NASCAR’s Top 12

Finishing ninth in points in 2008, is driver of the Joe Gibbs Racing #20 car, Tony Stewart. For Tony, 2008 was a milestone. After racing for JGR for his whole career, Tony decided to go off on his own. Haas/CNC Racing made him an offer of 51% of the team and a new name for 2009. And Tony found that a deal he could not refuse. The new Team will be Stewart/Haas Racing. Tony has two Cup Championships. The first in 2002 in Winston Cup, the second in 2005 in Nextel Cup. Let’s see if he can get one in Sprint Cup.

2008 was an unremarkable year for Tony. He had only one win, and that was controversial. In the last lap, near the start/finish line, the #20 car moved over to block the #01 car of Rookie Regan Smith. Smith went below the yellow line to get to the finish line first. NASCAR decided he couldn’t pass below the yellow line and was relegated an eighteenth place finish. Many drivers and fans felt this was wrong. In past years, the line no longer came into play that close to the finish line. And the other drivers had to wonder what, exactly constitutes pushing someone below the line, as opposed to just going down there to pass. In the replay, Tony clearly pushed Regan down there. And his only other choice was to go back onto the track into Tony. So, in the minds of many fans and drivers, Tony had no wins in 2008. Something that has never happened. And #01 Regan Smith should have had his first win.

Never the less, he was still in the Chase. And the outcome really had no baring on his ninth place finish. Kyle Busch, JGR team mate finished tenth and the other JGR team mate, #11 Denny Hamlin finished eighth. Not nearly as good as anyone had antisipated. And Tony is usually good at the last ten races.

Next up is eighth place Denny Hamlin. Stay tuned.

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Visit my site: http://www.ilovemynascar.com

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Year in review, In my opinion

Hello race fans. It’s been weeks since the last race and review. And a week since the Awards banquet in New York City. I want to do something about the twelve Chase drivers later, but today I’d like to do an In My Opinion post. I started watching NASCAR in 1996. So I may not be one of the longest running fans to the Sport, but I am by no means a newcomer. I started watching when, in my opinion, it was real racing. There was no Chase. So the Champion had to be great all 36 weeks, instead of just the last 10 races. The season was 36 races long, instead of 26, like it is now. Winston sponsored the Series, and they didn’t mind other cigarette companies being sponsors of other cars.

Television made the cigarette sponsors go away. As you know, today the Sponsor is Sprint. Of course when Winston went away in 2003, Nextel took over. They signed a ten year contract with NASCAR, starting in 2004. And no other telecommunications companies could sponsor a car if they didn’t already sponsor a car. AT&T was only a part time sponsor at the time, so they couldn’t stay. Altel could stay, and Cingular could stay. Last year, 2007 Sprint took over and it was Nextel Sprint. And in 2008 it was just Sprint.

Kurt Busch, in his #97 Ford became the first Nextel Cup Champion.  Matt Kenseth was the last Winston Cup Champion. Yet Jeff Gordon is credited with four Sprint Cup Championships. Even though Jimmy Johnson is the only actual Sprint Cup Champion, since he won this year, the first year with Sprint as the sponsor. I have a problem with that, as I’m sure many of you out there do as well. Nextel took over, and there never had been a Winston Cup Series. Winston Cup had a cup as a trophy. That was why the Series was called Winston Cup. Nextel comes along and keeps the Cup part of it, but designs their own trophy. It’s no longer a cup. So, I have to ask, why is it Cup racing when the trophy is no longer a cup? And when Sprint took over and it was Sprint Cup, they did the same thing. It has always been Sprint Cup and where does the Cup part of it fit in?
Cingular merged with AT&T, so Cingular is no longer a sponsor. But AT&T cannot be a sponsor because when Nextel took over they were not a sponsor. I don’t get it. Why can Nextel merge with Sprint and Sprint take over, but Cingular can’t merge with AT&T, and AT&T take over? Nextel signed a ten year contract in 2004, but in 2008 it was no longer Nextel.

In 2003 Matt Kenseth won the Championship with only one win. But he was consistently in the top ten and no one could catch him. Brian France took over for his father Bill France, Jr. and got rid of Winston and signed on Nextel. And started the Chase for the Nextel (now Sprint) Cup. Because Matt had only one win. He wanted a play off like in football. He wanted to get the football fans to watch NASCAR. But all that did, in my opinion, was alienate the long time fans. The football fans went back to watching football. And NASCAR is stuck with this version of playoffs. Because the media likes it.

