State of The Sport

NASCAR Buzz: Denny, Kez and advice from Harv and Jr.

There’s never a dull moment in the world of NASCAR. I’m really starting to get the feeling that Smoke really is going to leave JGR, that Gibbs is looking hard for his replacement (and they have someone in mind), and that NASCAR really can be as capricious as some fans accuse them of being. On top of that, I have to say there’s a driver in the Gibbs garage that I like that should have received some kind of reprimand and didn’t.

My “cred” is taking a beating.

I can understand a certain amount of wanderlust on Stewart’s part as he has been with Gibbs his entire Cup career and he’s got an itch to become an owner a la Dale Earnhardt. Makes sense, after all Tony Stewart is starting to push forty and he has to think beyond his racing career. By the same token, if it’s Haas-CNC he’s talking to, Smoke needs to do what Nancy said and “Just say ‘no.’” If the “Rushville Rocket” wants to win , he should stay put. JGR is a top flight time and will put him in the best position to win. They’re getting maximum coin from Toyota, and when you look at what’s happened so far, the Gibbs-Toyota match is one made in Heaven. If Tony really is this loyal guy, then where is his loyalty to the comoany that’s stood by him all these years? If I were Tony, I’d only go to another team if it were a sweet deal from a team with it’s act together like RCR, Hendrick or Roush.

What makes me think he’s leaving is what came out when rumors were out that Juan Pablo Montoya was trying to woo JGR. In response, the word is that Gibbs is saying “No way” to the former IRL and F-1 star, partly because they had someone else in mind. Hmmm.

Meanwhile- back at the ranch- how does Denyy Hamlin not get a fine for his part in the incident at Lowe’s with Brad Keselowski? Granted, I think Kez is getting too big for his britches and needs a trip to the woodshed to remind him of his place in this sport. For my part, I think that Kez is carrying himself as an old veteran who’s arrived, and he’s simply not there yet. His boss, Dale Earnhardt Jr., has as much said the same.  That said, I think Hamlin has to be called on the carpet for no other reason than the damage he did to Keselowski’s car. Now if Denny kicked his butt in the pits after the race, that’s another story. Those cars cost bucks, and damaging the fender was an overreach. You just don’t  that, and yet somehow, all the punishment falls to the “88″ team. This does nothing to douse the fires of conspiracy thinking prevalent among NASCAR fans. Kezelowski and his crew deserve reprimands and a certain amount of fining. He started it. BUT you can’t ignore Hamlin’s culpability in this matter.

That, or you could shine the whole thing on.

Junior says he needs to spend a little more time mentoring and guiding young Brad. Not a bad idea. It shows good leadership on his part. This ownership business sure carries a lot of responsibility. It will be good training for fatherhood too.

An interesting perspective has been shared on the matter of one Kyle Busch. Kevin Harvick, a guy known to have ruffled a few feathers during his early career had a few words of wisdom. Yes, this is the same Harvick that had early career run-ins with Ricky Rudd and Greg Biffle- among others. The 8-year veteran says that someday- that hot streak that “Wild Thing” will end. While he’s not in the business to gain friends and sympathy- having some friends around can be a good thing when you’re down on your luck. That help can come in the form of advise, maybe the offering of a ride, should you need one, or even just a little more room on the track.

Think about Mark Martin’s mistake in a Nationwide race that wrecked out Carl Edwards on the way to a Martin win. Though Edwards was upset, he KNEW that “The Kid” meant no harm nor malice, it was just a racing incident. Now put Kyle in that car. Do you think Edwards would have felt the same way?

Nobody’s doubting Busch has talent. I enjoy Shrub’s aggressiveness and willingness to make tough passes and gamble in the same mold as Dale Earnhardt. But by the same token, Busch has been out of line with a number of things, and worse yet, he’s hacked on his crew. If Kyle isn’t careful, he’s destined to become a real life “Lightning Mc Queen“- a talented guy no one wants any part of.

It’s be shame, because being alone is a sad place to be. Sadly, it overshadows Busch’s considerable talents, and the fact, that he really does a lot of good things with his spoils.

“Good on” Kevin Harvick. Busch would do very well to heed the words someone who has been there.

  

 

On Drugs, Dale, Smoke & Danica

I’m just going to take a few moments to spout off. Anyone who knows me knows I’m not one to mince words. Here’s my take on some of the latest NASCAR buzz….

