Saturday, March 19, 2011

Live Blogging Nationwide Series From Bristol, TN. (ESPN - 1PM ET)


Update: Jennifer Jo Cobb news can be found in the comments section.

The ESPN TV booth at the Bristol Motor Speedway is waiting for Rusty Wallace. He is a former stand-out at the track, a former Sprint Cup Series champion and a current Nationwide Series multi-car owner. Saturday afternoon, he gets a shot at moving up from the infield pit studio and calling a big race on a critical weekend for the sport.

Wallace has to contend with the pending Goodyear tire problems, the presence of the elephant in the room with Danica Patrick in the field and the fact that he has not called a big race from the TV booth for some time.

Forget the presence of his own teams in the event. Forget the fact that he just signed with ESPN through the 2014 season. Forget that he is clearly in the middle of building a racing organization with Sprint Cup Series participation in mind for the future.

The history of Rusty Wallace in the TV booth is that sooner or later his temper will get the better of him and the comments will begin to fly. The upside of Wallace is his knowledge of racing. He was a hands-on guy who came up the hard way. The downside was that when he lost it, he just lost it. Hothead all the way.

One key to Wallace's current success on the ESPN telecasts sits to his right. Allen Bestwick simply knows how to direct traffic on the air. He did it on the radio and has been doing it on ESPN as a pit reporter, a substitute play-by-play announcer and now as the fulltime host of the Infield Pit Studio since 2007.

Bestwick knows when to give the infield analysts time to discuss topics and when to step right back in and take control. The challenge for Wallace in Bristol this Saturday may be having a different man sitting to his right. Marty Reid has been having a tough time since coming over from the NHRA and IndyCar beat.

Despite early optimism, Reid has struggled in this role and last season's NASCAR coverage on ESPN ended with a thud in Homestead. It wasn't pretty.

Reid and Wallace will be joined by ESPN's voice of reason in Andy Petree. He is the one man in the booth who has been in that position since ESPN returned to NASCAR. Petree and Wallace frequently disagreed when they worked together side-by-side. At a track like Bristol, it will be very interesting to watch the dynamic between these two analysts.

Bestwick will host from the infield with Brad Daugherty alongside. Tim Brewer will be in the Tech Garage. Dr. Jerry Punch, Vince Welch, Jamie Little and Dave Burns will be covering pit road. This time, ESPN brings ten voices to Bristol.

TV fundamentals apply across the board at this track. Focused comments from the analysts mixed with excitement and information from the play-by-play announcer is the only combination that works when laps take 16 seconds.

Pit reporters work with hand signals to their production teams because of the noise level under green. It's tough to slip in any Tech Garage segments or use the infield studio unless there is a caution. The action is just too fast.

Each season, the biggest complaint is the TV commercials. 16 second laps and three minute commercial breaks simply do not mix. Without any side-by-side commercials or an online RaceBuddy for the Nationwide Series, be prepared to miss a lot of this race when ESPN is in commercial under green.

This is the new Bristol and the Nationwide drivers have shown that racing side-by-side is easy to do. Banking on countless caution flags for commercial breaks could be a rough philosophy. It should be very interesting to see how the ESPN producer handles this challenging element of the telecast.

As we have discussed for years, using the in-car cameras at the wrong time can ruin a viewer's experience at this track. Instead, an aggressive TV director stays ahead of the field and shows viewers "more headlights than brake lights." If you begin to see the back ends of race cars, someone is getting tired.

Bristol has some great angles and views from the high cameras because the track is so small. Also, the aerial shots can really show the beauty of the area and the unique location of the track to TV viewers. Returning from commercial break, offering a "scene set" by using these types of shots allows for a smooth transition.

In the old days, the rule was no music into commercial break when the cars are under green. The theory was that TV viewers tuned-in to see and hear the cars, not someone's selection of tunes designed to "fit the location." This has certainly been an issue with ESPN this season.

The NASCAR Countdown pre-race begins at 1PM and the green flag should fly around 2:14PM ET. The weather looks good.

This post will serve to host your comments about ESPN's production of the Nationwide Series race from the Bristol Motor Speedway. To add your comment before, during or after the race just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thank you for taking the time to stop by.

163 comments:

Jonathan said...

JD great article! This is a big weekend for ESPN I hope they get it right like they did in Vegas!

