NASCAR Hall Of Fame Inductees

Welcome, race fans to my blog. This post is strictly a NASCAR comment, and in my opinion. 25 heroes of NASCAR, from it’s beginnings, to the present were nominated to be in the NASCAR Hall of Fame, which will be completed next year. Five were voted into the first class.The fans got to vote. And newscasters from around NASCAR also got to vote. There was a final panel that set down the five that were to be in the first class. The decision was made on Wednesday.

In my opinion, this first class should be the pioneers of the sport. The ones that started it all and influenced the way it is today. And with that having been said, I disagree with what was decided upon. The five who are being inducted are: William H. G. France, his son, Bill France, Jr., Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt and Junior Johnson.

I agree with the France’s getting in. Bill, Sr. started the sport. He made racing a sport and put rules into place to govern the sport. He started it all. Bill, Jr. took over and made the sport National. He built upon his father’s idea and took it to the next level. Richard Petty has 200 wins in NASCAR. And seven championships. He’s the King of NASCAR.

But with the thinking that this first class should be the pioneers, I’m not sure he should be included. His Father, Lee started his own team and raced in the beginning. He was one of the pioneers of the sport. In my opinion, Lee should have been in the first class instead of Richard. Just my opinion. Richard is still alive and could get into a future class.

Dale Earnhardt also has seven Championships. He was a fan favorite. And who knows how many more races he could have won, or championships he could have gotten had he not died at the end of the 2001 Daytona 500? But he was not a pioneer in the sport. He was part of the modern era. So, although he is in everyone’s heart that voted, he should not have been in the first class. In my opinion.

Junior Johnson won many races and championships both as a driver and later as an owner. A remarkable NASCAR career. But, again, he was not a pioneer of the sport. So, in my opinion, should not have been included in this first class.

In addition to Pearson, Yarborough and Allison, the other 17 nominees not selected were Buck Baker, Red Byron, Richard Childress, Richie Evans, Tim Flock, Rick Hendrick, Ned Jarrett, Bud Moore, Raymond Parks, Benny Parsons, Lee Petty, Fireball Roberts, Herb Thomas, Curtis Turner, Darrell Waltrip, Joe Weatherly and Glen Wood. (From NASCAR Scene Daily)

Red Byron won the first NASCAR sanctioned race and Championship. And should have been included. He was after all, the first. A pioneer in NASCAR. In my opinion.

However, the fans voting, know Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. And their votes were taken into consideration. After all, without the fans there would be no sport. I just think, for this first class, the pioneers of the sport should have been acknowledged before everyone else. In my opinion.

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In My Opinion: Kyle Busch

The Media just loves Kyle. The fans just hate him. And Kyle just loves being hated. Okay, he can drive. But is he as great as the Media makes him out to be? In my opinion, definitely not. Yes, he wins races. Last year, in his fourth year in the Sprint Cup Series, he had eight wins. Is that a lot? Sure. More than some, but not as many as some. Carl Edwards had nine wins the same year. Jeff Gordon won his first Championship in his third full year in Winston Cup with seven wins. Kyle had only four wins in his first three years. I’m sure the Media noticed that at the time. They must have forgotten, though.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. once spun out into the infield at a track, and when he got out of the car, he bowed to the fans to show that he was alright. Kyle took that bow and made it his own when he wins. Carl Edwards does a back-flip from the car when he wins. He doesn’t tell you he got that from another driver. But he made it his own. I guess Kyle can’t do a back-flip, because he didn’t take that from Carl.

Kyle Busch decided he was going to prove to the masses that he is the best driver ever. And the Media jumped on the bandwagon. But he wasn’t going to do it by winning all the races in Sprint Cup and collecting Championships in that Series. No, he will enter as many races as he can in the lower Series. So, as a Pro in Cup, he will race against the amateurs in the Nationwide Series and the drivers who couldn’t win in Cup, competing in the Camping World Truck Series.

Does that make him a better driver than, say, three-time Cup Champion, Jimmy Johnson? Or four-time Cup Champion, Jeff Gordon? Hardly. It only proves he’s better than the drivers who never made it in Cup. Yes, he amassed many wins last year in the three NASCAR Series. And the Media quickly picked up on that, saying he could get into any car or truck and win. But does that really prove that he is a great driver? In my opinion, no.

Kyle doesn’t know how to loose. The Media says that’s because he’s the ONLY one who wants to win. I beg to differ. EVERY driver out there, in all Series WANTS to win. They wouldn’t be racing if they didn’t think they could win. Kyle needs to grow up. It was cute when he started out as the youngest driver to win certain races. And pouted and stormed off when he didn’t. But he’s 24 now and still runs away from the fans and Media when he doesn’t win. He’ll never be a great driver until he can own up to not winning.

See, you can’t win them all. No one can. No matter how much you may want to. And, in my opinion, Lady Luck has a lot to do with winning. Kyle snubs her every time he bows. And look at what happened in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup last year. He won eight races in the regular Season. And fell on his face during the last ten races of the Chase.

