Joined Jan 2004
Here's to the future
Forum Thread
NASCAR 2015 No OT please Chase for the Sprint Cup CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND Final Race: Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway
February 14, 2015 at
05:42 PM
in
Autos
I haven't ever seen much love around here for Nascar but I figured I would see if there is enough discussion to warrant a thread.
If you don't like Nascar, if you don't get Nascar, if all it looks like to you is driving around in a circle then just go away.
If you aren't aware of the huge changes that Nascar has made in recent years it may be worth another look. Quite a few years back they started a "playoff" system known as The Chase. Last year they made a huge change in that by using an elimination system in the playoff to reduce the remaining racers eligible for the championship after each round. I'm not going to spend a lot of time on the details now, but I'm interested in other opinions on both having a playoff and the way Nascar is doing it.
I welcome negative comments, but just keep it respectful and including reasons for them. If you just want to insult Nascar and oval-racing then go somewhere else.
If you don't like Nascar, if you don't get Nascar, if all it looks like to you is driving around in a circle then just go away.
If you aren't aware of the huge changes that Nascar has made in recent years it may be worth another look. Quite a few years back they started a "playoff" system known as The Chase. Last year they made a huge change in that by using an elimination system in the playoff to reduce the remaining racers eligible for the championship after each round. I'm not going to spend a lot of time on the details now, but I'm interested in other opinions on both having a playoff and the way Nascar is doing it.
I welcome negative comments, but just keep it respectful and including reasons for them. If you just want to insult Nascar and oval-racing then go somewhere else.
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Stewart was having a pretty good week again until he pretty much wrecked himself near the end. Not a whole lot else going on other than a bunch of cars in single file without much passing. At least not that I saw--I dozed off again for quite a few laps in the middle. Almost seemed more like a 1.5 mile track than a 3/4 mile.
Next week Talladega. I might get to watch about a quarter of that one and then will have to listen to the end on the radio at work.
To me, the Xfinity series is done. It's down to basically Gibbs, Penske, and Chase Elliott running away with everything. Roush occasionally runs well, but that series to me is really hurting. It used to be a breeding ground for tomorrow's stars - now it's just where old Cup drivers and never will bes go.
Didn't help that Hamlin was a non-factor yesterday. But when a guy leads more than half a short track race and there were I believe 2 passes for the lead under green, it makes for a not so exciting day for the fans.
I was amazed by how empty the stands seemed to be. (I didn't realize that the race was supposed to be held Saturday night.) I wonder how attendance is trending this year?
I was amazed by how empty the stands seemed to be. (I didn't realize that the race was supposed to be held Saturday night.) I wonder how attendance is trending this year?
The crowds are down everywhere. Even Daytona didn't sell out this year. Bristol had a ton of empty seats, but weather was a factor there. People have been saying that other tracks are down as well. I think Phoenix was the only "sellout" of the season.
Didn't help that Hamlin was a non-factor yesterday. But when a guy leads more than half a short track race and there were I believe 2 passes for the lead under green, it makes for a not so exciting day for the fans.
Speaking of which I find myself back watching Supercross or Arenacross motocross races lately. I've been a fan of that since I was a kid in the 70's when about the only way I could see any of that action was in pictures in magazines. There seems to be more and more of that showing up on tv. I catch it quite often on FS1 but it was even on the regular Fox channel this weekend for the first time ever. That is some serious racing where it mostly falls to the driver and not technology.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2EkDE-2w7g
That is a nasty hit just when the two cars came together, and after that Smith's car hits the outside wall and goes all the way across to the inside wall with the throttle stuck wide open. Just before hitting the wall the car hits a small drainage ditch and comes off the ground a little. The left front of the car was already destroyed from the initial collision and then the car hits the wall with that same corner. Man, what an impact. If that hadn't been a safer-barrier wall this would not have ended well. Smith was helped out of the car and was able to walk to the stretcher. He was airlifted to the hospital.
