I've had enough.
Brian France won't give a rat's bum, because it makes his idiotic self money, but I'm done with Sprint Cup (Nationwide, too, since Cuppies are allowed to abuse it, and Mike Helton's "genius" self doesn't think there's a problem).
Trucks I'll look forward to, since Cuppies don't abuse it too much, and Modifieds, since those are more exciting than the Big 2 Divisions put together.
But Cup? Forget it.
Congratulations, Brian France. You've officially made the Daytona 500 mean nothing. In fact, you've made the first 35 races on the calendar mean nothing.
The Front Row Motorsports 1-2 at Talladega last May was great for the sport. Little teams don't win much anymore in the era of Hendrick/Gibbs/Roush/Childress.
But those four races are pretty much Front Row's shot at a victory. In no way should either David Ragan or David Gilliland get a shot at a championship off of one well-timed pass!
Also, if Dale Earnhardt, Jr. actually does win the title this year, I hope it's because he was at or near the top of the standings for most of the season, not because he squeaked his way through the first nine races, and then ended up winning the title at Homestead because he finished ahead of the other three hopefuls. That would add absolutely nothing to his legacy. Not in my book, anyway.
And this new format is "simpler"? You've officially made it more convoluted than instructions in Chinese.
What's simple is 36 races, and the driver with the most points collected at the end of those 36 races without any horsecrap like a Chase is crowned the champion. That. Is. Simple.
Yes, F1's idea to make the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix double points is awful, but this is a thousand times worse.
It's too bad not a lot of people watch IndyCar these days. It's exciting without having to resort to stupid gimmicks. And its championship in many recent years has come down to the last race, in some cases, the last lap. No Chase. Just 20+ drivers giving it their all for 19 races.
I'll end this post by linking to this excellent column from Sports on Earth's Matt Crossman:
http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/66846450/nascar-aims-to-make-more-changes-to-their-chase-for-the-cup
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Dear everyone who says "A win should get you in the Chase," PLEASE STOP NOW!
So, the Chase is upon us. Of course, it's been a wacky week, what with tossing Martin Truex, Jr. out and putting Ryan Newman in, and suddenly adding Jeff Gordon at the last minute.
As always around this time of year, people have their own ways that they would "improve" (read: screw up further) the Chase. The topic of this Tweet is, without question, the dumbest of them all:
Ah, yes, the "a win should get you in the Chase no matter who you are" fix. These people are the reason the Chase shouldn't exist in the first place.
So, you're telling me, sir, that just because David Ragan won a race where his car actually had a chance of winning, he should be running for the championship? He deserves the nod over Junior? Even though Ragan's win at Talladega is also his only Top 5 and Top 10 finish of the season? Even though Ragan's average finish on the season is 26th? Digging further into Ragan's stats, his second best finish of the season is 12th at Bristol a few weeks back, when Front Row actually had some speed at a track other than one where you need a restrictor plate.
Junior's average finish, meanwhile, is 14th. He has two runner-up finishes so far, along with three other Top 5s. Junior also possesses 14 Top 10s. He probably would've won both Michigan races if his engine hadn't gone up in the June race, and he hadn't had a tire blow while leading in August.
To give Ragan a Chase spot over Junior just because he "won a race" is not only idiotic, it's completely farcical. You'd also have to give a spot to Brian Vickers based upon his win in Loudon two months ago, and he's running a part-time schedule and can't actually get Cup points, because he's running for the Nationwide title.
So, if a road course ringer like Ron Fellows or Boris Said wins at Sonoma or Watkins Glen, they should get into the Chase, too? See, here's where the "a win should get you into the Chase, no matter who you are" crowd's logic really slips. Do you think Fellows and Said would stand a chance on a 10-race, all-oval slate? Except for Talladega (noting, of course, that Said almost won at Daytona a few years back), no. They're road course specialists. They show up twice a year, because that's what they're good on: ROAD COURSES!