Can he drive? Sure. Is he the best driver out there? Definitely not. Collecting wins in the lower Series doesn’t make him a better driver. It just makes him better than the amateurs. Big deal. Maybe one day he’ll grow up and realize Cup is where he wants to race. And where he wants to do well. And that you have to take the wins along with the losses. And not be an idiot on and off the track. But I doubt it.

He wasn’t in the Truck race in Texas because he was in Pocono. He attempted the triple-header last year and fell flat on his face. But that Truck race was great. Maybe because it was Truck drivers competing with each other. And no Kyle in the line-up. And the announcers were talking about the Truck drivers instead of Kyle Busch. (They say his name with capital letters.) The Nationwide race wasn’t as wonderful. Kyle was on the pole. Anyone can lead from the pole and pull away. It should have been a great race because it should have been all Nationwide drivers, as Cup drivers were in Pocono. But Kyle and Carl had to ruin a good race. In my opinion. The idiot even smashed the guitar trophy! Talk about immature!

Grow up, Kyle. Driving “three-wide all by himself”, as the Media says, more often than not will only cause a crash. Not make you a better driver. In my opinion.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley. See you after the Pocono 500.

In My Opinion

Welcome race fans to my opinion. I would like to comment on Kyle Busch. He has announced he’d like to go for Richard Petty’s record number of wins. That being 200. Richard Petty collected all these wins in the top NASCAR Series. Today that Series is called NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Now granted, back then there were more races in a season. And no one will ever break that record.

But Kyle wants to have all his wins in the three major Series count towards his total. Kyle is a veteran, even though still young, in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The minor leagues are NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. They are minor leagues for up-and-coming racers and those veterans who could never quite make it in the top series. So he is racing against beginners and lesser drivers who can win in their own Series, but not in the top Series.

Kyle has 15 wins in Cup. He had two wins in his first full year and one in the following two years. For him it was Checkers or wreckers. That is, he wrecked more than he won. When his contract was up with Hendrick Motor Sports, Rick Hendrick decided to replace him with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Joe  Gibbs Racing hired him for the 2008 season. And that year he collected eight wins.

The Media went wild about what a great driver he was. He entered races in both the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series. And the Media added these wins to his Cup wins. So he has fifteen wins in Cup, but overall has 51 wins. And that’s where I have a problem. In my opinion, I don’t think the stats should be revised to include all the Series. I say pick a Series and stick with it. You can’t win them all.

But Kyle is arrogant enough to think he can. The Media loves him and is willing to rewrite the stats to show he is. All the other drivers stuck to Cup racing for their wins. They didn’t enter every race in all three Series to count all their wins. It just wasn’t done. Once they got to the top level, they raced there. With selected races in the Minor Leagues. There is nothing to compare Kyle’s stats to, as no one was ever arrogant enough to collect wins in different Series just for the sake of collecting wins.

In my opinion, he shouldn’t be allowed to compete in every race in the Minor Leagues and go for a Minor League Title. He is a Cup Title contender, after all. Of course he will win in the Minor Leagues. But is that a true reflection on his ability? The Media thinks it is. The fans certainly don’t.

One last thing. He doesn’t handle not winning very well. The Media says this is because no one wants to win more than Kyle. I beg to differ. He is not the only one who wants to win. They are all out there to win. And don’t like not winning. Kyle just acts like a baby when he doesn’t win. That doesn’t make him a better driver, just a poor looser.

This past weekend the races were in Darlington, SC. In the Nationwide race, Kyle got a flat tire with the Green, White Checkers coming up and had to pit. The crowd went wild cheering. In the Sprint Cup race, he hit the wall hard and had to go to the garage. No caution was thrown because he made it to the pits without involving anyone else. Again the crowd went wild cheering for his disappointment. In my opinion, it was the best part of both races in Darlington. And he shouldn’t be allowed to prove in three Series that he’s as good as the King was in one Series. Media, take note. NASCAR, please give the Nationwide drivers a chance to win races and Titles in their own Series by limiting the number of races any Cup driver in the top 35 can enter in a given year. Don’t let Kyle Busch take over.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley. If you like what I said, please leave a comment. Thank you.

In My Opinion: Phoenix

Welcome race fans! It’s time for My Opinion. This week NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series comes to Phoenix International Raceway in Arizona. I, of course watch everything that is televised over the weekend involving racing. That is, I watch all the practices, but may not watch Trackside or all the Speed Reports. Mostly because I don’t care for the commentary of those. Just my opinion.

But I do watch all the practices and qualifying. PIR is one of the shortest races in the Series. The race is the Subway Fresh Fit 500, but that is 500K, not 500 miles. It’s only 312 laps/miles, instead of the 500 laps at Martinsville and Bristol. In my opinion, it’s just a Nationwide race. But that’s another story.