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The problem is what can they do to fix that? Several year back they made some changes to the cars to try to break up the pack racing and it worked, but it resulted in the two-car "tandem drafting". I think I was the only Nascar fan on the planet that liked the tandem drafting. It wasn't ideal, but at least it was better racing. If you could sort of ignore that it was two-car teams it was like really good racing between very long cars.
But that was never very popular and they made more changes that brought back the pack racing and now it seems even harder to pass without being in a long line of cars. I think we're just kind of stuck with it on the super-speedways.
Despite their finishes, Tony Stewart (19th) and Danica Patrick (21st) both had pretty good days. Stewart led some laps and ran in the top ten quite a bit of the race. Danica's car was stuck in 4th gear for much of the race but she made it up into the top 5 and ran pretty well for a lot of the race. Both of them were willing to try to make things happen and got shuffled back several times after losing the draft. They both made it back to the front a couple of times after falling back, and they just ended up getting caught back in the pack near the end of the race. Playing it safer might have ended up in a better finish for both but I like the effort that they gave it.
It was probably more boring watching on tv than listening on the radio so I'm kind of glad I had to work.
Despite their finishes, Tony Stewart (19th) and Danica Patrick (21st) both had pretty good days. Stewart led some laps and ran in the top ten quite a bit of the race. Danica's car was stuck in 4th gear for much of the race but she made it up into the top 5 and ran pretty well for a lot of the race. Both of them were willing to try to make things happen and got shuffled back several times after losing the draft. They both made it back to the front a couple of times after falling back, and they just ended up getting caught back in the pack near the end of the race. Playing it safer might have ended up in a better finish for both but I like the effort that they gave it.
It was probably more boring watching on tv than listening on the radio so I'm kind of glad I had to work.
Danica definitely has figured out plate racing. Her finishes at those tracks don't always reflect how well she was running.
The problem is what can they do to fix that? Several year back they made some changes to the cars to try to break up the pack racing and it worked, but it resulted in the two-car "tandem drafting". I think I was the only Nascar fan on the planet that liked the tandem drafting. It wasn't ideal, but at least it was better racing. If you could sort of ignore that it was two-car teams it was like really good racing between very long cars.
But that was never very popular and they made more changes that brought back the pack racing and now it seems even harder to pass without being in a long line of cars. I think we're just kind of stuck with it on the super-speedways.
The problem with the current package is you get a strong car out front, and nobody can pass them. Whatever happened to the sling shot? Imagine if the out of bounds rule had been around when Cale Yarborough was racing.
The problem with the current package is you get a strong car out front, and nobody can pass them. Whatever happened to the sling shot? Imagine if the out of bounds rule had been around when Cale Yarborough was racing.
The three-year deal, announced in Las Vegas at a convention for the auto parts distributor, will place the blue and yellow NAPA colors on the No. 24 Chevrolet as primary sponsor for 24 races each year, including the season-opening Daytona 500.
Damn, I don't think I will have any trouble adjusting to Chase being in the 24 car instead of Jeff, but I it is going to take some getting used to with the 24 car in the Napa colors.
I wonder if Dupont is still going to have any role in Nascar?
The three-year deal, announced in Las Vegas at a convention for the auto parts distributor, will place the blue and yellow NAPA colors on the No. 24 Chevrolet as primary sponsor for 24 races each year, including the season-opening Daytona 500.
Damn, I don't think I will have any trouble adjusting to Chase being in the 24 car instead of Jeff, but I it is going to take some getting used to with the 24 car in the Napa colors.
I wonder if Dupont is still going to have any role in Nascar?
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I wonder who Danica will end up with as a primary sponsor now that GoDaddy is leaving? There has been some talk that she could even end up moving to a different team but I would be surprised if that happens. Maybe Stenhouse Jr. will knock her up and she could pick up Pampers or Gerber as a sponsor.