The bottom line is that the sport is in a crisis, despite the lack of media coverage on that topic. Nationwide Series qualifying just ended as this post is being created and it literally looked as if there was no one in the stands except the relatives of the drivers.
The myriad of issues that the Sprint Cup Series has encountered at the speedway runs from shredding tires to bad weather. As most fans know, the vast majority of the passing is done on pit road and the track is known for long green flag runs as drivers try to manage their cars until the closing fuel run.
In today's Nationwide Series race, the focus of attention will be on the seven Sprint Cup Series drivers that crossed-over to race on Saturday and one female driver who manipulates the media like no other. That is ABC journalist Katie Couric shown standing with Danica Patrick on the yard of bricks. Couric shot a feature that will be the centerpiece of the ESPN pre-race show.
The script that would most interest NASCAR, ESPN and the speedway is for Danica Patrick to get her first NASCAR win in the inaugural Nationwide Series race at the track. Patrick qualified 20th, three spots behind 18 year-old driver Johanna Long, who is also in her rookie year in the Nationwide Series.
Marty Reid will call the race with Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree. Reid will call all the Nationwide Series races for ESPN again this season. Jamie Little is off, so Mike Massaro will be joining Dr. Jerry Punch, Dave Burns and Vince Welch on pit road.
As we mentioned several weeks ago, ESPN has dropped Tim Brewer and parked the Tech Garage. Although disputing that he is gone for good, the network has no plans for us to see Brewer pointing at car parts this season during the Chase. Brewer is a colorful personality, but there was just no room for him in the telecasts down the stretch.
Nicole Briscoe has Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty with her from the Infield Pit Studio. This trio has a short pre-race show of thirty minutes and then may be left with little to do if the race settles into long green flag runs. Briscoe has proven to be very capable of dealing with a wide variety of circumstances in a live setting.
The Nationwide Series race is a calculated gamble for NASCAR. The series is not very deep and is normally dominated by the Sprint Cup Series drivers in the field during companion events. That was one of the best parts of having the race at Lucas Oil Raceway. It limited the number of drivers who wanted to do both events.
We are going to open comments on the TV presentation of the race today and live blog during the event. There has been lots of feedback that with the Olympics in progress and the small amount of tickets pre-sold for the race it could be a rough outing. The flipside is Danica could win, the sport would get a ton of buzz and the powers that be could be smiling from ear to ear. Pre-race at 4 and racing at 4:30PM on ESPN.
No clue as to when the Danica Patrick interview with Katie Couric will air in the pre-race show.
ReplyDeleteHey,does anybody know any way to help the Race buddy to not freeze as much?Also,Does the web browser you have(i presume it does)affect how it runs?Do certain browsers work better?Unforunately,i am stuck with Internet Explorer(i know,OUCH),and i want to know how much that hurts it.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
IE should work just fine. Your connection must be broadband. If it is less, you may have issues.
ReplyDeleteI think it is broadband,thanks,any tips on getting it to run better?
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
If this is such an historic race today for the NNS it seems the fans don't care to be there live to see it.
ReplyDeleteShould work just fine!
ReplyDeleteThanks,ive read that everyone pretty much has the same problems,didnt think it was the internet that was causing it.I may not stay on the internet for much longer,but if i do i will definately look to get chrome of firefox,there is 1 imuteable truth,and that's that Internet Explorer has sucked since the mid 90's,it still sucks,and always will suck.Sorry for the rant,but it's the most frustrating technology ever.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Agree on that. About to switch over to Apple stuff for next season. Tired of the hassles.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately for me the Riverhead modified race was cancelled due to rain. I get to watch Indy instead...yay?
ReplyDeletePrepare for the awesomeness of Danica!
ReplyDelete10-4
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Thought the Katie Couric piece was alright and I generally hate people outside of the sport trying to interview drivers.
ReplyDeleteThis Nationwide race may be "historic" in that it might set an all time record for the greatest percentage of empty seats for any NASCAR sanctioned race.
NASCAR just said competition caution lap 15 today.
ReplyDeleteI look at the crowd and can't think of the right words to write - WOW.
ReplyDeleteIf ESPN/NASCAR hyped IRP (or even just the Nationwide series) as much as this race....