Im sorta curious to hear Rusty and Marty together who knows maybe they will click???? I'm banking on them not but who knows

Oh and about the music into break.. Never knew that good stuff and its true they need to let us hear the cars more! no stupid music/graphics. also I wanna know why ESPN dosent bring back full throttle WITHOUT the spotters. I dont think it takes away from the broadcast... if anything it adds too it, gives the booth a break (usually a good thing now a days) and gives the viewers at home a taste of what its like to be there live

BG said...

Rusty in the booth makes me glad I'm at the track.

Anonymous said...

I watched about ten minutes of this morning's Cup practice and I'm going to turn the volume down unless something happens. DW is already spreading the bs around. I don't know why they just can't keep quiet and let the viewers listen and take in what's going on out on the track. They feel obligated to fill every second of air time with mindless chit chat. Good overview of the weekend by JD, as usual.

Karl said...

Great article. I'm not really liking Marty Reid as the lead announcer. I really wish ESPN would come to their senses and realize Bestwick is better suited in the booth. I like Dale Jarrett but I think Wallace works better in the booth. I would definitely keep Petree in the booth. ESPN needs to do something because I don't enjoy the broadcasts like the old days with Jensen, Parsons, and Jarrett.

saltsburgtrojanfan said...

Karl

You mean Jenkins, Bob Jenkins that is.

Daly Planet Editor said...

Hi folks! Pre-race is on the air!

saltsburgtrojanfan said...

Rusty is in the booth OMG we were waiting for that moment to arrive! NOT!!!!!!!!!!!

PammH said...

And Rusty's already said something intelligent. The racing at Bristol is different than Daytona, Michigan etc. because things happen more quickly at the small track. Ummmm...Rusty, as Charlie "insane" Sheen would say-DUH!!!

Daly Planet Editor said...

160K in the stands? OK, Rusty.

Love what NASCAR is doing? OK, Brad.

Nice job of taking on the Goodyear issue right off the top of the show? OK, AB.

Sally said...

I love how everyone in the booth says the tire change won't be a big deal, but the drivers in the cars don't seem to agree.

Daly Planet Editor said...

Reporters at the track now saying Cup guys getting blowouts in practice.

Man, I hope this does not turn into a tire mess.

Daly Planet Editor said...

2:14PM for the green flag. Small crowd is what we are being told right now.

The Mad Man said...

Rusty Wallace...Master of the Obvious!!!

Unknown said...

take that ESPN

Daly Planet Editor said...

Competition caution lap 25. No fueling before then. Teams must change right sides, can change four.

Right side tires go directly back to Goodyear.

Rambo M. said...

"To recap a couple of top stories..." Nothing about the tires, of course; just the people we're going to fawn over for two hours :\

Sally said...

It's 2:01. Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't races supposed to start at 1 PM? Or did that always mean just the pre race coverage?

Anonymous said...

160,000 in the stands? BSPN better drug test Rusty.

Daly Planet Editor said...

Sally, it's that funky weird time zone.

Sally said...

Did I miss them showing the starting lineup yet?

GinaV24 said...

Rusty in the booth, too bad for this broadcast. Marty did well for the Phoenix race but overall he just doesn't cut it -- bring Allen in and give the fans a little reason for optimism for at least the PXP even if they can't figure out how to do the camera work right.

But of course, the tires failing can't be goodyear's fault right -- it must be the teams setup and camber! After how many years now of running the brick on wheels and Goodyear still can't bring a tire that will hold up.

Hope this race and tomorrow are not a repeat of Indy's tiregate.

I have a family birthday party so I won't be here with you guys much longer.

Vicky D said...

Beautiful anthem! We turned the pre-race late and there was RW yelling at us. Anyway, hope my favs have good race!

Sally said...

Yeah, JD. It's the same one I'm on. This isn't 1 PM by a long shot. Maybe hey're practicing for football season when they're going to start races an hour after the games start. Brilliant.

Sally said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Daly Planet Editor said...

Man, I hope this tire deal does not ruin the race.

Daly Planet Editor said...

#79 pushed behind wall. NASCAR said no driver arrived. Isn't that Jen Jo Cobb?

longtimeracefan said...

Love that the first four starters are Nationwide regulars.

From the aerial shot, if you mushed everyone together, looks like around 1/3 full or around 50,000. Not too shabby for Nationwide.

Daly Planet Editor said...

PRN sez Jen got into an arguement with her crew chief and was replaced for today!

Anonymous said...

Happy Race Day Planeteers

Yes sir Jen Jo is #79

Anonymous said...

