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Category: Flashman’s Take

Fleshman’s take on NASCAR

Sprint Media Tour – Day Three – Earnhardt Ganassi Announces New Partnershop

Photo Credit: Brad Keppel

Day three of the NASCAR Media Tour came early in the morning at a hangar at Concord Regional Airport. It might seem strange to have a NASCAR function at an airport hangar, but it was soon to be very clear as the principals of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing took the stage.

After the usual introductory remarks by Dr. Jerry Punch, it was announced that a new sponsor had been signed for all Ganassi racing teams. Cessna Aircraft Company announced a strategic partnership with Ganassi for multiple races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series, the IZOD IndyCar series, and the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. This partnership extends Cessna’s presence across all three series.

“Clyde Cessna founded this company on our customers’ need for speed. Today, performing with precision to drive success is the purpose of business aviation,” said Scott Ernest, Cessna’s President and CEO. “The racing industry is built on those same principles—each day teams are moving as fast as they can to get from point a to point b and win, which is why this partnership is such a natural fit for both Cessna and Ganassi. This gives us a strong presence as we invest in the sport.”

Cessna, along with sister companies Bell Helicopter and E-Z-GO, is incorporated into every race to showcase transportation solutions to the industry including air travel to and from host cities, helicopter transport from airports to racing venues and ground transportation on site.

Cessna will sponsor multiple races on the No. 1 Chevrolet SS of Jamie McMurray in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series, sharing assets with Bell and E-Z-GO, one race on the No. 10 Honda with Dario Franchitti in the IZOD IndyCar Series and one race with Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas in the GRAND-Am Rolex Sports Car Series on the 01 Dinan-prepared BMW.

Ganassi looks forward to the partnership.

“With almost 70 races a year separated by hundreds of miles with little time in between, I rely on business aviation to help me keep driving my business and to keep winning,” Ganassi said.

It also was mentioned that Bass Pro Shops had lessened their support to the Sprint Cup teams to only two races in 2013, making the Cessna announcement very important to the organization.

January 23, 2013
Sprint Media Tour – Day Two – Charlotte Motor Speedway

Photo Credit: Brad Keppel

Day two of the Sprint Media Tour ended with a trip to Charlotte Motor Speedway and the Chevrolet dinner at the guest hotel. CMS hosted what was called “A Taste of SMI.” With SMI Chairman Bruton Smith holding court, the media was told of changes being made at each of the corporation’s tracks and how all the changes were to make tracks more fan friendly.

Each track’s General Manager told how they were changing things to attract more fans to their track. The changes included perks for first time attendees, long term attendees, people with children getting a reduced ticket price for their young ones, and top notch concessions. All of the SMI track chefs were there and featured such items as Coca-Cola Tacos, Green Beer, Bacon Cotton Candy, and Fried Bourbon Balls. Not all items will be featured at each track. For instance, the green beer will be a Bristol-only treat because the March race is hear St. Patrick’s Day and the bacon cotton candy is a specialty of Texas Motor Speedway.

Earlier, Smith asked the media to help him change two things about NASCAR. He wanted the media to lobby fans and NASCAR via our writings to outlaw teams who start and park and convince NASCAR to slow down the racing.

The Chevrolet dinner was an explanation. Chevrolet officials went through the process of how the Chevrolet SS car was developed from carbon fiber model to clay to what you will see on the speedway in the Sprint Unlimited and the Daytona 500. Although the production model of the SS will not be revealed until February 16th and actually arrive in showrooms until later, it was a long process and from the looks of the finished product, very successful.

The final event of the day was Nationwide Insurance’s Rally hospitality event to raise money for Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Several Nationwide Series drivers were available for interviews and money was raised for a great cause. All in all, it was a very busy and rewarding day.

January 23, 2013
Sprint Media Tour – Day Two – Michael Waltrip Racing

Photo Credit: Brad Keppel

On Day Two of the Sprint Media Tour, Michael Waltrip Racing was featured. Waltrip’s team was considered the most improved in 2012, having two of his three teams make the Chase and the third very close. This year, there are few changes at MWR.

“If you’re looking for change, there isn’t any,” Waltrip said. “We’re going to try to build on last year.” Clint Bowyer was cautiously optimistic. “I don’t think we overachieved, because I think when you say overachieved it means you did more than you’re capable of, Bowyer said. “I just think we were beyond expectations and what people expected of us. I’m very proud of what we accomplished last year.