NASCAR DOES NOT have a drug problem. After convicted (and according to him, reformed) druggie Aaron Fike applied for re-instatement by NASCAR, there’s been a lot of bellowing and inuendo concerning durg use in auto racing. Sadly, I’ve seen all kinds of misinterpretation of Kevin Harvick’s comments, not to mention the fact I thought he crossed a few lines with how he said.

Harvick makes some good points, but I think the Jeff Gordon reference did him no favors. If Harvick hadn’t been such a punk in his earlier days, maybe he’d hold a little more sway with people. And really, do you think Gordon has the ears of NASCAR in a way others don’t? I’ve not seen it.

That said, NASCAR needs to keep the sport clean by having an independent agency doing random testing. One high driver is one too many, and hopefully testing would help weed out the handful of morons who’d try it. I think most drivers would actually be o.k. with it.

I suspect there are NASCAR drivers who drink too much, sleep around, and there may even be one or two who may be guilty of domestic violence. But dope? Not likely.

Should Danica go for a switch to NASCAR? Is she wants to, sure. Some people don’t like her attitude, but my suspicion is the “arrogance” is a defense mechanism for survival in what has historically been a man’s world. I suspetc she isn’t going anywhere for now. I think she has some mountains to conquer in IRL.

But if Danica can find a NASCAR ride and get it in the field- God bless her. She’d be good for the sport in terms of growing it.

Dale Jr.’s early season success is one key reason things are looking better in 2008. All you Junebug haters won’t like that, but let’s face it- Earnhardt is far and away the most popular driver in the sport, and regardless of how you think he got that popularity, NASCAR needs Junebug to do well.   

Besides- the boy can drive- VERY WELL. Junior WILL WIN IN 2008. Even a Cup title is not out of reach.

Smoke is being a smart guy. Tony Stewart would be an idiot not to consider other offers out there. He’s in a uniquely nice position to do what he wants, and if he’s really jonesing to own a team, then he should do it. Not everybody has the same priorities: some are hungry for wins, some want the money, others the glory.

I really don’t think Stewart will go anywhere. Why? People only seem to talk about loyalty with Tony when it comes to Chevrolet. What about his loyalty to Joe Gibbs? He’s been good to them, they’ve been good to him. JGR will also put him in the best position to win. As it is right now- this team is having the greatest success in 2008 (with all apologies to Richard Childress and HMS).

Think about it, at Hendrick, there’d be all kinds of issues: Smoke has a history with Jeff Gordon, and there’s enough involved with keeping Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Junior and Casey Mears going. The Richard Childress #33 car? If Childress doesn’t give the ride to Scott Wimmer (who deserves a shot at it), it’ll then go to veteran Bobby Labonte. But Stewarrt? Nah.

Let me make this clear: Tony Stewart will get ONE SWEET DEAL and stay with Joe Gibbs.

 

 

“Finish Line Throwdown” Re-Buttal: Lighten Up!

Now that I’ve made sure that my health coverage is in place (you tread lightly in the presence of Tagoo48), I have a few things to say amount the comments seen in Thursday night’s post.

Car of Tomorrow: The “Car of Tomorrow” addresses not only addresses safety concerns, it also addresses cost reduction and performance upgrades as well. Tagoo, I think even you’d agree that you can never be TOO safe. Yes, the old cars were not suicide machines. Well, actually, I’d say the HANS device has had as much to do with the absence of driver deaths since that fateful day in Feburary, 2001 as anything else. By the same token, if you can make a car safer, should you not do it? I thank God today I did not have to write a memorial post for Michael Mc Dowell two weeks ago. As far as I’m concerned the safety features did much to enable able the rookie to sit behind the wheel in a back-up car the following Sunday instead of watching the race from a hospital room. That wing on the back has also done a lot of good as a safety feature in spinning crashes. The new car is a safer car. Period.

I’m far from an authority on the cost of putting (and keeping) a car together, but I do know that cost reducation has also factored into the this car’s creation. There are now fewer cars in a team’s fleet than there once were. This car is a tank. More cars are finishing races, and more cars make for better racing.