Jimmy Johnson won two Nextel Championships in a row and this year he won the Sprint Cup Championship. That, according to the media, gives him three Sprint Cup Championships in a row. It’s actually three Series Championships in a row and quite a feat. He’s the only one to do it since Cale Yarborough did it thirty years ago. Jimmy Johnson and his Crew Chief Chad Knouse have figured out how to be good at the last ten tracks of the season. These days, all you have to do is get into the top twelve at the end of 26 races to be able to compete for the Championship. So, in my opinion, the season is now only ten races long. With all 43 cars competing in those last ten races. How is that a playoff? But that’s just my opinion.

Tv coverage isn’t very good, despite a new contract, in my opinion. Too much emphasis is on the Chase, as early as the first race at Daytona. We all know ABC moved the last laps to ESPN2 so they could show America’s funniest Home Videos. I have to ask if they would have done that with football. And my answer is no way. The network covers NASCAR, but it isn’t with the same passion as with football.

So, what do we fans do? Speaking for myself, I will continue to watch and follow NASCAR. Because that is my Passion. I love NASCAR.  But something is wrong here. And I don’t like it.  The new car makes it IROC. And who wants to see IROC every week? And who wants Sprint to take credit for all past Champions? Not me. The problem is Brian France and the media. They want more followers, but are unwilling to keep the fans they had. and the football fans aren’t willing to give up their football just because NASCAR has a Chase.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley

Visit my site www.ilovemynascar.com

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NASCAR Race Fans

Hello, Race Fans! It’s soapbox time. NASCAR has finally decided that they need to get back the long time fan. That’s a step in the right direction. In my opinion, if you weren’t a big fan back in 2003, you just aren’t a Fan. And no matter what gimmick NASCAR tries to get more fans, (ie. football fans) those fans will not stay long. They are, after all, football fans. And they aren’t football fans BECAUSE there’s a playoff. They aren’t going to stick with NASCAR just because there is a Chase.

NASCAR Scene asked the question of it’s fans when they prefer watching a race. 64% said they prefer 1:00 ET. Now, the poll was all fans. And those subscribing to Scene are long time fans. These are the fans NASCAR should be listening to. But they announced the schedule for 2008 and very few races start at 1:00 ET. NASCAR isn’t listening. They have a contract with the Networks and make the schedule according to what the Networks want. Instead of what the fans want.

It’s no wonder there is poor attendance and poor ratings. Fans have to drive home in the dark, or find a place to spend the night. That means more time off of work. So, fans just don’t show up at the tracks. And when the race starts later, fans have already found something else to do. I, myself will watch the race whenever it’s on, but I will not travel to go to a track if it means taking an extra day off.

I live in Upstate New York. I could go to Pocono, or Watkins Glenn, but I can see things better if I stay home. I could go to Lauden, New Hampshire, but it’s only a 300 mile race. A Busch (Nationwide, if you will) race. So, why bother? I go to Dover. They polled the fans and decided we wanted races to start at 1:00, so that’s when they start the race. And I can get back home by midnight. And be back to work on Monday. Tired, maybe, but I don’t have to spend another night in Dover. Because Dover listened to the fans.

In my opinion, the Bill France’s knew what they were doing. Racing was great while they were in charge. Bill, Jr. got R. J. Reynolds into racing and started the Winston Cup. The trophy was a cup. And RJR got the fans to NASCAR. I, myself watched a race in 1996 and was hooked forever. I may not have been watching since forever, but I can see the (needless) changes that are taking place. Winston Cup got us hooked. And it hasn’t been the same since Brian France took over.

In 2003 Matt Kenseth won the Championship by being consistent throughout the whole year, despite having only one win. So Brian decided it would be better if there was a Chase for the Championship. NASCAR decided to have a playoff of sorts to get the football fans to be NASCAR fans. I repeat. Fans don’t watch football BECAUSE there is a playoff. And they won’t watch NASCAR just because there is a playoff. When it was first announced, I thought it was a poor idea and couldn’t see how it could be implemented. A playoff starts within Divisions. The top Teams within the Divisions play each other to determine the Division winner. And the Division winners go to the Super Bowl to determine the Champion. There are no Divisions in NASCAR. So, how was that supposed to work?

