Actually there they go, since I won't be going anywhere. California has become a race track that I appreciate more and more as the years go by. The last few races there have left me feeling fulfilled as a race fan.
Matt Kenseth won last years race, with Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson finishing 2nd and 3rd. Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer, and Mark Martin also had strong finishes at Fontana last year as well.
Engines are almost always problems at California, and 2007 was no exception. Besides the DEI cars of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Martin Truex Jr., Dave Blaney in a Toyota, Kasey Kahne in a Dodge, and Kenny Schrader in the Wood Brothers Ford also had engine problems. Little did we know just how disappointing the engines would get for DEI and especially Dale Jr.
California is a beautiful, big track, at 2 miles in length. It's considered a mirror of Michigan, but really has not a lot in common with it's counterpart other than total length. California has 12 degree banking and Michigan has 18 degrees of banking.
Jeff Gordon has 3 wins at California. Jimmie Johnson has 2, as does Matt Kenseth. Other Cup drivers who have won at this track include Kyle and Kurt Busch, Elliot Sadler, Mark Martin, Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle, and Jeremy Mayfield. Of all drivers, Jeff Gordon has 7 total top 5 finishes, while Jimmie Johnson has 6. This last start is impressive when you count in the fact that Jeff has 5 more starts at the race track than Jimmie.
In looking ahead to this weekend's festivities, it is difficult to count any of the Hendrick cars out, or Matt Kenseth for that matter. Will Casey Mears and Dale Earnhadt Jr. have more success than they have in past years? Will Mark Martin return to victory lane in a Chevrolet? Will Elliot Sadler finally find his way to victory lane again?
What I'm hoping is that this race proves to be as exciting as several of the California races have proven to be in the last few years. It would be nice to see the stands full for a change as well.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
What is a Fan?
Have you ever wondered what a fan really was? The word 'fan' is short for 'fanatic'. Not so classy a word. 'Fanatic' can mean a lot of things, and most of them aren't good.
Most of us, in one way or another, are fans of one sport or multiple sports. I, for example, am a fan of football and baseball. I like them, but don't love them. I love it when the Boston Red Sox win the World Series, but my world won't come crashing down around me if they don't win. I was a fan of the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, but their loss didn't cause me any loss of sleep.
My biggest passion is Nascar though. Probably more than any other sport, Nascar fans make the sport what it is. We pay the ticket prices, we pay for merchandise, we pay for Trackpass or Hotpass just to enjoy the sport we love. We as fans actually invest in the sport we love. Football fans and fans of any other sport do the same thing, but no where on earth do we see all our favorites on the same playing field for every single game. That's what makes being a Nascar fan so special.
We've all got our favorite drivers, and drivers we can't stand. We've had ordinary Sundays made glorious or depressing, depending on what our drivers do. Most of our favorite drivers only have a good day once in a while, and have problems the rest of the time. We still stick by these drivers though. We argue about them endlessly in person, in e-mails, and on message boards. Our driver is the best, and always will be!
Nascar is unique in one other way as well. Most of us get to see the races in the series other than Cup on a weekly basis. Most of us have favorites in those series as well, unlike the minor leagues in baseball. Most of the time in other sports we don't know who the new guy is. In Nascar, we've watched him for years.
Are we loyal to our drivers? You bet we are. We stand with them through the good times and the bad times. Are our drivers perfect? Of course not. There are human just like you and me. My favorite drivers have made plenty of mistakes over the years. They all do. It's just when the driver you don't like doesn't make mistakes is when you feel like they've got an unfair advantage.
All drivers make mistakes. All of them are human, and all of them will do the human thing at times.
Most of us, in one way or another, are fans of one sport or multiple sports. I, for example, am a fan of football and baseball. I like them, but don't love them. I love it when the Boston Red Sox win the World Series, but my world won't come crashing down around me if they don't win. I was a fan of the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, but their loss didn't cause me any loss of sleep.