YIKES! Well after the tweet from the team at Daytona things seemed volatile there :(

Vicky D said...

Good explanation by Jen Jo.

Anonymous said...

Just had the interview! You Go Girl!

Sally said...

Well! some real off track drama going on. And they covered it head on! Way to go ESPN!

Anonymous said...

That a girl Jennifer!

Daly Planet Editor said...

Nice job by Jerry Punch and the ESPN guys following that up.

Rambo M. said...

Oh wow. We're going to be hearing about that #79 controversy for some time!

The car owner "can't hear" Jamie Little, eh? Riiiiight :p

Anonymous said...

Dr. Punch is the ESPN all star as usual breaking the JJC story. Very interesting stuff. I give her credit for refusing to S&P.

Terrible coverage contributed to Rusty's babbling, tight shots and no graphics.

Daly Planet Editor said...

The live NASCAR scoring and timing info is down for everyone.

This includes online fans, radio, TV and Sprint Vision.

Anonymous said...

Still no running ticker of who's where, but apologies!

PammH said...

Too much in car already, but good job w/Doc & JJCobb.

Mike (Detroit) said...

So if the scoring system is down you can't show us the race off pit road ? huh?

Vicky D said...

just barely missed the green flag!

Charlie said...

Goodyear has problems.
Nascar Scoring and Timing not working.

Not a good start for a pro sports.

Daly Planet Editor said...

The situation is that Marty Reid needs to update scoring like the radio guys now that the ticker is gone. Come on Marty!

Vicky D said...

Mike in Detroit I didn't understand that comment about showing the cars coming out of the pits either!

Daly Planet Editor said...

Just talked to the Sprint Vision guys. All the timing and scoring is done from NASCAR.

Whew, that is not good.

Sally said...

So, they can't use their pit reporters to update us at least on how cars are running, who's moving up, moving back, etc? They USED to be able to do it without the electronics.

Vicky D said...

Can someone find if the #79 is on the track yet?

Sally said...

And, since they don't have timing/scoring, it's time to run lots of commercials. Good move.

Mike (detroit) said...

Thanks Vicky D I thought I might not have heard that right either, unbelieveable

Sally said...

I've been to Bristol, and you can use the scoring pylon for running order. I did it sitting in the stands.

Daly Planet Editor said...

Just told by ESPN that all scoring is out in the booth. I asked if they could put the scoring tower on camera.

Ginny said...

I liked the National Anthem, nice harmony, nice tempo. Sure wish they'd put the name of the singers up on the screen at the end as well as the beginning so once we realize they're good, we can find out who they are. We're so used to ones that have no reason to be remembered. I'm not always watching with a DVR where I can rewind.

Glad to see the interview with Jennifer Jo and not have it swept under the rug. I have no problem with S&P unless the driver does, and they should know from the jump what the decision is and why.

Oh, and I'm happy Rusty is there. Right now my world is full of loss, so this is my escape, and when I'm "watchin' racin'" I feel like my motto is (stolen from USA) "characters welcome." Rusty, DW, Kenny, Mikey, Larry Mac, Rutledge Wood -- bring 'em all on.

Sally said...

This is just proof of how little useful information we actually get from the booth. If Elo Gold was there, he would know how to call the race on his own.

Roadgeek Adam said...

2nd Caution - Trevor hits the wall and R. Richardson Jr. smacks the wall.

Still no scoring, anyone know what lap it is?

Vicky D said...

JD, how hard can it be to show us the scoring pylon?

Anonymous said...

espn.com's scoring is working....here's the link:

http://espn.go.com/rpm/racecast?raceId=201103190309

Daly Planet Editor said...

Been told the scoring tower is just fine. No clue why TV will not use it into and out of commercial at least.

Sally said...

The booth certainly doesn't...or at least they aren't telling us. There is really no excuse for not updating running order. Not much help watching a race if you don't know who is running where. ESPN is really dropping the ball. If there's a problem, they have to pick up the slack. Isn't that what they get the big bucks for?

Anonymous said...

Amen Sally. I have no idea what's going on right now. All ESPN is presenting is literally cars going around in circles.

Becky [@hightechredneck] said...

@Vicky D ... Jim Utter said on Twitter that the #79 car returned to the hauler. I asked if he ever made it on track and he said no.

Sally said...

Obviously they have no camera to show the pylon. They are all on single cars running on the track. This is really inexcusable.