The new car is still a work in progress. The lack of testing at Texas in the new car was evident by the race we saw, but I think we saw last weekend how the experience was shown by the quality  of race seen in Phoenix where the new car ran twice in 2007. There’s only one way to develop the “new” car into a better racing car- and that’s to get it out there to run races!

That brings me to my next point. To say that this season has been boring is to say that the races at Martinsville, Bristol and Phoenix were not good. I beg to differ! These were good races filled with lead changes, bumper bangin’, dangerous passes and the whole 9 yards! For the love of Mike- can someone please tell me why NASCAR fans are so quick to complain about races and tires when things go wrong and yet they say nothing when things go well??? Has anybody besides the media made comment how we’ve had no tire manufacturer issues since Atlanta? Shouldn’t Goodyear be commended for getting it right the VAST majority of the time? Concerning Texas- have we ever really had a great race there? I haven’t seen one. Is it not a little too simplistic to blame it on the car? Jimmie Johnson complained about the car after that race. Funny- where was this complaining about the “new” car when he was winning the Chase last year in it? Hmm. Interesting.  

Fundamentally, I think the fan base of NASCAR has an attitude problem. If you watch other sports, you see games that aren’t good. Heck, we’ve had boring Super Bowls. Does that mean the NFL should change their qualifying rules? Should baseball change it’s rules because of the 22-inning snooze fest that was the Rockies-Padres game this week? No!

Having said that- NASCAR should allow for change if over the course of time it’s PROVEN that the car in it’s present state is not a good racing machine on the intermediate tracks- the places where the races have not been up to par. But again- I think we need to give racing teams time to get it right. Testing won’t do it. We’ve got to race the doggone thing out there to really get a handle on it. Changes now would create a moving target nobody could hit.

As for race coverage quality, the smart network is the one who gives race fans what they want. I’ll tell you why we know about Junior every time he so much as breaks wins- because the overwhelming number of race fans LOVE Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Junior is the most popular driver in NASCAR- BY A MILE! FOX, TNT and ABC/ESPN would be stupid to ignore him. I actually watched last Saturday’s race with a VERY critical eye, and I thought FOX did a good job of filling me in on the drivers fighting to get in or stay in the top 35. I saw passes deeper in the field…but let’s be honest. Most people really want to know what’s going on up front. 99% of the audience doesn’t care one whit about the battle for 40th between Joe Nemechek and Robby Gordon.

You mentioned Kyle Busch Tagoo, maybe he’d get his own “personal” camera man if he didn’t act like a butt-munch towards the camera anytime he has a bad race. Carl Edwards, Junior, Jeff Gordon and even Michael Waltrip get the coverage they do because these drivers get it. They know that you have to take the good with the bad.

As for victory celebrations- I’m sorry you hate the backflip. It demonstrates orginality. Something that I will agree is seriosuly lacking in NASCAR, but I’m not sure you’re proposed solution will cut it. The best I’d ever seen was Dale Earnhardt’s celebration after he’d finally won the Daytona 500. Now that was cool!

Overall, I think this has been a good season. NASCAR is as competitive as it’s ever been- even though the most serious contenders come from the top 4 or 5 teams. Still, we really have no idea who’s going win it all this year, and that’s good for racing.

We’re going to have good races, we’re going to have bad ones. This is no different than any other sport. I think the sooner we have the attitude of looking for the good in something, rather than getting all bunged up over the bad, the better off we’ll be.

So- be patient. We’re not even out of turn one for the 2008, and a lot of what we’ve seen so far has actually been pretty interesting. I don’t think anyone could have predicted some of the story lines we’ve had so far- whether it be Ryan Newman’s victory at Daytona, HMS only having ONE victory out of 8 races so far, or whether it’s the performance of Richard Childress, Carl Edwards or veteran Jeff Burton.

There’s a lot of season left. As of right now, I wouldn’t change a doggone thing.

A “Finish Line Throwdown”- 2008: NASCAR or “NAP”CAR?

 Welcome race fans to our first “Finish Line Throwdown.” This little debate was borne from a post I saw on one of the message boards I belong to. Actually, today’s “guest poster” belongs to two of the same NASCAR fan communities that I belong to.