Clint Bowyer, despite his antics on Saturday, also deserved (yes, I typed it in past tense) a spot over Ragan. Bowyer has 8 Top 5s so far this year. In a "winners-only" Chase, he'd be gone, too. Again, a farce.
Look, I know the "winners only in the Chase" crowd mean well, but, they're stupid. Would it really look good for NASCAR if David Ragan and Brian Vickers were allowed to compete for its biggest championship, when neither of them, especially Ragan, would have a shot in Hell of winning it? Of course not. That would break the string that is NASCAR's remaining shred of credibility (after yesterday)...if they have any left at all. I'm betting not. God forbid comes the day when the person who wins the most races wins the championship. If Ragan won all four plate races, and nobody else won four period, and Ragan won the title, and he was still finishing in the 20s on average, he would be the most undeserving Sprint Cup champion of all-time.
This "wins should mean the most" rhetoric is absolute garbage. I don't care if Matt Kenseth wins 10 races, if he finishes 43rd the rest of the time, and doesn't win the title, guess what? He didn't deserve it! The champion should be the most consistent, not the one who wins the most races. The "the guy who wins the most races should be champion" logic would be perfectly valid if all the cars were equally prepared by the same people, a la IROC. But, they aren't.
So, let's stop with the wins garbage. Because nothing will convince me otherwise.
-CRL
As always around this time of year, people have their own ways that they would "improve" (read: screw up further) the Chase. The topic of this Tweet is, without question, the dumbest of them all:
Ah, yes, the "a win should get you in the Chase no matter who you are" fix. These people are the reason the Chase shouldn't exist in the first place.
So, you're telling me, sir, that just because David Ragan won a race where his car actually had a chance of winning, he should be running for the championship? He deserves the nod over Junior? Even though Ragan's win at Talladega is also his only Top 5 and Top 10 finish of the season? Even though Ragan's average finish on the season is 26th? Digging further into Ragan's stats, his second best finish of the season is 12th at Bristol a few weeks back, when Front Row actually had some speed at a track other than one where you need a restrictor plate.
Junior's average finish, meanwhile, is 14th. He has two runner-up finishes so far, along with three other Top 5s. Junior also possesses 14 Top 10s. He probably would've won both Michigan races if his engine hadn't gone up in the June race, and he hadn't had a tire blow while leading in August.
To give Ragan a Chase spot over Junior just because he "won a race" is not only idiotic, it's completely farcical. You'd also have to give a spot to Brian Vickers based upon his win in Loudon two months ago, and he's running a part-time schedule and can't actually get Cup points, because he's running for the Nationwide title.
So, if a road course ringer like Ron Fellows or Boris Said wins at Sonoma or Watkins Glen, they should get into the Chase, too? See, here's where the "a win should get you into the Chase, no matter who you are" crowd's logic really slips. Do you think Fellows and Said would stand a chance on a 10-race, all-oval slate? Except for Talladega (noting, of course, that Said almost won at Daytona a few years back), no. They're road course specialists. They show up twice a year, because that's what they're good on: ROAD COURSES!
Clint Bowyer, despite his antics on Saturday, also deserved (yes, I typed it in past tense) a spot over Ragan. Bowyer has 8 Top 5s so far this year. In a "winners-only" Chase, he'd be gone, too. Again, a farce.
Look, I know the "winners only in the Chase" crowd mean well, but, they're stupid. Would it really look good for NASCAR if David Ragan and Brian Vickers were allowed to compete for its biggest championship, when neither of them, especially Ragan, would have a shot in Hell of winning it? Of course not. That would break the string that is NASCAR's remaining shred of credibility (after yesterday)...if they have any left at all. I'm betting not. God forbid comes the day when the person who wins the most races wins the championship. If Ragan won all four plate races, and nobody else won four period, and Ragan won the title, and he was still finishing in the 20s on average, he would be the most undeserving Sprint Cup champion of all-time.