I’ve looked forward to this year and what we have in front of us and the opportunities ahead with this new car and continue to build on what we had last year. That’s more important to me right now, is making sure we get the year started off right and the only way I know to do that is to win the Daytona 500.”

Bowyer was asked what it was like being around someone like Mark Martin.

“You know, Mark Martin first of all is a class act. He’s a racer, he’s driven beyond belief. His focus and determination is incredible and is just a great asset for our program and to be around as an individual. I’m very, very happy that he’s my teammate. I’m very appreciative of the fact that he’s my teammate and hopefully he’s in the sport for many years to come,” Bowyer said.

Mark Martin was asked how he felt about the new Gen 6 Toyota.

“This is not a dramatic change from what we had. In most ways, it’s subtle improvements all around until it gets to the aesthetics, and then that is — I would say — a huge improvement, Martin said. “Aesthetically, it’s a big change. Mechanically, it’s a nice improvement, a nice evolution of what we were doing, so operationally it’s not that huge. We went to the race track and we picked up where we left off at the end of last year and I saw most, pretty much everyone do that.”

Martin Truex, Jr. came close to winning races last year, but the improvement was possibly more dramatic with his Toyota.

“Really, it was the end of 2011 that got it started. We built new cars, we did a lot of things differently, had momentum going into the off-season, felt good and had a good direction going into 2012. I told a lot of people last year — or last winter – that we were going to be somebody that could go out and run strong each and every week and I felt like we could go out and make the Chase, and we were able to do that. It started in 2011 for sure, but it was mostly a direction of the team. The direction that the team was going in because of our leadership, because of Michael (Waltrip, co-owner) and Rob’s (Kauffman, co-owner) commitment to put our team where it was last year. And, that commitment obviously is to keep going in that directly and hopefully we’ll be able to do it this year.”

Truex also mentioned that the reason sponsorship was so stable at MWR was that the organization was “all in” in sponsors. “Here’s what we’re going to do for you and here’s what it costs,” Truex said. Sponsors like that.”

Co-owner Waltrip was very enthusiastic about the new season, but at the same time amazed at how good the formula worked.

“I was just amazed at Brian Pattie’s (No. 15 crew chief) ability to run a race,” Waltrip said. “To help Clint Bowyer go win races — he really was a master strategist. He understood when to get gas and when to get two tires and so you put a guy behind the wheel like Clint Bowyer, who showed up in NASCAR and you could tell that he could drive a car better than most and then you give him a guy that’s a bit of a risk taker and a call maker and put him on the pit box like Brian Pattie and you couple all that with the support that Scott Miller (competition director) and the boys that build the cars and do the engineering at MWR — they were a really fun combination to watch. I’m just looking forward to watching them go again in 2013.”

MWR will make no changes, as the co-owner said, from the formula that worked so well in 2012. Bowyer and Truex will have full time rides with Martin and Brian Vickers sharing the third car.

January 22, 2013
Sprint Media Tour – Day Two – Furniture Row and NASCAR Announcements

Photo Credit: Brad Keppel

Day Two of the Sprint Media Tour began with a breakfast presentation by Furniture Row Motorsports and the driver of the No. 78 Chevrolet, Kurt Busch. Busch commented that he was very happy with the testing of the new Chevrolet SS car.

“It’s something that fans and drivers can appreciate,” Busch said. “It’s race on Sunday and sell on Monday all the way.”

Busch commented that there were plenty of things to discover about the new car and that was a challenge, but it was new for everyone and that made the playing field level. It was announced that Furniture Row, although based in Colorado has a presence in North Carolina by virtue of their partnership with Richard Childress racing. They have offices at the RCR complex in Welcome, North Carolina.

Crew Chief Todd Barrier moved to Colorado to supervise the preparation of cars and has adjusted well, since his relocation. Even though parts have been a problem, it’s on NASCAR supplied parts, such as deck lids and only if they lose a car or a deck lid at Daytona does he see a problem.

Busch announced that he has only a few races planned with brother Kyle’s team if they come to pass. He is not looking for any more.

Next was a trip to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Uptown Charlotte. Brian France called the new Generation 6 car and how it was a clean sheet of paper, the NASCAR Diversity Plan, and the Television package. They plan to have that finished soon.

Innovation was a key work there with a new track drying procedure that will drastically shorten track drying time using fresh air and heat instead of jet drivers. No details were given.

France reiterated his support for the Chase format and the Wild Card, which he said was an idea given to him by a competitor. He also mentioned that the new laser technology that shows whether or not a car was within specs was not to do away with templates, but to show teams that everyone is within the parameters established by NASCAR.