Dennis, I agree. Katie (& Danica) did just fine. She didn't ask about stuff beyond her knowledge, and Danica kept it short (she has a tendency to go on...) Relevant questions; short & sweet.
ReplyDeleteAnthem guy is sounded pretty good.
There maybe more workers at the track then fans.
ReplyDeleteis sounded? Geez...sounding...
ReplyDeleteAnybody hear that prayer?I by NO means am one to talk but the invocation should have more respect than that.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Is Marty drunk?
ReplyDelete"And winning Brickyard crew chief...I KNOW WHO YOU ARE."
Marty is having a tough start.
ReplyDeleteThis could be a long race for Marty and the race has yet to start
ReplyDeleteMarty seems rusty, even though he's been calling Indycar races and hosting the Nascar Now show.
ReplyDelete"And time for the opening series...........ceremonies".
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Hearing Bob Jenkins in the tower only makes matters worse.
ReplyDeleteYou seldom get a commercial during the "start your engines" command.
ReplyDelete@OSBORNK
ReplyDeleteThat guy giving the command was no Mari Hulman George.
The announcers tried 'really, really' hard to hype this race. Think it's time for a nap.
ReplyDeleteAbout to go here,hope Elliot doesn't get wrecked by one of the 1-bars.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
I'm on Verizon Fios and until this year Racebuddy worked flawlessly. This year it pauses and stutters and freezes more than it actually works. Glad to know its not just me. (And for what its worth, I have a top line gaming computer that shouldn't have any problems)
ReplyDeleteOMG Did you see that frontstretch shot?Look how empty the stands were!!!
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Only sold select sections. As in...few.
ReplyDeleteThe backstretch cameraman must be new. Showing nothing 95% of the time.
ReplyDeleteSomeone in the booth needs to teach Marty deep breathing.
ReplyDelete5 laps complete,commercial break.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
OSBORNK LOL and 10-4 on that one!
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Wonder if Nascar will throw debris cautions every once in awhile to tighten up the field.
ReplyDeleteThere was a positive comment on the race coverage.
ReplyDeleteIt's gone now.
Coffeeshop42
OH NO Kurt Busch:Rageaholic just made contact on pit road.Some kid listening to him on scanner was just scarred for life.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Almost a quarter of the race in and I still don't know what Kenny Wallace's car looks like.
ReplyDeleteWow. Looks like only about 3000 people at the track
ReplyDeleteThe best racing is after a restart but Espn goes to commercial instead.
ReplyDeleteThe coverage and camera work has been pretty good so far...except for what is already shaping up to be another legendary barrage of commercials.
ReplyDeleteI know it's a useless complaint, but the in car cam stuff has become what I hate the most. Cars go three wide and the camera switches to in car for a few seconds. Just horrible to me.
ReplyDeleteAndy Petree and Dale Jarrett have been great so far. Marty's slowly getting the butterflies under control.
ReplyDeleteThe real problem has been the camera shots. Fans of drivers outside the top 15 (not named Travis or Danica) know nothing about their driver. But the tight shots on certain drivers is probably on purpose to focus on the hype.
Commercials...Sorry for posting so much,i am probably giving your site problems,i'll try to keep it down.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
It's the ESPN of old. You quicky lose perspective and have to use the ticker to get info.
ReplyDeleteNo wideshots, no allowing the field to run by the camera. No following battles back behind the top 5 or so.
Just frustrating to watch.
The booth got off to a bad start at the beginning of the race. DJ thought that the pole-sitter starts the race. Wrong. At the start, the flag man starts the race. On a restart, the lead car can restart the race anywhere between the two restart lines painted on the outside wall. If the lead car reaches the second line and hasn't started, the flag man has the responsibility to restart the race. I'm surprised that the booth fumbled this one.Kasey just got snookered. On his radio, he said, "How can they throw the green flag before the first restart line?" At the start, the starter can throw the flag at any time. To make matters worse, the replays showed the front row had reached the first restart line when the green dropped. I'm sure I put all to sleep, right?? Lol.
ReplyDeleteMarty is getting the rust out, and I prefer him to Adam Alexander.
ReplyDeleteAt least Marty tries to inject excitement while AA is just a constant drone.
Well, there goes the script JD.
ReplyDeleteDanica replays in 3, 2, 1....
