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closeSorry, but ovals are really
where NASCAR needs to be
DAVID POOLE | OBSERVATIONS
David Poole
The Charlotte Observer
Wednesday, Jun. 20, 2007
Suggestions, observations from The Charlotte Observer's David Poole:
Elevator
SIDEWAYS
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: The road course could be his place to shine, but his team has struggled and the Dodges were universally dismal at Michigan.
UP
MARTIN TRUEX JR.: He’s got a ton of momentum, and his road-racing record is better than you might think.
DOWN
LEGAL WRANGLING: The issues are important, but fans are already weary of the NASCAR vs. AT&T court battle.
Good grief, isn’t there enough money to go around for everybody?
Observations
I know television’s pervasive influence over NASCAR is an old story, but it’s to the point of being ridiculous.
When Carl Edwards won Sunday, the story was that his motor coach driver Tom Giacchi would finally get to shave off a beard he had been growing on a bet since Edwards last won in November 2005.
Giacchi just couldn’t wait to get rid of it.
Guess what? He’s still got a beard, albeit a trimmed up version. He won’t actually shave it all off until he can do it live on “Trackside” on Speed a week from Friday before the race at New Hampshire.
There is no better way to compare Speedway Motorsports Inc. facilities and International Speedway Corp. tracks than to look at the road courses.
SMI probably has spent more money just on the paperwork it took to get all its improvements OK’d at Infineon Raceway, than ISC has spent, total, at Watkins Glen since it bought the place.
My 2 cents
People misunderstand my take on road course racing.
I don’t hate road courses. I think road racing is interesting in its own way, and it unquestionably requires driving skills and talents. The American Le Mans, Grand American and even the ChampCar series provide excellent venues for road racers to display their talents.
I just question what any of that has to do with stock car racing.
There are all kinds of analogies. The one I prefer is to say stock cars and road course racing are like ice hockey and figure skating. Just because they both happen on ice, that doesn’t mean it’s the same sport.
If it’s not that different, how come some NASCAR teams throw their regular drivers aside and turn to ringers for road races?
Ron Fellows is a terrific road racer, but how does it help the long-term prospects of Hall of Fame Racing to have him drive in Tony Raines’ place this weekend?
The fans in Northern California who will pack Infineon Raceway, and the ones in upstate New York who’ll go to Watkins Glen in August, are every bit as good as fans anywhere else. Continuing to provide them with the opportunity to see Nextel Cup drivers is the only decent reason to keep road course races.
Still, those fans would be better served to see Cup drivers on an oval track, since that’s what NASCAR’s best do better than anybody else in American motorsports. Road course racing is not better, and the concept of providing variety is a lame excuse, too.
Is anybody trying to tell me if you put another Richmond in upstate New York and another Bristol in Sonoma, Calif., NASCAR wouldn’t be better off?
Please.