I introduce you to “Tagoo48″- a Jimmie Johnson fan from the heart of the South- traditional NASCAR fan country. For several reasons I will not disclose her real identity or her career. Tagoo48 is married to a dyed-in-the-wool Jeff Gordon fan, so you know she knows how to hold her own in a “throw down.” She is quick with an opinion and expresses them well. I also think today’s guest post is reflective of how many traditional NASCAR fans think. She posted the following piece in both communities and got quite a favorable response. I’ll be curious to see what you think.

I respectfully disagree with virtually all of it.

Today, I want you to read Tagoo48’s opinions. Tomorrow- I will post a rebuttal. Then- I want to hear what you think.

Regardless of your opinion, be respectful. Regardless of how we feel about our drivers, nameplates, the Car of Tomorrow and NASCAR’s leadership- I think we can all agree on our passion for auto racing. That is to say, that what unites us is greater than that which divides us.

READ ON:

“What do you think ??

Just eight weeks  NASCAR season multiple stories erupted .  Dale Earnhardt Jr.  his move to Hendrick Motorsports, Kyle Busch and Toyota’s rise to prominence, Carl Edwards’s loose oil tank cover and malleable fenders and Tony Stewart’s hair. Where does one begin to delve into the gripping issues of the day? While all of these are legitimate topics to cover (with the exception of Tony’s coif), there are a few things that have become hot-button issues.

Car of Tomorrow  McDowell’s crash last weekend during qualifying  was horrific looking to be sure. However, is it possible that many are making a little too much of the Car of Tomorrow and its role in the impact?

Yes, the new car is certainly safe, but the previous car wasn’t exactly a suicide machine, either.

Added safety of the new car is admirable, much of this could have been achieved with modifications to the existing machine. The cynic in me sees this as a cover for something that has become all too apparent with this car…

A Poor Product on The Track I’ll be honest, the last few weekends some of us have caught up on  sleep big time come Sunday afternoons,  Thank goodness for the green-white-checker finishes, otherwise we’d really have nothing much to talk about this season. Not only are the cars repulsive aesthetically, they cannot drive properly in their current configuration. The teams have begged for minor concessions in front end travel and downforce to get them to drive properly, but NASCAR, as it has done repeatedly with this exercise in futility, has turned a deaf ear to the avowed experts in their field.

Broadcasts Boarding on Torture  Forget waterboarding – strap a Guantanamo Bay detainee down in front of FOX or ESPN on the weekend and prepare to receive a windfall of actionable intelligence. Rowdy was not too far off when he made the assertion that he, “does not have his own personal cameraman like Dale Earnhardt Jr.”

whoever has acquired a second of a  lead has one as well. Meanwhile, there is rubbing, gouging, scrapping and fighting going on throughout the field, Sure that might not be the most prestigious position to be in during a race, but it is worlds more entertaining than watching uncle Edwards cruising around uncontested for 30 minutes

Victory Celebrations Donuts. Burnouts. Yawn. Peeling out in a car with nearly 900 hp is not that impressive to me . Stewart’s fence crawl is pretty cool, Edwards’ back flips are as irritating as ants at a picnic . I want to see  a  victory celebration were the crew run’s out onto the track after the winner has completed  donuts, flip the car over on its roof and spins it around. Sadly, NASCAR won’t allow the team onto the track. Can you imagine  flipping the car on it’s roof after a win, spinning it around and maybe setting it on fire while they kneel in front of it like Jimi Hendrix? Tell me that wouldn’t help spark up the ratings a bit. ( I’d even stay awake)

I guess its quite a bit for the season, two months along. I can only imagine what  our mental state will be come the halfway point. It was reported that the walls for the All-Star race at Lowe’s in May will again be painted yellow. If that is any indication of how things are going to go, I should have another laundry list of complaints in  the future.

 

 JIMMIE JOHNSON STILL RULES !!!!” (Her words)

Editor’s Note: Tagoo48 is a die-hard NASCAR fan who lives in the Southern United States. As you will see tomorrow the opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect mine.

 

 

Did You See That???

I just saw the photos of the Michael Mc Dowell crash today. That was unbelievable! Today we saw a classic defense for the car formerly known as the “Car of Tomorrow.” The funny part is, I was originally going to post about the changes that have happened under the watch of Brian France, and offer my defense for those choices, regardless of whether I agreed with them or not. The new car and what its done for NASCAR is now the centerpiece of my defense.