My biggest passion is Nascar though. Probably more than any other sport, Nascar fans make the sport what it is. We pay the ticket prices, we pay for merchandise, we pay for Trackpass or Hotpass just to enjoy the sport we love. We as fans actually invest in the sport we love. Football fans and fans of any other sport do the same thing, but no where on earth do we see all our favorites on the same playing field for every single game. That's what makes being a Nascar fan so special.
We've all got our favorite drivers, and drivers we can't stand. We've had ordinary Sundays made glorious or depressing, depending on what our drivers do. Most of our favorite drivers only have a good day once in a while, and have problems the rest of the time. We still stick by these drivers though. We argue about them endlessly in person, in e-mails, and on message boards. Our driver is the best, and always will be!
Nascar is unique in one other way as well. Most of us get to see the races in the series other than Cup on a weekly basis. Most of us have favorites in those series as well, unlike the minor leagues in baseball. Most of the time in other sports we don't know who the new guy is. In Nascar, we've watched him for years.
Are we loyal to our drivers? You bet we are. We stand with them through the good times and the bad times. Are our drivers perfect? Of course not. There are human just like you and me. My favorite drivers have made plenty of mistakes over the years. They all do. It's just when the driver you don't like doesn't make mistakes is when you feel like they've got an unfair advantage.
All drivers make mistakes. All of them are human, and all of them will do the human thing at times.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Parity in Nascar?
I suppose it can be called that. Toyota and Dodge have had a rough time in the Cup series, and yesterday Nascar proved that it will do whatever it takes to achieve equality.
Last year, Toyota and Dodge struggled to even make the Daytona 500. The speed just wasn't there, and the Chevrolets were dominant, once again. Ford looked strong as well, and no one thought anyone that wasn't driving a Ford or a Chevy didn't have a chance. That was true, for the most part.
What a difference a year makes though. A Chevrolet won the pole at Daytona, and Dale Jr. won the Bud Shootout and his Duel race, but neither Chevy nor Ford was much of a factor in any of the actual points races. In the Daytona 500, Dodge and Toyota accounted for the entire top 10, save the 9th position of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Chevy.
While fans of Toyota and Chevrolet may be cheering today, as well they should, it makes many of us question Nascar's engine rules. It was reported on Saturday that Tony Stewart's Toyota had 30 more horsepower at the rear wheels than did the Chevrolets of Richard Childress Racing, and at least 15 more horsepower than Dale Jr.'s Chevy. Did Toyota get an advantage in engine rules from Nascar? Did Dodge?
Nascar will deny any of this, but how did Dodge and Toyota go from worst to first in such a short time? I find it doubtful that Dodge and Toyota now suddenly have the best engine and car builders in the sport. The addition of Joe Gibbs Racing to Toyota's stable certainly added some much needed muscle to Toyota's Nascar program, but all 3 Gibbs Toyota's led the Daytona 500, and almost won it. Many times the Toyota cars appeared to need very little drafting help to stay in front. Jeff Gordon led the race a few times, but was easily passed by the Toyotas of Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin. Perhaps Jeff Gordon's car was not as good as he thought it was, but all the Hendrick cars appeared to be quite a bit slower than the Toyotas yesterday. That's no crime, but it does lead to a lot of head scratching.
For the time being, I will say a hearty congratulations to Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch, who finished 1st and 2nd in the Daytona 500. The Penske Dodges were hardly factors at all for 99 per cent of the race, but were at the front when it counted, on lap 200. Congratulations to the Toyota teams as well. Kyle Busch clearly had the car to beat most of the day, followed closely by his teammate Denny Hamlin.
Enjoy the success, boys! Nascar might decide you've got too much of an advantage and put you back in the pack with the Chevys and the Fords
Last year, Toyota and Dodge struggled to even make the Daytona 500. The speed just wasn't there, and the Chevrolets were dominant, once again. Ford looked strong as well, and no one thought anyone that wasn't driving a Ford or a Chevy didn't have a chance. That was true, for the most part.
What a difference a year makes though. A Chevrolet won the pole at Daytona, and Dale Jr. won the Bud Shootout and his Duel race, but neither Chevy nor Ford was much of a factor in any of the actual points races. In the Daytona 500, Dodge and Toyota accounted for the entire top 10, save the 9th position of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Chevy.