Unfortunately, I found out. The season was shortened to 26 races. And the last ten races are now the Chase. That way, 10 Teams have a chance to be the Champion. Why that is exciting, I’m not really sure. Before Brian, it was exciting to see who was going to make it into the top ten, and who would drop out. Now there are twelve (started out with ten) drivers going for the Championship. The big problem, in my opinion, is there are still 43 drivers out there. So, how is that a playoff? Those not in the top 12 are just in the way, and aren’t allowed to do good because one of the Chasers will be affected. And, of course, the media only talks about those in the top 12. Therefore the older fans with drivers not in the top 12 just don’t want to watch. They will never see their driver, even if they are doing well.

I remember when ESPN2 did the coverage. With Bob Jenkins and Eli Gold and Ned Jarrett doing the announcing. That was good coverage. And that’s why I loved to watch. Jenkins covered everything that was happening. Jarrett knew what was going on and why teams were doing what they were doing because he was a former driver. And Gold went through the field, telling us something about every car and driver on the track as he got to them. Whether they were in tenth place or twelve laps down. These days when they go through the field, they only talk about the top ten or twenty and skip over the others on the track. Who wants to watch that?

And Nextel comes along in 2004, along with the beginning of the Chase. Now it is Nextel Cup. Even though the trophy is no longer a Cup. They signed a ten year contract to sponsor NASCAR, but it is now the Sprint Cup. What’s with that? The media was so confused about it all, they made everyone Nextel Cup Champions, even when they had never won a Nextel Cup race! So now it’s just Cup racing, even though the Trophy is no longer a cup. And they wonder why they are loosing their fans! I say cut out the crap and let them race. Show us racing. Show us all the cars. I want to know how every driver is doing. I don’t want to see on the ticker at the top where someone is. And not know how they got there. I want to be shown what happened.

And commercials are a problem. If they want to be like football, they should do the commercials like football does. You wouldn’t go to a commercial during a play. So, why do they go to a commercial while green flag racing is going on? Wait for a yellow flag and commercial away during cleanup. Don’t tell me what happened while we were away. Why did you leave when something was going on?

Ok, enough of the soapbox. NASCAR, are you listening? This was the greatest Sport, ever. If it aint broke, quit trying to fix it.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley

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http://www.ilovemynascar.com

In my opinion NASCAR

NASCAR had many changes and one of the biggest things that happened in 2007 was the passing of Bill France, Jr. And I’d like to comment on that. NASCAR Scene made it a highlight for the year. This is what a newsletter had to say:

3. Remembering Bill France Jr.

Though Bill France Jr. ruled NASCAR with an iron fist for more than 30 years, many didn’t quite comprehend the impact he had on the sport until his death on June 4 at age 74.

Replacing his father as NASCAR president in 1972, France Jr. transformed NASCAR from a Southern, regional sport into a national phenomenon. Under his guidance, NASCAR raced its way into the boardrooms of Madison Avenue, attracting sponsorship that sparked its explosive growth.

But France didn’t stop there. Also serving as chairman of his family’s International Speedway Corp., he guided the expansion of NASCAR into major markets across the country, including a landmark debut at the sacred Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1994. When it landed its first network TV deal in 2001, it was clear that, under his guidance, NASCAR had finally arrived.

Even after turning his leadership role over to his son Brian in 2003, France Jr. kept a close eye on the sport. While gallantly fighting a series of debilitating illnesses, France remained a force in the sport until the very end.

In my opinion, Bill France, Jr. was NASCAR. He, along with R. J. Reynolds, and their Winston Brand MADE NASCAR. They made NASCAR a legitimate and popular sport. And now, even though it isn’t Winston Cup any more, it’s still Cup. I have to wonder about that. Winston gave the Champion a Cup as a trophy. Nextel revamped the Trophy, and now Sprint goes on with it. But it is no longer a cup. So, I have to wonder why it’s still called “Cup” racing.

Bill, Jr.’s son, Brian took over when Nextel took over Sponsorship. And since then, there has been a decline in viewers. What caused this decline? NASCAR says it’s that people are getting NASCAR from the internet instead of from television. But I have a different opinion. When it became Nextel  (now Sprint) Cup, things changed. It was decided NASCAR must have a sort of playoff system just like stick and ball sports have. And the Chase was created. It was said this would grow the Sport. But that hasn’t happened. In my opinion the Chase was implemented to get football fans to watch NASCAR. At the expense of the fans that were already watching.