This "wins should mean the most" rhetoric is absolute garbage. I don't care if Matt Kenseth wins 10 races, if he finishes 43rd the rest of the time, and doesn't win the title, guess what? He didn't deserve it! The champion should be the most consistent, not the one who wins the most races. The "the guy who wins the most races should be champion" logic would be perfectly valid if all the cars were equally prepared by the same people, a la IROC. But, they aren't.
So, let's stop with the wins garbage. Because nothing will convince me otherwise.
-CRL
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Tony Kanaan's struggles should put an end to whining about ride-buying
It seems that the weak global economy has affected motor racing more than any other sport. There's so much stuff you have to buy: a car body, tires, an engine, a gearbox, a steering wheel, seat belts, and much more. For football, all you need is a helmet, pads, and cleats. For baseball, a batting helmet, cleats, and a bat. For basketball, just shoes. You need a uniform for each, and for football and baseball, you need a cup for that special place. If you're a guy, anyway.
But motor racing isn't stick and ball; it's technology and machinery. You need sponsors to fund a competitive team. It's why the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series have so many start-and-parkers at the moment. In the last few years, the practice of "ride-buying" has become more prevalent, especially in Formula 1. Young drivers with backing from big sponsors to get rides on the back of the grid.
But nowadays, you need a big sponsor to get to the front of the grid, as well. Sergio Perez got his rides at Sauber and McLaren with backing from TelMex. Let's be honest and say that Fernando Alonso wouldn't have a ride at Ferrari without Santander, no matter how good he is. And of course, PDVSA is the reason Pastor Maldonado is in F1.
Ride-buying isn't always a bad thing. Alonso is one of the best drivers in F1 history, Perez finished on the podium three times in 2012, nearly winning Malaysia, and, despite his mind-numbingly terrible driving most of the time, Maldonado managed to hold off Alonso to win the Spanish Grand Prix last year. Sure, you've had some flops, Jean-Denis Deletraz in particular, but not all ride-buyers are talentless hacks.
Ride-buying isn't as prevalent in IndyCar as it is in F1, or at least it hasn't been lately. EJ Viso is the most famous pay driver, as, like Maldonado, he, too, has backing from PDVSA. Now, the man who scored perhaps the most popular IndyCar win of the last decade back in May needs some money to keep his career going. 2013 Indy 500 winner and 2004 IndyCar champion Tony Kanaan recently talked about his troubles finding a ride for 2014 and beyond to RACER.com's Robin Miller in a story published on the site on Monday.
Kanaan is talented, and easily one of the top open-wheel drivers in the U.S. in the last two decades. He's also, to an extent, a pay driver. In order to keep his ride with KV Racing and win this year's 500, T.K. needed backing from Brazilian beer company Itaipava and other various businesses from his home country.
Folks, it's time for us to stop moaning about ride-buyers. The state of the global economy means that pretty much every team, no matter which one it is, will need a driver, whether they are talented or not, to have the backing of a great sponsor to make things work. And, again, not every ride-buyer is a talentless hack. When they're all in the same boat, we need to lay down our rage. Just saying.
-CRL
But motor racing isn't stick and ball; it's technology and machinery. You need sponsors to fund a competitive team. It's why the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series have so many start-and-parkers at the moment. In the last few years, the practice of "ride-buying" has become more prevalent, especially in Formula 1. Young drivers with backing from big sponsors to get rides on the back of the grid.
But nowadays, you need a big sponsor to get to the front of the grid, as well. Sergio Perez got his rides at Sauber and McLaren with backing from TelMex. Let's be honest and say that Fernando Alonso wouldn't have a ride at Ferrari without Santander, no matter how good he is. And of course, PDVSA is the reason Pastor Maldonado is in F1.
Ride-buying isn't always a bad thing. Alonso is one of the best drivers in F1 history, Perez finished on the podium three times in 2012, nearly winning Malaysia, and, despite his mind-numbingly terrible driving most of the time, Maldonado managed to hold off Alonso to win the Spanish Grand Prix last year. Sure, you've had some flops, Jean-Denis Deletraz in particular, but not all ride-buyers are talentless hacks.
