say other than the truth? We didn't have any brakes going into the corner ... There wasn't nothing I could do. I mean as hard as I hit her, what the hell did she think I was doing -- trying to wreck her?" he said.

"We ain't got no problem with her. It's not like I was having a problem with her out there on the race track. Not like I just drew her name out of a hat. Just decided 'She's who I'm going to run into tonight.'"

Asked if he thought the incident will affect their friendship, Earnhardt expressed confidence that Patrick will eventually "chill out."

"So, it happens to all of us. I'm not too worried about it. I've got pretty good friends, so I think we'll be able to talk it out," he said.

At the end of the race, Earnhardt Jr. placed 21st while Patrick finished at 34th.