ReplyDeletewonder how many times we will see the replay of the Danica wreck.
ReplyDeleteWell she made history........
ReplyDeleteThis is going to make a very nice nap time for me.
ReplyDeleteAgain, all the Danica over-hype pans out to nothing.
ReplyDelete...a historic accident at a historic event by a historic driver hitting the historic Caroll Shelby car.
ReplyDeleteJohanna Long deserves way more attention as an actual driver. Not a porn star...
ReplyDeleteI switched to the Racebuddy backstretch camera. Are they that far behind or are they showing replays? Worst camera work I have ever seen. Makes hour head spin.
ReplyDeleteOne good thing about ESPN.
ReplyDeleteThey can cover pit stops.
You have to give DJ and Andy credit regarding the Danica incident. They just called it as it was. It was refreshing.
ReplyDeleteABC/ESPN needs to fly in Katie Couric tomorrow to interview Danica on her adversity.
ReplyDeleteThis just in...Danica is likely OUT of the race after she made contact with Reed Sorensen on lap 38 of 100 in a battle for (yay) 14th.
ReplyDeleteThose stands look empty today, too. Very sad.
And with Mike Massaro still talking as the wreck was shown live (hooray), that made for some bad TV.
ReplyDeleteKenny Wallace is having trouble with water pressure. Has pitted a few times to get the car right.
ReplyDeleteNothing on Espn about it.
I went back on the RaceBuddy onboard,and right before the wreck DP was really frustrated that she couldn't get around the 98,Tony Jr an TJ(i think?)were sweet talking her through it,looked like she got impatient and got into him.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
"She tapped him".
ReplyDeleteNice to see that Marty is not a Danica apologist.
Quote of the day...."I'm not sure I tapped him"....D. Patrick, Lap 39
ReplyDeleteKenny Wallace says water pressure still to low but engine guy says things are ok.
ReplyDeleteKenny figures car will blow up
Wait and see I guess.
Still not sure what his car looks like. Haven't seen it on Tv yet.
ESPN made the Infield Studio somewhat useful by making that the NASCAR on ESPN twitter headquarters.
ReplyDelete"Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteThe booth got off to a bad start at the beginning of the race. DJ thought that the pole-sitter starts the race. Wrong. At the start, the flag man starts the race. On a restart, the lead car can restart the race anywhere between the two restart lines painted on the outside wall. If the lead car reaches the second line and hasn't started, the flag man has the responsibility to restart the race. I'm surprised that the booth fumbled this one.Kasey just got snookered. On his radio, he said, "How can they throw the green flag before the first restart line?" At the start, the starter can throw the flag at any time. To make matters worse, the replays showed the front row had reached the first restart line when the green dropped. I'm sure I put all to sleep, right?? Lol.
July 28, 2012 5:29 PM"
Kyle did the same thing a few years ago and laughed that the drivers didn't seem to know the rule differences between starts and restarts.
Funny like you pointed out that D.J. didn't seem to know.
Hopefully, Johanna Long will get more camera time now that Danica is out.
I will be very upset if NASCAR announces a crowd of anything over 4000 people. I'm not a dummy, and I can tell ther are only about 4000 people there. But like clockwork, they'll announce a crowd of over 170000 ... Clowns,
ReplyDeleteYep, textbook ESPN "phone it in, cash the check" job. I have yard work to do.
ReplyDeleteOK make my correction: 3000 people. What a waste of time, money, and resources to put ANY NASCAR race at this track...
ReplyDeleteI had more people watching a cement truck pour concrete to fix my sidewalk then the people watching this race at the track.
ReplyDeleteHey JD,will you do live blog tomorrow?If so,is it alright if i post Jr Scanner talk?I want to give the scanner chatter for people that dont have acsess to it.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
This reminds me of when Geraldo Rivera opened Al Capone's vault: A huge waste of time, and nothing there. Of course NASCAR will insist that this was the greatest race ever attended by 300000 people...
ReplyDeleteFirst time I've seen the "Charlene" GoDaddy ad.
ReplyDeleteIs Danica on the way out?
It is such a shame that there is actually fantastic racing going on back in the field,but you will never know from the coverage.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Coffe, I have a big crowd on Twitter for the Cup live stream.