While fans of Toyota and Chevrolet may be cheering today, as well they should, it makes many of us question Nascar's engine rules. It was reported on Saturday that Tony Stewart's Toyota had 30 more horsepower at the rear wheels than did the Chevrolets of Richard Childress Racing, and at least 15 more horsepower than Dale Jr.'s Chevy. Did Toyota get an advantage in engine rules from Nascar? Did Dodge?
Nascar will deny any of this, but how did Dodge and Toyota go from worst to first in such a short time? I find it doubtful that Dodge and Toyota now suddenly have the best engine and car builders in the sport. The addition of Joe Gibbs Racing to Toyota's stable certainly added some much needed muscle to Toyota's Nascar program, but all 3 Gibbs Toyota's led the Daytona 500, and almost won it. Many times the Toyota cars appeared to need very little drafting help to stay in front. Jeff Gordon led the race a few times, but was easily passed by the Toyotas of Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin. Perhaps Jeff Gordon's car was not as good as he thought it was, but all the Hendrick cars appeared to be quite a bit slower than the Toyotas yesterday. That's no crime, but it does lead to a lot of head scratching.
For the time being, I will say a hearty congratulations to Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch, who finished 1st and 2nd in the Daytona 500. The Penske Dodges were hardly factors at all for 99 per cent of the race, but were at the front when it counted, on lap 200. Congratulations to the Toyota teams as well. Kyle Busch clearly had the car to beat most of the day, followed closely by his teammate Denny Hamlin.
Enjoy the success, boys! Nascar might decide you've got too much of an advantage and put you back in the pack with the Chevys and the Fords
Friday, February 15, 2008
Over Rated?
Yeah, right. Dale Earnhardt Jr. only has his ride because he's the son of a 7 time Winston Cup Champion. (Yeah, I said Winston, because that's what it was when Dale won all of them.) Chances are that Dale Jr. would not even be racing had he not come from a racing family. He might have, but he probably wouldn't. I've got news for you: Neither would Dale Earnhardt, or for that matter Richard Petty.
Being born into a racing family is not a sin, folks. Lee Petty was racing long before King Richard ever stepped into a race car. So was Ralph Earnhardt before Dale ever climbed into one. Racing roots are not bad to have on the resume, it would seem.
Indeed, most of today's drivers have some racing in their blood. Practically every one of the drivers on the track have a brother or a father or a cousin or an uncle that was a racer. The relative in question may not have raced in Nascar, or even been that successful on the short track near home, but he was a racer. Sometimes it wasn't always a 'he', either. Mom might have got some of these boys into racing.
Like I said, having racing genes is not a sin. It just makes it easier to decide on a career as a young person. When Dale Jr. began racing in his early teens, his daddy was surprised. He said he never knew Dale Jr. was interested in racing. Dale Jr. would later say that it was all he ever wanted to do.
Well, guess what? Dale Jr.'s doing it! He's doing it in grand style too. First the Budweiser Shootout, now the Gatorade Duel 1 race. 2 for 2. Dale Jr. promised to come out of the corner swinging, and he has delivered in a huge way. Not only has he won both races he's been in, but he's proven that he is definitely a chip off the old block, and might be the best restrictor plate driver in the business. Possibly the best ever. Time will tell on that though.
Dale Jr. has not won just at Daytona and Talladega though. He's won at bullrings like Bristol, Richmond, and Dover. He's won at tracks like Chicago and Phoenix and Atlanta. He's not won a road course race, at least not in his cup career, but early fans of Dale Jr. will remember his Busch series win at Watkins Glen. Oh, and by the way, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a 2 time Busch Series Champion. I put that in caps because I think a lot of the detractors like to conveniently overlook that fact.
Over rated? No. Dale Jr. just has the equipment and the people and an owner that will allow him to live up to his own potential.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Drafting Partners for the Gatorade Duels
It's difficult to formulate a strategy for any race, except maybe to try to stay out of trouble and be at the front at the end of the race. Things can work a little differently at Daytona and Talladega though, where the draft is so much in play. During the actual race on Sunday, all the partners will be available, assuming they all qualify. Things are quite a bit different in the Duels though.