Tonight, we have the Chevrolet Dinner and the Nationwide hospitality event at the host hotel.

January 22, 2013
Media Tour Day One, Part Two – Richard Childress Racing and Earnhardt-Petty Announcement

Photo Credit: Brad Keppel

Day One of the NASCAR Sprint Media Tour ended with two events that started out with well intentions, but included a twist of events. The usual 45-minute drive took over two hours due to a couple of accidents on I-85, and made our time at Richard Childress Racing somewhat short. Nevertheless, all the Childress drivers were there with their 2013 rides including lame duck driver Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, Austin and Ty Dillon, and Brendan Gaughan. Burton was candid in telling the assembled media that 2012 was not what the team wanted, but he looks for improvement in 2013, saying the trials of competition gets my trying as you age.

Kevin Harvick expressed confidence in what might happen in 2013 due to changes in management at RCR which Harvick described as the reason the team turned the corner in late 2012. Gaughan, who will be driving full time in the Camping World Truck Series, mentioned at age 37, it was time to win a championship. Austin Dillon brushed off any apprehension about running a Cup car in selected races.

By well after 9:30, the buses loaded and it was time to head back to the host hotel for an announcement from Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Richard Petty. The news was that Earnhardt and Petty have joined forces to promote the Goody’s brand in 2013.

“The partnership is unprecedented,” said Joseph Juliano, Brand Director of Goody’s. “It is the first time that these two NASCAR legends have worked together. Each of them has a huge fan base , and they are both synonymous with the sport of auto racing. Goody’s is all about speed, and nobody personifies the idea of speed better than Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.”

Earnhardt gave Petty the proper praise.

“Richard Petty is a role model for me and every other driver in NASCAR, Earnhardt said. “I am honored to be working with him and thankful Goody’s brought us together. I signed on with Goody’s because of their long-term investment in NASCAR.”

“At every track I go to, people come up to me and tell me a story about using Goody’s,” Petty said. At the same time, Goody’s is something of a well-kept secret. Dale, Jr. and I are going to change that.”

January 22, 2013
Is Penske the shot in the arm that Ford needs?

[media-credit id=62 align=”alignright” width=”226″][/media-credit]Now that the never-ending banquet is over, the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is finally in the books. The champion has been crowned and it’s only 78 days until the qualifying for the Daytona 500. That’s about two and a half months. What we were treated with tonight was an out of place Howie Mandel and plenty of fluff leading up to what turned out to be tremendous speeches by car owner Roger Penske and Sprint Cup Champion Brad Keselowski. Yes, Clint Bowyer was funny and Kasey Kahne was horribly stiff, but the professionalism of The Captain and Brad was the lasting impression left on this viewer.

All of a sudden, it hit me like a sucker punch out of the blue. Roger Penske and Brad Keselowski is just what Ford needs. Jack Roush has pretty much controlled Ford’s NASCAR program, whether by necessity or just because there was no one else there. Tonight, The Captain showed what has been missing from the Ford’s program—another perspective.

Roush controls his three teams and the two Richard Petty Motorsports teams and the Wood Brothers team. He also has his hand in at least chassis and engines for Front Row Motorsports and others. The results haven’t been stellar, though not horrible. While Hendrick Motorsports has been winning everywhere and winning the last six championships (if you count Tony Stewart’s title last year), Roush Fenway has been a distant second. A spark was needed, and maybe the big shots at Ford Racing saw that. I have no idea if this was the case, but if not, it was a lucky stroke. It just might be what is needed to jump start the blue oval next year.

Maybe it’s just the excitement of seeing a new champion crowned, but it seemed like a new day dawned. With Penske on board, Ford finally has a team that isn’t just a clone of what they already have. The competition within the brand just might spur on the seven teams to become more competitive. Seeing Roger Penske on the stage was a shot in the arm for the whole series. For too long, this series has been owned by Hendrick, and specifically the No.48 team, with the other Chevrolets owned by HMS close behind. Joe Gibbs Racing has made inroads, as has Michael Waltrip Racing this year. With Keselowski and Penske, the new face, always exciting to fans, is here.

If will be tough next year. A new manufacturer is always snuffed off as not a problem, but it always is. I remember when Harry Rainer, owner of probably the fastest team of its time, switched to Ford in 1985. The “can’t miss” team took a half season before they could be competitive for a whole race, so asking for another championship is probably a tall order. It is more competition for those who have dominated for so long, and that’s a good thing for the sport. New ideas are always welcomed for NASCAR and competition as a whole. At least I hope so.