ReplyDeleteI will certainly open this blog and check, but most of my followers opened a Twitter account and now use that during live races.
So much info in real time, it's better than the TV telecast sometimes.
JD
Great race for the lead...and commercial.Go get em Elliot!
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Check back through my blog posts for a story about Danica on the outs with the new Go Daddy ad agency.
ReplyDeleteWho knows if ESPN would have talked to Reed Sorenson if Marty didn't bring it up.
ReplyDeleteThe booth is doing all the heavy lifting today.
We heard nothing about Kenny Wallace's problems, nothing about Johanna Long's problems. For some reason the 08 and another car were in the corner of the screen coming off pit road.
Thanks,another caution missed under commercial.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
I am not sure but I don't think they have mentioned an Earnhardt in this race either.
ReplyDeleteRacebuddy once again useless....over five laps behind because of freezing and stuttering...I guess Turner is mailing it in being a lame duck and all.
ReplyDeleteI've got to find something better to do on weekends, Nascar just isn't cutting it anymore.
Jo went to the tail of the longest line after losing the tire on pit road. When green came out, she lost a gear and went to garage.
ReplyDeleteJohanna Long qualified ahead of danica, and they interview Danica. So when Johanna has problems, they of course don't interview her or talk about her. Brian has said DO NOT STRAY FROM THE SCRIPT.
ReplyDeleteKudos on the super slo-mo.
ReplyDeleteAnybody notice how Espn screwed up the coverage of the start of the race and this last restart? At the start of the race, they had a tite shot mid-pack and were slow to cut to a long shot of the cars taking the green. This last restart was almost as bad.
ReplyDeletePlease explain why you go to a digger shot on a restart. It's just driving me insane when they do that. How can the director possibly believe that is the correct camera choice.
ReplyDeleteSo ive got the OK on the scanner?(im not on twitter)Sorry for being such a mortified pest,but i had a bad experience on a forum when i was a kid,i feel the need to be overly cautious.Thanks for the live blog,this is so FUN!Much better than wacthing the actual race.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
So I'm watching Racebuddy on NASCAR.com, and I have to wnder why the one camera is like watching my brother 35 years ago with an 8MM camera trying to do "action" shots. What is up with the rookie camera work?
ReplyDeleteUpdate: U-joint broke, now fixed and Johanna is back in race.
ReplyDeleteColorado, the pit cam is on a jib. Big boom thing that is often not used when no one is on pit road.
ReplyDeleteThat what you mean?
Maybe they need the "B" camera for another review of the black flag on Elliot
ReplyDeleteDG/Andy did it again. Sadler gets blackflagged. They showed an in-car from the #22. You can see Sadler go before the first restart line. Now maybe Sadler was pushed, but he went first. Anyone recording the race can go back and watch the view from Brad's car. Maybe the booth doesn't have the benefit of a 50" screen as I do.
ReplyDeleteNo JD, it's actually on the "mosaic: camera 1 shot. He works it on one front stretch and then pans, or should I say paaaaaaaaaaans across the back . It's rookie work for sure....
ReplyDeleteWTH,they penalized Elliot out of total ineptitude,they are just out to get him.Elliot Sadler will never get a break in his whole career,want to bet that Nascar didnt even actually review it?I am not what you could actually call a Elliot fan,but i sympathize with him because he has the worst luck ever.Total BS call.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
NASCAR getting it's lunch handed to it by everyone from JJ to Kevin Harvick on Twitter right now.
ReplyDeleteEven the wives are in it!
Even Mark Martin is confused and he's been doing this awhile...just another punchline for the joke called nascar
ReplyDeleteDon't really see what else Sadler could have done. They were in the restart box when Ellott accelerated past. A similar incident was the Stewart/Edwards restart at Richmond, except Edwards accelerated past Stewart before the restart box.
ReplyDeleteOh well. I never did get to see what Kenny Wallace's car looked like.
ReplyDeleteSo did everyone get to see their driver cross the bricks for the finish.
ReplyDeleteHistorical event for your driver.
One car finishes the race with a zoom to the flagstand.
ReplyDeleteHow ARROGANT can ESPN get?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI wish Brad would get out of his car and say he's just another NASCAR driver to win a race at the Brickyard and that Jeff Gordon remains the first to win a race there. There's really nothing historical about a Cup guy winning the first Nationwide race there. I like Brad but to me this is nothing historic.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the race met the hype at all.