With the field basically split in two, some drivers will have plenty of partners, while some will have none they can really trust. For instance, in Duel 1, 3 Hendrick Motorsports drivers will start the race already lined up to draft in the low lane, with Jimmie Johnson on the pole, Casey Mears starting in 3rd place, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. starting in 5th place. They maybe all the drafting partners any of them may need the entire race.
Jeff Gordon races in Duel 2 however, and will have no teammates to help him. That is not to say that he won't have help, but will it be help he can really rely on? My best guess is possibly. That's not saying much, but it might be all Jeff will need to finish well or even win his race. One name that comes to mind? Dale Jr.'s old car, the 8 driven by Mark Martin.
Mark showed us all last year that he's a capable driver at Daytona. He's never won a 500, but he almost won last year. Mark is likely to latch onto Jeff's bumper if he can get to him, and probably won't hang Jeff out to dry, until maybe the last lap.
Other notable drafting teams in race 2 will be Michael Waltrip and David Reutimann, who will start the race first and second, and I imagine it will be difficult to pry those two cars apart. Dale Jarrett also is in this race, though he is starting farther back. If I'm David Reutimann, I would be pretty happy about this circumstance, since both of his teammates have won at Daytona before. Dave Blaney, who starts 3rd, is not a team member of Michael Waltrip Racing, but as a fellow Toyota driver, I imagine he will be welcomed by the MWR guys into their private draft.
Also in Duel 2, all three Joe Gibbs Racing cars will start. Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart will start close together, with Kyle Busch starting farther back. I imagine Kyle's first goal will be to catch his teammates as early as possible in this race. Richard Childress Racing teammates Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton will start near the back of the field as well, but I think the RCR cars will be much faster during racing conditions than they were in qualifying trim.
In Duel 1, beside the aforementioned trio of Johnson, Mears, and Earnhardt, we will have the Red Bull cars of Brian Vickers and AJ Allmendinger starting near the front. Dale Earnhardt Inc. teammates Martin Truex Jr. and Paul Menard will be starting close to each other, with a third teammate Regan Smith starting farther ahead. I imagine the DEI cars will attempt to work together as much as possible. The Chip Ganassi cars of Reed Sorenson, Juan Pablo Montoya will be starting together near the back of the field as well.
All in all, much of draft racing is about temporary partnerships formed between drivers with cars that draft well together. Some times drivers will try to draft with cars that are the same make as theirs, out of brand loyalty to the manufacturer. Sometimes they recognize an old friend who they know will not wreck them, and will hook up with them. Sometimes they will just find that on this particular day, their car works best with someone that they would ordinarily not want to be around on other tracks. In other words, drafting makes for strange bedfellows sometimes.
The only thing I know for sure is this: When the white flag waves, there are no partnerships anymore. Teammates are meaningless, and it's every driver for himself. This is the beauty of racing at Daytona.
With the field basically split in two, some drivers will have plenty of partners, while some will have none they can really trust. For instance, in Duel 1, 3 Hendrick Motorsports drivers will start the race already lined up to draft in the low lane, with Jimmie Johnson on the pole, Casey Mears starting in 3rd place, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. starting in 5th place. They maybe all the drafting partners any of them may need the entire race.
Jeff Gordon races in Duel 2 however, and will have no teammates to help him. That is not to say that he won't have help, but will it be help he can really rely on? My best guess is possibly. That's not saying much, but it might be all Jeff will need to finish well or even win his race. One name that comes to mind? Dale Jr.'s old car, the 8 driven by Mark Martin.
Mark showed us all last year that he's a capable driver at Daytona. He's never won a 500, but he almost won last year. Mark is likely to latch onto Jeff's bumper if he can get to him, and probably won't hang Jeff out to dry, until maybe the last lap.
Other notable drafting teams in race 2 will be Michael Waltrip and David Reutimann, who will start the race first and second, and I imagine it will be difficult to pry those two cars apart. Dale Jarrett also is in this race, though he is starting farther back. If I'm David Reutimann, I would be pretty happy about this circumstance, since both of his teammates have won at Daytona before. Dave Blaney, who starts 3rd, is not a team member of Michael Waltrip Racing, but as a fellow Toyota driver, I imagine he will be welcomed by the MWR guys into their private draft.