December 1, 2012
Keselowski Is For Real

[media-credit name=”Noel Lanier” align=”alignright” width=”231″][/media-credit]A couple of years ago, I had to wonder what Roger Penske was thinking. I mean, giving Brad Keselowski a ride in a great car? What was he thinking? Here was the guy who hit everything but the pace car in the Nationwide Series, won a race at Talladega by punting Carl Edwards into the stands, and cussed like a sailor. The Captain had to be crazy. Crazy like a fox.

So here we are and Keselowski is in the driver’s seat. A 20-point lead translates to a 100 point lead under the old system (you know, the one Bob Latford created and served us well forever), and though it’s not certain, a 15th place finish on Sunday will make him the Sprint Cup champion for 2012. No drama this year, or so it seems. But as Lee Corso might say maybe this is a little too fast.

Last year, Carl Edwards came into Homestead with a slim lead only to have Tony Stewart win the race against all odds to snatch the championship from Edwards against all odds. That’s why I’m not declaring this championship this week. Ask Jimmie Johnson about a tire failure. Ask the late Davey Allison about a commanding point lead (if we could and how much do we wish we could). As Yogi Berra said, it’s not over until it’s over. And it isn’t over for the next our days, but the proverbial fat lady is singing. Who would have thunk it?

These days, Keselowski is still as brash, and from all indications, still cusses like a sailor, but he also is one heckuva driver. He’s proven it this season by winning races and, with his crew chief, has proven that he is willing to gamble for the final goal. He has shown maturity that no one could ever imagine. Also, remember this is a team in the midst of transition from Dodge to Ford. No matter what anyone says, that has to be a distraction, and still here he is on the verge of a championship. It would be bittersweet for SRT, Dodge’s racing arm, and the engine program at Penske, which will go away at season’s end. It’s quite of an accomplishment no matter what happens on Sunday in south Florida, but it’s not enough.

Many think Johnson can somehow pull this one out. Today, my Twitter field was bombarded with over 1,200 tweets from Johnson and Keselowski fans, most of them from Johnson fans (and I still don’t understand why subscribing to Johnson’s and Keselowski’s feeds has me getting anyone’s tweets about the two drivers on my feed). NASCAR should be proud of this despite the fines of Monday. As some wise man said, there is no such thing as bad publicity. My feeling is the fine was more about Brad’s language in the media center than his tweeting under a red flag, but no matter, It is what it is. Under the dictatorship that NASCAR, you are fee to pick and choose rules as you please, and they do it frequently. It’s just the way it is.

I tend to think Keselowski will win the Cup. Why? Simply because he is in the lead and drives for a great team that will not let him fail. Of course I’ve said this before, and like this last year, the impossible happened, so you never know. But, I know this for sure. The kid see a championship within his grasp again and many times after that. Jimmie Johnson had better reach up and get those belts tight (as Larry McReynolds would say). He has competition.

November 14, 2012
So You Wanted Excitement? Gordon Delivers

[media-credit id=40 align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]Phoenix brings back a lot of memories. It takes me back to 1992 when the championship was down to three drivers in many pundit’s opinions—Bill Elliott, Davey Allison, and Alan Kulwicki. All drove Fords, but Allison had the upper hand with a lead and with the Robert Yates Racing team’s stout engines. Elliott and Kulwicki were considered two drivers that would finish in second and third in no particular order. It was Davey Allison’s to win. And then came Phoenix. Many of you know the story. An unfortunate tangle with Ernie Irvan, and Allison was out of the championship picture. I thought about that as I watched Brad Keselowski take a pretty solid lead in the 2012 Chase for the Championship.

All it took was a right front tire failure for Jimmy Johnson. Most of us have watched the flawless execution of the No. 48 Chevy team for the last seven seasons. Even in defeat, they always have appeared to be invincible. Unfortunately, this was not the case this time. Just like Allison in 1992, it was not preparedness nor was it the car, it was dumb luck. For Allison it was being in the wrong place at the wrong time. For Jimmie Johnson it was the failure of a tire. The result was the same. Both drivers were put in a hole that would be difficult to escape from with only one race remaining.

In 1992, they finished at Atlanta. Kulwicki went on to win the championship despite Elliott winning the race. We may see the same scenario next week. I cannot imagine the Lowe’s team not being fired up and bringing their best piece to Homestead, but I also cannot see the Penske team bringing less than a car that could win the race. Gone are the days when drivers rode around hoping for 15th place to insure a championship—the place that Keselowski needs to clinch his first championship (like Elliott and Rusty Wallace did in their championship years). Anything can happen, but history tells us that Keselowski is in the driver’s seat. Whether he makes it or not will have to wait until November 18th, as it should be.