ReplyDeleteThe lead character in the script took herself out. Elliott Sadler worked his way to the front for NASCAR to ruin his day with a questionable black flag. Finally a guy that gets no points in the series gets clean air and abandons the field to win the race.
How can ESPN be broadcasting races for so many years and still not understand the importance of showing more than one car crossing the line?
ReplyDeleteHere's a short list of the things this cost Elliot.
ReplyDelete1.The Win,of course.
2.The dash for cash
3.About 25 points in the standings
4.A possible Cup ride next year.
I feel so sorry for him,he is a really good driver who has made the chase and been a great competitor and is a total class act on and off the track.My Dad actually got his autograph years ago.He never has any luck whatsoever,today included.As i posted on the list,this didnt just cost him the race,this could have serious implications for his career.Congrats,Nascar,you screwed up another one.
Coffeeshop42
I know they were out of the broadcast window, but it seems like there are so many untold stories right now. ESPN's large information gaps keep the NASCAR media in business.
ReplyDeleteI guess we will find out the end result of the Ellott Sadler story on Twitter.
ReplyDeleteCall on the 2 car was bull sh!t,
ReplyDeleteWorst coverage I've seen lately.
ReplyDeleteESPN has no clue how to cover a race. Couldn't believe they didn't
show other cars crossing the finish line and went to an in-car
of the 22. Not covering the top
drivers after the race should be
addressed by NA$CAR. They certainly
call the drivers out when they are
no-shows post race.
Sadler got totally screwed. Guess they felt Mr. Penske and all his Indy trophies would make a more dynamic story.
@jeff_gluck on twitter:"Sadler says NASCAR just told him he did NOT jump the start....?"
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Well, ESPN just assumes they'll get everyone to tune into the race tomorrow where they'll cover it.. not like there is anything else on.. oh wait.. #Olympics #NBCTapeDelayisbetterthanESPNLive
ReplyDeleteWelcome to the future of NASCAR 2012. ESPN is back and as inept as ever. 28 lead lap cars, only one car crosses the finish line. The myopic ESPN production team is alive, but not well. Disgraceful!
ReplyDeletefbu1
Regarding Elliot Sadler: Brad's onboard seemed to show that he didn't get on the gas until AFTER Elliot had already gotten ahead of him. So, I'm not so sure of the "spun tire" defence. That's one good use of onboard cameras... replays. YMMV.
ReplyDeleteSo evidently(if that was true)they had already supposedly(according to what they SAID)reviewed the situation,only to tell them AFTER the fact that he did nothing wrong.This has officialy went from Bull to Chicken(fill in the blank).Let the conspriracy theories begin.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
guess i am sucker for punishment. Still do not watch prerace. but will watch the cup race tomorrow. And to think this race was moved from IRP. i do not think that moving the race worked out very well. thanks JD for the blog today
ReplyDeleteLou
Update: NASCAR now saying Sadler beat the leader to the line, so he should have immediately dropped back and given back the position. Since he did not, he got the penalty.
ReplyDeleteThat make sense to anyone?
Sadler went before the leader?I admit i wasn't paying 100% attention,but didn't Marty say right before the restart that Elliot was the leader?I could be wrong,but i thought that's what i heard.Remember the Edwards/Stewart deal at Richmond?The whole deal there was that in addition to jumping the restart box,Edwards was not the leader.IF Elliot was the leader,he(as i understand it)has the discretion of restarting the race at his pace as long as he didnt "go" before the restart box(BTW they never bothered to show that box)and there shouldnt be a penalty.I am pretty certain he didnt jump before the box.Maybe it was my imagination,but i swear i heard Marty say ES was the leader.BTW BK "Kyle was the man to beat all day",no mention of Elliot in his interview.It seems like every year we learn at least 1 "New" rule.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
It sure looked empty today. ESPN did a terrible job of following the story lines, I wonder when they will discover that the "real" stories happen during the race, not necessarly leading up to the start. 1hr prerace coverage, followed by 10 minutes of follow up? Not exactly a winning formula for the fans of NASCAR. Ty Dillon has great finishes every time he gets a chance to run NNWS. What a curious thing tomorrow will bring.