PammH said...

Better hope they get the scoring fix before Sunday. This is a cluster for BSPN for sure. Fox doesn't need the same thing..

Mike in Dallas said...

the 79 wants to go out and run one lap under caution but nascar won't let them out until they change right side tires. They don't have any and have to get some. hahahaha

Barb said...

Free scanner on nascar.com today. Very nice!

Anonymous said...

They showed 2 cars exit pit road, cut to a random shot of the field under caution, then showed the scoring pylon way in the distance before leaving for commercial.

Sally said...

Wouldn't this be the perfect time to give a full field running order? Or as least give us a wide shot so we can count cars and try to find where drivers are running?

Daly Planet Editor said...

Timing and scoring back on lap 77. Marty never once used the pylon in the infield to review the top ten.

As they say at ESPN: Come on man!

Charlie said...

Out of the corner of the Tv you could see three wide.

Daly Planet Editor said...

Barb, the officials channel is just NUTS!

Sally said...

It would be nice if they shared that 'old school' with us watching at home.

Roadgeek Adam said...

And its gone again....does anyone know why? It seems really odd that the computer system for tracking is failing.

Barb said...

Sorry, John! I am being very biased today and only listening to the #7 chatter. :)

Anonymous said...

Nice of Rusty to slide in the sponsor of #62 car, as if he doesn't know who owns that car.

Sally said...

How cae we 'remember' he restarted in 15th if we never were told the information!?!!!!!?? ARRRRRGH!

Roadgeek Adam said...

Marty said 15th during the caution just before the restart.

OSBORNK said...

This is like a practice session with in-car cameras. We have no idea what is going on.

Anonymous said...

My god who put Rusty Wallace in the booth?

Daly Planet Editor said...

PRN just interviewed owner of #79. Said 1 crew member is left-everyone else left w/JJ Cobb.

AVguru said...

KUDOS to JJ Cobb for having a pair and refusing to S&P. Shame on the POS owner for trying to bait and switch her. "Owners" like that have no place in NASCAR IMHO.

Vicky D said...

That JenJo story seems like a big one to me but we are just hearing RW yelling at us from the booth.

Robert said...

Whoa. I am confused on what happened with Cobb and that interview? I missed it. But I looked over the messages and I guess she got into an arguement with her crew chief because he wanted to start and park and she did not want to so she left? I am confused. Someone should clear this up for me because this is interesting.

Anonymous said...

Timing & Scoring seems to be back to stay. Thank goodness, Marty was clueless without it.

saltsburgtrojanfan said...

JJC getting into an altercation with her crew chief. What has NASCAR become JD. That is why fans liked NASCAR because it was not like other sports. Now it is becoming a sport of vanilla crybabies, controversy and manipulation. And BZF is embracing this. He wonders why fans are leaving one by one.

Sniff

AVguru said...

Anybody know why the T&S ticker is showing "Lawson" as the driver? Is that the POS "owner"?

Anonymous said...

@AVGuru, I think it is a driver who DNQed as a placeholder

Daly Planet Editor said...

#79 coming out on track to join the race. Nice of them.

AncientRacer said...

Well, I'm here and I had not planned to look at TDP today as there is always so much to see here, but the JJC thing has everyone around me confused. I see it has everyone on the Planet confused to. A real WTF moment. Suppose we will find out...

Daly Planet Editor said...

#79 made one lap. NASCAR yanked him for not getting up to speed.

AVguru said...

Well ... the Lawson deal is just plain ridiculous. I thought you had to practice a car in order to drive it... ?? Not that he was driving it from the glimpse I saw of the car putting around on the apron... sheesh what a disgrace to the sport!

Barb said...

We need another caution to bunch the field up!

Anonymous said...

Lawson practiced the #03 for Robert Richardson & wrecked it in qualifying. Lewendowski did not practice & could not drive the car.

Vicky D said...

Check out TB's jewelry today!

Anonymous said...

Erica (she does the tweets/FB for 2nd chance) just tweeted this about the interview:

The owner was unable to hear the reporter track-side due to hearing loss from fighting in Vietnam. Want to blame him for that too?

But still doesn't keep them from going to them & going to a place where he can hear?

brad said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sally said...

@Gymmie...If the cars are running full speed on the track, there isn't anyplace in the infield where you can here. Sorry for the guy's hearing loss, but do you think he had no idea what the question was?

Daly Planet Editor said...

