After reading through these comments and re-watching the video, I think this does come down to Joe misplacing his frustration at being drafted off of and outkicked again by Woody.
This was not a race within a race, it was a head-to-head rematch of BU and played out exactly like last time. It had to be stressful for Joe to lead Woody around the track knowing that he's got the menacing kick and everyone watching is just waiting for him to unleash it. And then having him go by and not being able to respond.
If you watch the video, at 27:36 you can see Joe walking across the infield without any apparent pain to his calf, just frustrated after a long hard race where he got outkicked.
Completely understand the heat-of-the-moment/adrenaline after big races so no shade there, but the calf alibi seems flimsy.
Regardless, this makes the rest of the season so much more interesting between these two and it's good for the sport.