ReplyDeleteApproximate attendance today
ReplyDelete40,000 by way of Jeff Gluck.
Coffeeshop42
They had to make sure the number was higher than 30K, which would have been the crowd at Lucas Oil Raceway tonight.
ReplyDeleteAs for the only showing 1 car crossing the line,we stopped expecting anything more a long time ago,but to not even mention Ty Dillon,Jeremy Clements and other drivers who had surprise good finishes is inexcusable.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Even their X games star Travis finished 13th and got nary a mention.
ReplyDeleteCoffeshop42
Well was multi tasking where I am dog sitting in a nice setting. Watched the race or partially listened, then Danica wrecked...and after so many replays..click. Then went and ran a quick errand and put gas in the car.
ReplyDeleteI CHOSE that over NASCAR on tv aggravation. I knew I could check Twitter or here when I got home.
Sho enough. Messed up -make--up-the-rules-as-we-go-NASCAR AND BSPN did not disappoint. So I deleted the race off the DVR KNOWING I could get more info off of twitter.
Pitiful, pitiful, pitiful. Where I am dog sitting owners rarely watch tv so only 19 inch SD tv. At home is 52 in tv. I will not be missing tv on sunday as I don't plan on watching.
It is Indianapolis and I want to...my late family members lived there...had an uncle used to fly in from West coast for decades for 500...sentimental and all...but after reading of this horrid NN wise coverage, I simply am thinking of totally skipping this tomorrow.
NASCAR thinks everything is swell, though. Just ask Brian France and his yes man posse.
Ive decided if Jr gets off to a bad start tomorrow i will just take most of off play Silent Hill 2 and watch the end.I can get a much better scripted story by doing that.Anyone with me?
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Mr Editor -
ReplyDeleteJust ESPN being ESPN ...so to speak ...what a waste of time - again ...little or no coverage of 'back in pack' - again ...little or no post-race coverage - again ...little or no effective race management - just tell #2 "give the spot back and no penalty" ...thanks for Twitter today
Walter
Last year the estimated attendance at IRP was 36,000 spectators. Like others have said, today the estimate was 40,000. All this unnecessary tension for 4,000 more people and a landscape of empty grandstands. If the attendance tomorrow for the Brickyard 400 is not higher than last year, than this experiment is a total failure.
ReplyDeleteThis tweet by Kevin Harvick says it all:"Enough about racing I'm moving on to the Olympics anyone watching??"
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
INDYCAR does it right. If they find a driver offside on the restart, they inform the competitor immediately and tell the offender to let the legitimate leader by.
ReplyDeleteThe bump drafting could be an issue Sunday too at Indy. All of a sudden we could be seeing old-school Talladega slam drafting on the one kilometre plus long straight that leads to a wreck if we don't watch out. It was clear on restarts we saw bump drafting on restarts and the Pocono-style three and four-wide games. It could be a wild race Sunday!
I've watched all the auto racing I could find on television for 45 years, but I'm close to giving up on NASCAR. The coverage is terrible no matter WHAT network it's on, and the racing has been ruined by stupid cars, stupid gimmicks, and stupid calls.
ReplyDeleteBrad didn't go, Austin did. What's Elliot supposed to do, slam on the brakes? This race was a farce.
I thought everything was beautiful cause I never heard even one Waltrip.
ReplyDeleteI will say one last piece here,then retire for the night.If any of you read Jeff Gluck's column,you would read the rules expained about the restarts in detail.There is a different protocol for the the start of the race and the Restarts.On the start of the race Kyle was allowed to get away with beating Kasey because on the start,The FLAGMAN controls the start,not the leader,it is legal for the #2 guy to beat him to the line.On restarts however,The leader controls the race and guy #2 cant beat him to the line.Confusing?I thought so too.The key was that many of us fans did not even know about this rule and therefore were clueless as to what happened.I still think they made the wrong call,but i'm not going to waste anymore breath on that right now.The biggest shame of all was that despite all the gloom and doom the race(besides Kyle's early domination)was actually fairly good,only to have another screwed up finish that left us wondering what might have been.This call,along with more inexcusable mistakes by ESPN ruined a potentially memorable race.I dont like to use irony often,because the immortal Dan Connor(John Goodman)said that its for people that dont have lives,but this one is unavoidable.It is so ironic that Nascar made this move to have a Super weekend for "PR" yet they along with partner ESPN destroyed an unexpectdedly good event.If this is what Mr.Haney(ERRRRRRR...BZF)considers "making fans happy"then butter us all up and call us biscuits!Sorry,i meant Grands!biscuits!Peace out.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeshop42
Not a proud day for the WWL:
ReplyDelete1) Only show the winner crossing the finish line.