Dustin Long has the Jen Jo Cobb story up at hamptonroads.com

brad said...

let me try that again without all the spelling errors. Do you not have to send the car out on the track to log atleast 1 official lap after the green flag to get the prize money? This 79 deal is a horrible story for NASCAR.

Anonymous said...

@ Gymmie - That team has really nailed fan relations today. lol

red said...

what i understand of the JJC issue:

-> owner told her 10 minutes before she climbed in the car that she was to S&P
-> he told her it was to "save" the car for california
-> he also told her that she would not be driving the car in california, even though she had a 5-race contract with him. according to bob pockrass, this was independent of but simultaneously with her refusal to S&P
-> most of the team are her employees and they have left the track with her

don't know about the discussed argument with her crew chief.

Charlie said...

If you have side by side windows showing the race and the big window is showing the pit stop and the other camera shows a tight shot of the leader, how is this showing the race under green.

slander q. libel said...

Overslept, just woke up, started watching at the halfway point. Let me guess - once again it's the Kryle Buschwhacker show?

Daly Planet Editor said...

From reporter Dustin Long at Hamptonroads.com


Jennifer Jo Cobb was scheduled to start Saturday’s Nationwide race 41st but when the command to start was made, Cobb was not in the car.



She refused to drive it after she said team owner Rick Russell told her he wanted her to start and park just before the race began. Here's what Jennifer Jo Cobb said about the situation:



“There were rumblings all week about our team starting and parking. I have made a commitment to my sponsors, my fans and NASCAR that I’m not a start-and-park driver. I’m really serious about this. I have to work hard to prove to people that I’m serious about this. The conversation was never had with me until 10 minutes before the race started that I was to start and park.



“I had already bought … tires to run this race, so you can imagine, it was a blow both to my principles and my finances to hear this. As the owner of this team, he has the right to ask NASCAR to black flag me and said he would do so. After thinking about it … I tried to come up with a solution and there’s also rumblings around town that he was going to surprise me and take me out of the car at California (next week). We have a five-race agreement that says that I’m racing for him and that’s why I took the Nationwide points vs. the truck points.



“Because of the promises he’s made, I’ve made decisions about my career and so 10 minutes before the race he told me not only am I starting and parking to save his car for California but that he would be replacing me as a driver in California and that he was the owner of the car and there was nothing (she) could do about it.



“In that moment, I just made a decision that I don’t think I will ever regret. I just thank God He gave me the strength to just walk away because sometimes that is the best thing to do. No doubt, (Russell) found another driver to get in and get the money he wanted to start and park this race.



“I’ve already have another team owner come up to me and tell me that he’s got my back and he will help me. This isn’t a case of me being a brat and just wanting to walk off the job and leave someone high and dry. There were several promises made and broken and he really tried to back me into a corner. I weighed all the risks and consequences and decided that integrity and principle meant more.



“I have nothing bad to say in this instance other than I’ve got to do what I feel is best for my team, myself, my fans and my sponsors.’’



Asked why she thought she was told so soon before the race to start and park. This is what Cobb said:



“That it’s because he would know that I would refuse and he needed me to wheel this car to get it into the race for him.

sbaker17 said...

Why don't they get RW out of the booth and put JJ Cobb in his spot?

earl the pearl said...

Can you help me ? I just dont know what kind of FUEL ..the cars
are burning ? There were some
mumbles all day long about oh what
is it ..oh yeah Sun Oh koe Race
Fuel. Do I have that right ? Whew
thanks...
and now back to the pit stops where
them boys will fill up again with ..
oh no I forgot.

Anonymous said...

Talk about bad karma, the #22 just hit the wall! Maybe some of Bad Brads past 'exploits' are coming back to haunt him. To be honest, I'm not a fan of anyone in the booth,but have to say that Rusty has been tolerable. I don't understand Andy's comment that Stenhouse has a better car than Kyle. Both drivers are unhappy with the way their cars are handling. 99% of the time, Stenhouse is 2-3 car lengths back. Forgetting that Kyle is much better going through traffic, how does one conclude that Ricky has a better car unless you think he's not driving it up to its potential ala Danica?

Vicky D said...

Great JJC story by Dustin Long.

Vicky D said...

Rusty, snapshots of greatness?

MikeC said...

Did I read that story right. Jennifer Jo Cobb bought the tires for the race? And then the owner wants her to start and park? Isn't buying tires the owner's responsibility?