Many fans have complained they hated the car. Heck, even Kyle Busch, the first CoT race winner said it stunk. “It’s too boxy.” “It’s ugly.” “It’s changing racing, and not for the better.” These are just a handful of complaints I’ve heard. We saw today one of the major reasons why the car was developed- for safety. Watching how Mc Dowell hit that wall at Texas Motor Speedway was eerily similar to the way someone else once hit a wall at 180+ m.p.h.- the crash that took the life of Dale Earnhardt. It’s not the same I know, but if you’ve ever been in a collision, all you have to do is increase what happened to you at the speed of that crash and multiply by a factor of at least two, and you get the idea of what happens when you hit an immovable object at that speed. That could have killed him.

I know many of you think that NASCAR is run by incompetent corporate shills. You’re entitled to your opinion. It’s not hard to see how the game has changed and it is the nature of people to hate change. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: all sports have changed if you look over the last 30 years. I’m not suggesting that all changes have been good. I HATE the Top 35 rule! But on the whole NASCAR’s governing body has worked to make the sport better, and generally speaking, I think they have. To their credit, NASCAR has been good about changing up their approach where they’ve seen mistakes made. You gotta give them credit for that.

One of those good changes is the Car of Tomorrow.

Thank God we’re not mourning a driver today.

It’s Crunch Time For The New “Go or Go Homers”

It’s a long, hard fall for some of the guys who comprise the new list of “go or go home” drivers now that we’re 5 races into the 2008 season and we are no longer running off of the 2007 standings. While I’m sure Michael Waltrip, David Reutimann and Brian Vickers are relieved to be off of this list, thanks to improvements made by Toyota, there are others that have to be seriously concerned about what this portends for their 2008 season. For some, it may mean that their season is awash in anxiety.

Imagine being in Kyle Petty’s shoes. For most of his career, he’s been an automatic entry into the field. As it stands right now, I’d be very concerned if I were him. In looking over qualifying times over the last several races, The #45 has consistently run at or near the bottom of the list. Even when he gets in the race, it’s been monumentally difficult to get above NASCAR’s “Mendoza Line” (35th) to get out of this dreaded category.

It sucks. Just watch a couple of qualifying heats and you see how falling into the “go or go home” category completely fouls up anything resembling a strategy. You have to trim your car to run as fast as it will go just to get in at the expense of running for the duration of a 250-500 mile race. That doesn’t even take into account being at the mercy of poor weather conditions and being shut out if qualifying has to be canceled. Then there’s dealing with being at the end of the qualifying line and all the nerves that come with waiting it out to see if you get in.

Petty has plenty of company- drivers not used to being in this position: former open wheel stud Dario Franchitti joins Patrick Carpentier as drivers who have to get in on time. They’ll be joined by the likes of Jamie Mc Murray and Dave Blaney. These are guys you don’t expect to be joining the ranks of Burney Long and Stanton Barrett.

I have to imagine Mc Murray will pull through this- though you have to think this will make the driver of the Roush-Fenway #26 an odds-on-favorite to be cut when Jack Roush is required to go from 5 teams to 4 next year. Mc Murray has the backing of good equipment, so you’d think he’d be able to raise his standing quickly. By the same token, that Mc Murray finds himself in this position in spite of having a good product to work with doesn’t say good things about his skills.

It reminds me again of my disdain for the Top 35 “automatic qualifying rules.”On this rare occasion, I join the traditional NASCAR fan base by saying everybody in the field should get in on time. I get why the governing body has the rule, as sponsors pay BIG bucks to get their logos on the cars, and it doesn’t behoove a corporation to pay the big green if their car never gets camera time. After all, only the truly seriousfan watches the quals. By the same token, what does this do for the companies who sponsor go or go home drivers? Quick- do you have any idea who sponsors Boris Said? I didn’t think you did. I don’t easily remember either.

My argument to eliminate the rule would be this: If all the other guys are as good as their performance suggests, they’ll get in. Watch the qualifying times of the likes of Tony Stewart or Jeff Gordon. About the only time one of the big boys runs lower than top 30 is generally if they’ve wrecked. A miss for one of the top 20 would be rare.

I wish these guys well. Hopefully- NASCAR will see the light on this and we won’t be subject to further “back room deals” like the Hornish- Kurt Busch points swap.

It’s really not good for the sport.