On this day, I am more concerned about the incident that happened near the end of the race. When accidents happen in the course of racing, I have no problem with it. I like rubbing during racing and one thing we haven’t seen enough of is drivers moving cars to get an advantage. That used to be a staple of what NASCAR was. With the advent of the Chase and so much attention being paid to the championship and not winning races, it’s almost disappeared. What Jeff Gordon did today was not what I had in mind.

It was a surprise. Gordon is a four-time champion, but things have been a little lean lately. He’s watched teammate Jimmie Johnson win five championships. He’s watched Dale Earnhardt, Jr. get more attention at Hendrick Motorsports. It has been more frustration than he can bear. We saw him push Matt Kenseth at Bristol with his helmet on, and walk down and push Jeff Burton when things didn’t go his way. Frustration is a horrible thing. Unfortunately, today was over the line. We’ve seen this behavior from Carl Edwards and we’ve seen it from Kyle Busch. Edwards stalked Keselowski after he punted Edwards at Talladega and Kyle Busch take out his frustration on Ron Hornaday in a truck race, Edwards was put on probation and Kyle Busch was parked for a race.

When Gordon’s car crashed, it was obvious from 2,500 miles away that debris from the crash was obvious. A yellow flag would have probably ended the result that we saw played out live. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Gordon was allowed to slow down and wait for Bowyer and the end result was good television, but not good for racing. Sure, many have said that ticket sales will be brisk for Homestead, but what about the state of the sport?

When the crews took it into their own hands and television showed Bowyer sprinting to get in the fight of running up to the hauler of the No. 24, all I could think of was WWE. Sorry, but I did. To many that was a good thing, but to me it was not that at all. The other problem was that NASCAR didn’t throw the yellow when Danica Patrick spun. Although Robin Pemberton said they couldn’t see any oil, I was sitting in West Virginia, 2.500 miles away and saw the oil. I saw the cars having a hard time negotiating in the oil and the final wrecks were not s surprise. How could someone sitting maybe a football field away not see that? You be the judge.

Most drivers were upset on this day, and may say they lost respect for a four time champion. Whether that transfers to the final race at the Ford Championship weekend is not determined. We will soon know.

November 12, 2012
Can Keselowski Catch Johnson?

[media-credit name=”Credit: Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”224″][/media-credit]The question that most Sprint Cup fans are asking doesn’t have any good answer. Can Keselowski catch him? Immediately one can look at the seven point deficit and notice that finishing four places above Jimmie Johnson in two races, not considering the bonus points for leading laps, is a monumental task. Is it possible? Yes. Is it plausible? Not likely.

When NASCAR decided to come up with the playoff system that we now know as the Chase, they didn’t change much about the final ten races, which was supposed to be the playoff. In the beginning it began with New Hampshire and ended at NASCAR’s owned track at Homestead, Florida. It didn’t work out, but they added Chicagoland, just another mile and a half that the Lowe’s team thrives at, and nothing changed. In fact, it made more of an advantage for the No. 48 team. So it plays out this year like all the rest of the past seven years. Game over.

This is not an indictment of Jimmie Johnson, the Lowe’s team for Hendrick Motorsports. They know the program and base their season on the last ten races. They may lag behind in the first 26 races (when Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth seemed to be at the top most of the season), but they are prepared for the final ten races where they shine. It’s a good strategy. Play by the rules, which might be an outrageous statement when considering the No. 48 team, is how you win. When you go to the same tracks at the end of the season in your playoff you get what you deserve—a boring finish.

Last year was different. You had Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart fighting it out. Edwards took the lead and fought hard during the “playoffs,” but tied Stewart with the championship coming down to the number of wins. This year it is different. Despite Keselowski’s valiant and sometimes inhuman effort using pit strategy and banking on luck, it seems to come down to skill versus desire. Skill usually wins in these cases, and that will be the decisive factor this year. Keselowski’s somewhat inexperience combined with the experience of Rick Hendrick’s team will prevail as usual. I don’t see any way that the Johnson freight train will derail. And that makes a very important point. After Phoenix, how many will tune in or attend for the final Ford Championship weekend at Homestead? I fear the worst.