The football fans take a look at NASCAR to see what the hoopla is all about and there’s an increase in viewership. But having a playoff isn’t why fans watch football. They just like watching football. So they go back to football, instead of NASCAR. Regular NASCAR fans get tired of the Chase if their favorite driver isn’t in the Chase. Because only chase drivers are seen and talked about. So they loose many fans that way.

In my opinion, NASCAR needs to go back to the way it was when Bill France, Jr.  was running things. It isn’t about the Media and what they want to report. It’s about the fans and what they want to see and hear about. And I’m talking about the same old same old reporters telling us how great the chase is. We fans want to see racing. Give us back a Champion who had to race every weekend instead of just the last 10 races. Give us back Reporters like Bob Jenkins and Eli Gold and Ned Jarrett who actually reported on all the drivers. Not just the top 10 or 12. Jeff Hammond and Larry McReynolds are so full of themselves and the chase, they forget about the fans. They are too busy yucking it up amoungts themselves to worry about the fans.

Television coverage is awful. Too many commercials at the wrong time. Don’t go away during racing. Go to commercial during clean ups. Football doesn’t go to a commercial during a play. There’s plenty of time for commercials during yellow flags.That’s my opinion. And NASCAR is my Passion.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley

Visit my website http://www.ilovemynascar.com

In my opinion-NASCAR

This is the off-season and everyone is looking back on the 2007 season. The good, the bad, the headlines. I subscribe to NASCAR Scene. In a recent Issue there were a few comments from the Media point of view. I am not part of the Media. I am just an avid Fan. So, my take is different than theirs. I would like to quote what was written and then give my opinion as a Race Fan.

“Many big developments, it seemed, were unpopular with fans, and even some competitors. That also seemed to be a constant theme in 2007: discontent.

While competitors bemoaned both the arrival of Toyota and the COT, NASCAR fans, some of the most passionate in all of sports, seemed increasingly disgruntled, as evidenced by the continuing decline of TV ratings and waning interest in this year’s Chase For The Nextel Cup.”

I fell in love with NASCAR in 1996 when I saw my first race. Winston Cup was the Sponsor at the time. While it doesn’t qualify me as a fan since NASCAR got started, it does put me back into the diehard fan base. In my opinion, Winston was what made NASCAR. They put NASCAR on the sports map. As a fan back then, what I liked best about it was it wasn’t football. And it didn’t try to be like football.

Personally, I love to watch racing. But I know there are some fans that like crashing. That’s why fans go to Talladega and Bristol. My favorite racing is side-by-side. And I don’t like the follow the leader yellow flag racing. So I would just as soon not see any caution flags. Just give me racing without the media informing me about points racing, cut-away cars and what the points are as we race (the race won’t end now, and the habit is only annoying.

The Chase, for me, is something unneeded. I want the Champion to be the best driver the whole season. I don’t need the media telling me only about the top 10 or 12 drivers. I like all the drivers and want to see them all. The media starts coverage of the chase with the second race of the year. And in my opinion, that just puts a damper on the whole coverage. Every driver out there is there to win the race. And a lot of credit for great driving goes unnoticed because the driver wasn’t in the top 12.

The theory behind a chase is that sports fans like playoffs. But in NASCAR, the superbowl is the first race – the Daytona 500. So, what’s the point of having a playoff? And what’s so exciting about a tenth place team getting a shot at the Title? In my opinion, if we continue with the Chase, going to the same ten tracks every year, the result will be the same every year. And what is exciting about that? Tony Stewart, Jimmy Johnson and Jeff Gordon will be the ones to beat. Always. Because they are good at the last ten tracks.

So, in response to the Scene article, yes we are disgruntled. The COT may be a safe car, but I don’t want to watch IROC every week. Coverage of the races is terrible. The media only covers the top 12. There are too many commercials and not enough racing. If we are trying to be like football, why can’t the Networks treat racing like football? They wouldn’t go to a commercial during a play. So why do they say ” Wow this is great racing, we’ll be right back”? During the caution, we’re treated to pit stops, replays and pace laps. Why can’t that cleanup time be spent on commercials? Instead of coming back from a commercial to tell us what happened “while we were away”? Nothing should be happening “while we were away”.

Brought to you by Sheila Hawley

Visit my website: http://www.ilovemynascar.com