The Nationwide drivers took to the track at 8:00 AM today. My time, Eastern, it was a reasonable 11:00 AM. #32 Burney Lamar was on the track and #60 Carl Edwards (a Cup regular) got into him, damaging both cars. Carl, of course, blamed Burney. Burney claimed he didn’t see Carl coming and went down in front of Carl. Now, Carl is a Cup veteran, driving in the Nationwide series. In my opinion, Carl should have been better than to run into Burney.

The Nationwide Series should be for up-and-coming drivers. And if drivers like Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch want to race with these guys, they should expect racing incidents like this one. David Ragan, also a Cup driver, had to get into the wall to avoid another Nationwide driver. And many times Kyle Busch gets mad and storms off when he doesn’t win all the races in Nationwide. Or if a Nationwide driver won’t let him by.

It’s my opinion that this series is for drivers who are still learning. And they will make mistakes. That’s why they aren’t in the Sprint Cup Series. The Cup drivers are veterans. And if they want to go and drive in the minor leagues, they should expect situations like that to happen. After all, they are playing with Nationwide toys and shouldn’t just expect the drivers to pull over and let them by. It’s their Series and they want to win. Every bit as much as Carl and Kyle do.

Yes, Kyle and Carl are better drivers. They will do better than the regular Nationwide drivers. They are Cup regulars, after all. And as such, they should be able to avoid such incidents. I actually like a Nationwide race where Kyle and/or Carl do lousy. And hate it when those two beat up on the Nationwide drivers to get a spot. They shouldn’t be taking out drivers in their own series. They should be better than that.

And now, in my opinion, I suggest that NASCAR take a good  look at the Nationwide Series. There are many drivers who depend on this series for their bread and butter. And deserve recognition. When Cup drivers run all the races in Nationwide, they will, by definition, do better than the series drivers. Carl and Kyle are first and second in points.  And in my opinion, that should not be allowed.

And the media should spend more time talking about the regulars, instead of the Cup drivers. They can talk about Cup drivers in the race the following day. I want to know about how the Nationwide regulars are doing. I have my favorites and want to know how they are doing. I don’t care how the Cup drivers are doing, even if they are faster. They SHOULD be faster.

They limit the number of races a Nationwide driver can race in Cup and still be a rookie contender. Can’t they limit the number of Nationwide races a Cup driver races in, and still qualify for the Chase? It’s been the “thing to do” the last few years. Cup drivers going for the Nationwide Championship. But is it the right thing to do? Not in my opinion. Pick a Series. And go for the Championship. Although, Kevin Harvick has two Busch Championships, but no Sprint Cup Championships. Carl Edwards has his Busch series Championship, and no Cup Championship. And Clint Bowyer has his Nationwide Championship, but no Cup Title.

Hmm! It doesn’t look like anyone will win both in the same year! But I sure hate hearing how well Cup drivers are doing in the Nationwide race. In my opinion, it’s like Tiger Woods playing against the amateurs just to prove he’s better than them. Duh! But that’s just my opinion.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley

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NASCAR’s Top 12

This is the third in the series NASCAR’s top 12. Finishing tenth in points in 2008 was Kyle Busch. Kyle roared through 2008 in his new ride with Joe Gibbs Racing #18. In fact, he was pretty much unstoppable throughout NASCAR’s top three series’. He had six wins in the craftsman Truck series driving for Billy Baloue. (Sorry I’m not sure how to spell that.) He had a record-tying 10 wins in the Nationwide series, driving JGR cars #20 and #18, and Braun racing’s #32. And in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series he had 8 wins, and was seeded first in the Chase.

Now here is where my opinion comes into play. The kid obviously has tallent. However, he doesn’t know how to loose. He has no problem knocking someone out of the way to win, as when he took out Dale Earnhardt, Jr. for the win at Richmond. But he’s still a baby when anyone does the same to him. He stomps off and refuses to be interviewed. In 2007, with Hendrick, he crashed out almost as much as he won. Maybe that is why Hendrick did not renew his contract and replaced him with Jr.

And he is full of himself. The crowd boos him and he likes it! In my opinion, the crowd should not boo and let the silence be deffening. In a race in 2007, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. crashed into the infield. He got  out of the car and bowed to the crowd to let them know he was ok. Kyle Busch took that bow and made it his own. Cocky is another word that comes to mind.

All of Kyle’s wins came in the regular season. So he was seeded first at the start of the Chase. I’m not normally a fan of the Chase, but in 2008, I was glad there was a chase. Kyle doesn’t do well in the last ten races. And 2008 was no exception. He quickly went to the cellar and finished the season in tenth place. He was never a factor for the Championship. The media loved him, but the fans didn’t. He’s still young, so maybe in 2009 he will learn from his mistakes. I believe Lady Luck has a lot to do with racing. And in the end she took everything back. Tenth place got him to the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. But his antics kept him from being a contender for the Championship. And isn’t that what the season is all about?

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley

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