2) Go from the winner to the flagstand.
3) Jerry Punch doesn't ask Keselowski about the last restart.
4) No post-race interview with Sadler.
Maybe NBC's tape-delayed Olympics aren't so bad.
Sorry, but I re-named Internet Explorer..... Internet Destroyer at least 10 years ago..... lol
ReplyDeleteAlso really glad DP crashed her butt, and funnier had no Idea WHY....
But then we did not have to hear, or see, or be told about sparkle pony after that! Thank the lord! lol
If NASCAR wants to juice the Brickyard event back up how about making it the first race in the Chase (run it on a Saturday) and move Chicago race to July? It would get a cookie cutter track out of the stale track lineup in the Chase. With Kentucky Speedway in the fold the Brickyard is too close on the calendar and proximity.
ReplyDeleteOh jeez. I just read Robin Pemberton's ruling on the Sadler call:
ReplyDelete"He did not jump the restart," Pemberton said. "But the rules are that he cannot beat the No. 1 starter to the line. That's what he did. He clearly did that. He had him cleared by the time they got to the start/finish line, and made no attempt to give it back. That's the rules of the restart."
This is at least on the level of Helio Castroneves at Edmonton last year. The right call given the rule, but an absolutely bull**** rule.
Hopefully this and many other factors combine to move the NNS race back to ORP as soon as the current contract allows them to.
oh I forgot....
ReplyDeleteJD, why do you still think DP could win? She can drive! She can NOT race! Oh yes, you are just teasing us, you funny man!
At the risk of beating this to death,if you replay the start of the race and the Sadler incident, the Restart black lines on the outside wall are plainly visible.
ReplyDelete40,000? That's a complete lie. I watched enough of camera angles for about thirty laps to realize there were only about 4,000 people there. NO WAY was it 40,000. That was an embarrassment for NASCAR. The NNS was for sure a "one and done" at this track...
ReplyDeleteI thought DP's interview was a little boring like the race. Nascar needs to move the NW back to the small track. And the race seemed so long too and MR was fumbling with his words the beginning of the broadcast.
ReplyDelete"He did not jump the restart," Pemberton said. "But the rules are that he cannot beat the No. 1 starter to the line. That's what he did. He clearly did that. He had him cleared by the time they got to the start/finish line, and made no attempt to give it back. That's the rules of the restart."
ReplyDeleteThe leader should game the system then to eliminate the competition.
Is there any Nascar rule where the leader gets penalized for going too slow on a restart?
I just read where Tony Eury Jr thought that Danica's 'tap' on Reed Sorensen was either dumb or stupid. Those plane rides home for the #7 team must very quiet....
ReplyDeleteI can't believe they traded one of the best short track races of the season for this
ReplyDeleteI was at Super Weekend and would go back again...if they have it. Only 10k at Grand-Am, 40k (???) at NNS and don't know Cup attendance but could not have been 100k. At least the rain Friday made me imagine what the end of the 1975 Indy 500(R) had to be like.
ReplyDeleteIndianapolis promoted the IMS races very well but I've come to the conclusion that IMS is a one-event facility. How many would go see a truck race there if you added it?
And forget about returning NNS to IRP/ORP/LOR. I was there as well and they have removed over half of their seats. Only 2000 or so at the Thursday USAC and Friday ARCA shows. They reaped what they sowed; there was ZERO local promotion of LOR events.
For Sadler, I will NEVER agree with NASCAR's call. Pemberton talked about "normal" and "abnormal" restarts. If you can call snookering/spinning tires/hit-from-behind a "normal" restart, I'll fill all 257,000 seats at IMS for a Hooters Cup race. It is always Sadler that gets screwed; nice guys finish last...or 14th or somewhere.
It was still a great place to be...but for how much longer?