Vicky D said...

Yep, it's a flat tire on Almirola's car, but according to Jerry Punch, it's only flat on the bottom!

Anonymous said...

@Sally--I know that, but if need be wouldn't the Hauler be better considering the situation. Right now they're in PR Hades as Jen is speaking out and no one from 2nd chance is speaking. Even if *he* can't do it SOMEONE has to. He was interviewed on MRN and what my friend tells me he said what Jen Jo said. So if they really have something else to say someone has to say it NOW

Anonymous said...

Steve Wallace 6th place...alright!

Charlie said...

On the last restart the back of the pack was all bunched up. If you were listening to K. Wallace scanner you would know this.

PammH said...

And suprise suprise...the 79 owner is saying JJC knew Friday they were a S&P for today. Her crew chief also says he threatened anyone associated w/JJC w/a jack handle!!

slander q. libel said...

@Vicky D:

They need to turn the tire over and run it on the round part..

Anonymous said...

Well now I see something that says Rick says that Jen Jo wanted the black flag...geeze! What a mess this all is!

Daly Planet Editor said...

Whew! What a day!

Anonymous said...

it would be nice if steve was in a cup affiliated car..not fair man. Not bad though considering he's in inferior equipment! These cup guys need to get a life.

Anonymous said...

Hang in there, JD! Just think what tomorrow will be like!

Anonymous said...

Who wants to watch a race with only 8 cars on lead lap??? Time to go outside and enjoy nice weather.

Anonymous said...

That last segment between commercials was called the show the #66 car segment. They talked about every car around the #66 while keeping the #66 in the center of the shot.

Anonymous said...

JD, it's become amusing to watch this series fall apart.

Sally said...

Last race, ESPN did a stellar job covering the racing on the track. It's such a disappointment to have all the in car and driver cams back this week. I know there has to be close racing somewhere on the track...I've BEEN to Bristol. With only 9 cars on the lead lap, and Kyle running away with the race (again), they really need to find the action on the track.

Daly Planet Editor said...

One of the reporters at Bristol was joking around with me. He said he was watching the 12 Hours of Sebring on his laptop and it was more interesting than this race.

That ain't good.

Vicky D said...

I'd like to know before the race, which NW teams have cup pit crews and which have NW ones. Poor Danica she looks a little dazed to me.

Charlie said...

I know that scanner is delayed and they called the caution before the Tv guys did.

earl the pearl said...

THE HORRID HIDEDOUS BOYS IN THE
BOOTH HAVE NOT SHUT UP SINCE THE
TELECAST STARTED.
SAME AS ALWAYS ..ONLY WORSE

Anonymous said...

Watch and see when they come back from this break, they'll find a way to blame Truex for what happened to Danica.

Anonymous said...

Oh Danica, you wrecked yourself. Can't wait to hear this interview. Maybe her BFF Jamie will interview her.

Sally said...

I'm going to bail, Planeteers. If I don't get moving soon I'm going to go to sleep. It pains me to watch this and remember how exciting Bristol used to be.

Anonymous said...

Aw come on! Danica's mad at Truex?? He didn't do anything wrong. She moved up the track into him. She's running 17th, two laps down and wrecking couldn't possibly be HER fault? I'll bet she'll be pouting now!!

Anonymous said...

PRN is saying that Truex shouldn't have forced the issue being that far out of contention.

Anonymous said...

is there something wrong with showing the 66 car?...Giving a car a little air time when they're doing well...oh no, not that! What is the world coming to?!?! What an ignorant thing to say man.

Daly Planet Editor said...

I still did not see anything except Danica driving over her head a little bit.

Got loose, tapped a lapped car and never got control back.

Anonymous said...

True to form, Rusty back peddles on his position that Danica caused her own wreck. Get a spine guys in the booth. You're in the booth because you supposedly are experts. Act it!

Vicky D said...

Missed another restart!

AVguru said...

Looked to me like Truex came down ever so slightly - but quickly - like a hip-check ... all it takes is a little tap...

Robert said...

ANOTHER missed restart. What the hell is going on here ESPN?

Explain to me why in the heck you suck so freaking bad!?

Anonymous said...

She's giving Truex advice on how to race.

Vicky D said...

DP's replay looking down the track it did look like Truex came down just a little.

Anonymous said...

Yep, called it. Danica complaining about Truex racing hard...at Bristol.

Anonymous said...