Ride-buying isn't as prevalent in IndyCar as it is in F1, or at least it hasn't been lately. EJ Viso is the most famous pay driver, as, like Maldonado, he, too, has backing from PDVSA. Now, the man who scored perhaps the most popular IndyCar win of the last decade back in May needs some money to keep his career going. 2013 Indy 500 winner and 2004 IndyCar champion Tony Kanaan recently talked about his troubles finding a ride for 2014 and beyond to RACER.com's Robin Miller in a story published on the site on Monday.
Kanaan is talented, and easily one of the top open-wheel drivers in the U.S. in the last two decades. He's also, to an extent, a pay driver. In order to keep his ride with KV Racing and win this year's 500, T.K. needed backing from Brazilian beer company Itaipava and other various businesses from his home country.
Folks, it's time for us to stop moaning about ride-buyers. The state of the global economy means that pretty much every team, no matter which one it is, will need a driver, whether they are talented or not, to have the backing of a great sponsor to make things work. And, again, not every ride-buyer is a talentless hack. When they're all in the same boat, we need to lay down our rage. Just saying.
-CRL
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Pocono Truck race should spurn NASCAR to shorten Cup races further
Another Camping World Truck Series race at Pocono has come and gone.
Ryan Blaney won the fourth edition of the Pocono Mountains 125, the Trucks' lone race at The Tricky Triangle, on Saturday. It was the 19-year-old's second career win in the third-to-last rung on the NASCAR ladder.
Blaney passed German Quiroga on the lone attempt at a green-white-checkered finish to take the win.
The race took 54 laps (though, it's scheduled to go 50), to finish. In terms of time: 63 minutes, 8 seconds.
(By the way, only once has the race actually gone 50 laps: last year, when Joey Coulter won in just 61 minutes, 43 seconds.)
I know. Truck races usually don't take that long, and they shouldn't; after all, it's #3 on NASCAR's National Touring Series. The races should be short. Of the 11 Truck races held so far this season, only two have gone two hours or more: Martinsville, clocking in at 2 hours, 6 minutes; and Kansas, which took 2 hours, 25 minutes, thanks to 11 cautions.
But the Truck Series isn't the centerpiece of this blog post. Instead, it's going to be Sprint Cup; in particular, the Sprint Cup Series's two races at Pocono.
Ryan Blaney won the fourth edition of the Pocono Mountains 125, the Trucks' lone race at The Tricky Triangle, on Saturday. It was the 19-year-old's second career win in the third-to-last rung on the NASCAR ladder.
Blaney passed German Quiroga on the lone attempt at a green-white-checkered finish to take the win.
The race took 54 laps (though, it's scheduled to go 50), to finish. In terms of time: 63 minutes, 8 seconds.
(By the way, only once has the race actually gone 50 laps: last year, when Joey Coulter won in just 61 minutes, 43 seconds.)
I know. Truck races usually don't take that long, and they shouldn't; after all, it's #3 on NASCAR's National Touring Series. The races should be short. Of the 11 Truck races held so far this season, only two have gone two hours or more: Martinsville, clocking in at 2 hours, 6 minutes; and Kansas, which took 2 hours, 25 minutes, thanks to 11 cautions.
But the Truck Series isn't the centerpiece of this blog post. Instead, it's going to be Sprint Cup; in particular, the Sprint Cup Series's two races at Pocono.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Introduction
Hello there.
I've been a racing fan for almost 28 years now. I love everything from F1 to V8 Supercars.
Here, you'll find my thoughts on the big topics, and drivers like Vettel, Gordon, and more.
Hopefully, I'll have a post for you this weekend.
-CRL
I've been a racing fan for almost 28 years now. I love everything from F1 to V8 Supercars.
Here, you'll find my thoughts on the big topics, and drivers like Vettel, Gordon, and more.
Hopefully, I'll have a post for you this weekend.
-CRL
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