The whole point of the Chase format was that it would create excitement for the end of the season and create a so-called horse race. Unfortunately, while it worked in 2011, it isn’t working this year, and probably won’t in most years. Racing is so different than stick and ball sports. Trying to emulate the playoff system in those sports is futile. Yes, we can have a system like the NFL, the model for the Chase, was a bad attempt at creating excitement, but it never takes into account the fact that the NFL, the NBA, or even MLB, have no advantage or certain tracks. They get to be home and away, with the advantage going to the home team. In the NASCAR world, the home advantage clearly exists with one team. Until the final ten races are changed, you can expect the same result forever and ever. Don’t forget that 2011 was an aberration. The sooner that NASCAR changes the schedule, the better this end of season thing will become. Unfortunately, that’s a hard thing to do. Add Darlington and Bristol? Great idea. Get rid of New Hampshire and adding Richmond? Yes. But it highlights the real problem.

There is no reason to have a playoff in NASCAR. Run the races from one to 36. Crown a champion and place the emphasis on each race during the season and giving proper kudos to the winner. That’s the way it always was and why wasn’t that good enough today when it was what built the sport? Beats me.

November 9, 2012
Martinsville is the Blueprint for NASCAR’s Future

[media-credit name=”Brad Keppel” align=”alignright” width=”240″][/media-credit]Did anyone doubt that Jimmie Johnson would lead the Chase points after Martinsville? Earlier in the spring race, he and teammate Jeff Gordon were headed for a 1-2 finish before somebody got greedy and the result was Ryan Newman winning. Never mind that Hendrick Motorsports owns this place, and if for not a strange turn of events, HMS would have won both races at Martinsville Speedway. As usual.

The only driver and team that have a chance against the Hendrick superstars is Denny Hamlin. Trouble was that Hamilton had electrical and pit speed problems that gave him little chance of winning on Sunday. These days, you can forget anyone else challenging. Despite that one thing, it was a good race and in fact competitive. Brian Vickers, who had qualified second, was competitive all day. Clint Bowyer was up front for the entire race. Even Jeff Gordon looked invincible at times, but in the end, everyone in the stands, even though many were scared off by Storm Sandy and the warnings of the Virginia Governor, knew that Johnson would be celebrating at the race’s end. It’s been that way for years. Those guys, led by Chad Knaus just have the Paper-Clip figured out, but that didn’t mean that it was a boring race. It was far from that.

Martinsville, the oldest track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit, has become the showplace of what NASCAR is and what it should be. While track owners and corporations continued to build their mile and a half palaces, isn’t it funny that the best racing is always on shorter tracks? Sunday saw lead changes and spirited back and forth among several drivers. No fuel mileage problems here. Just hard racing was on the menu from start to finish. The race didn’t give fans any time to fall asleep or wander to another NFL game, if they were at home. Even the finish held some drama as Kyle Busch tried unsuccessfully tried to run down and pass Johnson. Compare that with other races this season.

It’s really interesting to note that a track designed in 1947 provides the best racing on the circuit. No progressive banking and nothing to take away from the racing like casinos or other distractions. Sue, the end result was what everyone figured would happen, but fenders were put on opponents and no car got so far out in front that no one could pass them. It was the perfect race and that’s as it should be.

So, as far as I can see, the twice annual “Hendrick Invitational” should be the blueprint of what NASCAR should be. For too long, the sport has tried to emulate stick and ball sports. We now have a playoff system where the championship is the end all. If you find yourself in the top 12 before the playoffs, you get all the attention. The only problem is that in the other sports, only the playoff teams are playing. In NASCAR, the other 31 teams still compete, but go largely unnoticed. From Daytona to Homestead, the points are the only story. Who cares who wins a race? In the NFL or MLB, that works because you have a game that never changes. Everything changes in the Chase. Thou shalt not touch the Chase contenders. No one paid any attention to that, that I could see at Martinsville, but that is the exception. As we head to the final three races at tracks larger than Martinsville, that may come into play and that’s unfortunate. On Sunday, as I sat in the Press Box, I was rooting for anyone who was in the Dirty Dozen to win. It didn’t happen, but not for lack of effort. On a larger track, it might be hard to see that. Isn’t it time to see more of that?

Regardless, last Sunday was a joy if you enjoy good racing. Thank goodness that tracks like Martinsville still exist after 65 years, and isn’t it time that we see more of that? The trend to go to larger tracks and less unique tracks (I hear Darlington and Rockingham calling) has led to the lack of television ratings and attendance, in my opinion. Folks want to see action, and they got it at Martinsville. Long may the little track in the small town somewhere between Roanoke and Greensboro continue to flourish. It’s the crown jewel of NASCAR.

October 31, 2012