Danica just said on PRN she's not sure what caused it. That she would need to see a replay first before commenting on that aspect of it.

Daly Planet Editor said...

That last angle showed it very differently.

Truex got loose and came down, but like Andy said....you got to get out of the way sometimes.

Debby said...

Maybe Rusty can go away with Danica until June!!!

Charlie said...

15 Laps to go.

OSBORNK said...

Good shot of the finish line. About time.

Daly Planet Editor said...

Nice job showing all the lead lap cars racing to the finish line and more.

Anonymous said...

ESPN:

thank you for showing the last lap!

Makiki
Honolulu

Vicky D said...

Whooped di do, a cup guy with his cup pit crew win the NW race!

billydelyon said...

Motor Mouth Marty really blows...

Bring back Bob Jenkins please ESPN...

If ya'll remember, Bestwick had the big job, but NBC removed him, he bored the sheeet outta me...

AVguru said...

Yawn ... most interesting event of the day happened before the green flag. Props again to JJ Cobb for sticking to her priniples!

Anonymous said...

Thank you to 2nd Chance Motorsports for providing the only interesting moment of this race.

Anonymous said...

I LOATHE ESPN WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BEING. I'VE NEVER SEEN ANY NETWORK DISRESPECT A SPORT AS BADLY AS THEY DO WITH NASCAR. THEY NEED TO STAY WITH THEIR PRECIOUS STICK AND BALL SPORTS. THEY SHOULD BE EMBARRASSED FOR MAKING THEIR PREJUDICE SO UNMISTAKABLY OBVIOUS!

Daly Planet Editor said...

Thanks everyone for stopping by, please join us tomorrow for the Cup race live blog.

We welcome your post-race comments as usual!

longtimeracefan said...

All in all, average coverage of an average race.

Stand up dude, young Truex, for taking blame for getting a little loose with Danica, but she wasn't giving him much room either. Just one of those deals.

After five races, Danica is 9th in points. Guess she can drive after all.

AncientRacer said...

I've looked over the posts, and I have read two articles on the JJC thing (thanks, JD) and I have one observation and one question (of the rhetorical sort)

The observation is I smell a lawsuit coming (kinda obvious, I know) and the question: Would Russell have pulled this if JJC were a guy?

Sure to be lots of talk about this tonight.

AVguru said...

There were two controversial "racin deals" today - oddly enough, both involved women drivers.

JJC's refusal to start n park and Truex and Patrick's ... JJC stuck by her guns and Truex fessed up to gettin loose and Danica not giving him some breathing room.

Of the two I think JJC's racin deal will have deeper implications as there was apparently a "contract breach" by both parties - but I doubt it will go to court - and will be written off as "just a racin deal..." gone wrong. Bottom line is start and park sucks and (unlike Steve Wallac) Danica is not always totally at fault for wrecking.

w17scott said...

Mr Editor -
Under the weather a bit today, so I wasn't able to follow posts closely ...seems like JJC has bigger cohones than some male counterparts ...and then I went to ESPN and saw RaceCast was up ...they it all went to heck ...when I opened it there he was - DW? on ESPN? OMG, he's everywhere, he's everywhere ...better doze off now ...maybe it was just a dream ...it was a dream wasn't it, JD?
Walter

racingfool said...

AncientRacer, I am hoping it is not the same RR that worked at Petty as there is another one in Mooresville that is a scoundrel. So, this kind of thing happens once in a while behind the scene but now it's in the open. Wow! If it is the bad RR then he has no problem doing whatever he can to rip someone off. I know from experience. He's not a nice man.

Anonymous said...

Rusty did a very respectable job today! I wouldn't mind seeing him up in the booth more often!

Roland said...

Went to the race today. On the way out 2 golf carts passed me full of people working for espn. It was all I could do not to pull them over and let them know that Marty Reid is the worst commentator in the history of television haha.

Didnt find out about the JJC incident until after the race. Sounds to me like in the words of Charlie Sheen "she should have known the rules before she showed up at the party". Its not like shes gonna win the thing. Just drive and carry out your issues in private afterwards.

SquidBuzz said...

Anyone else catch Jerry Punch say that Busch was Nationwide Champion or did I hear it wrong?

RPM said...

If ya'll remember, Bestwick had the big job, but NBC removed him, he bored the sheeet outta me...

Billy, if you remember that was just about the time NBC's coverage went in the toilet. AB is arguably the best announcer and PBP man in NASCAR.