Also in Duel 2, all three Joe Gibbs Racing cars will start. Denny Hamlin and Tony Stewart will start close together, with Kyle Busch starting farther back. I imagine Kyle's first goal will be to catch his teammates as early as possible in this race. Richard Childress Racing teammates Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton will start near the back of the field as well, but I think the RCR cars will be much faster during racing conditions than they were in qualifying trim.
In Duel 1, beside the aforementioned trio of Johnson, Mears, and Earnhardt, we will have the Red Bull cars of Brian Vickers and AJ Allmendinger starting near the front. Dale Earnhardt Inc. teammates Martin Truex Jr. and Paul Menard will be starting close to each other, with a third teammate Regan Smith starting farther ahead. I imagine the DEI cars will attempt to work together as much as possible. The Chip Ganassi cars of Reed Sorenson, Juan Pablo Montoya will be starting together near the back of the field as well.
All in all, much of draft racing is about temporary partnerships formed between drivers with cars that draft well together. Some times drivers will try to draft with cars that are the same make as theirs, out of brand loyalty to the manufacturer. Sometimes they recognize an old friend who they know will not wreck them, and will hook up with them. Sometimes they will just find that on this particular day, their car works best with someone that they would ordinarily not want to be around on other tracks. In other words, drafting makes for strange bedfellows sometimes.
The only thing I know for sure is this: When the white flag waves, there are no partnerships anymore. Teammates are meaningless, and it's every driver for himself. This is the beauty of racing at Daytona.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
How did Nascar handle the Kurt and Tony Feud?
Today it was announced that Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart would be placed on probation for the next 6 races as punishment for an incident that occurred during Friday night's practice for the Bud Shootout. To this amateur race fan, it appeared that Kurt came up high in front of Tony, and Tony hit him, and Kurt spun out. During the trip to pit road, Kurt came up behind and around Tony and hit his car in the right side at least 3 times. Tony pulled down onto the track apron in an apparent effort to avoid Kurt. Before going behind the wall, Tony stopped, and Kurt pulled his car up against Stewart once more.
That's what I saw. There were reports that later, in the Nascar hauler, Tony took a swing at Kurt. Those reports remain unconfirmed.
To me, it appeared that Kurt, understandably upset about the damage caused by his contact with Tony and the subsequent spin, was attempting to damage Tony's car on pit road in retaliation. I might be wrong. Perhaps if Nascar had inspected Tony's car more closely, they would have discovered the super magnets that Tony's team has hidden in the passenger side door of the number 20 car, causing the number 2 car, through magnetic attraction, to repeatedly strike the 20 car in the passenger side door. I'm still weighing those two possibilities before I make a decision on which way to think about this.
It's possible that Tony, in the Nascar hauler, was so enraged by Kurt's on track antics, that he resorted to violence. It's also possible that Kurt was so enraged by the realization that Tony had wrecked his car with super magnets, attempted to physically assault Tony's fist with his face. The jury's still out on that one too.
Over the last couple of years, Kurt has become a changed man, so the media tells us. On camera during interviews, he smiles like Ward Cleaver, and appears to be about as threatening as Mr. Rogers. Kurt is also always very presentable, clean shaven, hair neatly shorn, and he's even keeping his ears glued to the sides of his head these days.
Tony on the other hand, often appears with a stubbly beard, and lately, long hair. At times he appears to be unhappy during interviews, and has been known to give snide answers to such hard hitting questions such as "What do you expect to get out of the race today?" Indeed, Tony actually resembles a small football linebacker more than he does Mr. Rogers. Tsk Tsk.
Probation in Nascar is a very serious thing indeed, and I hope both of these drivers have learned their lesson. Having to stay after class and straighten the desks for six whole weeks is not a lesson either one of these fellows will soon forget.
I imagine we'll see no more tomfoolery out of Mr. Stewart and Mr. Busch again any time soon!
That's what I saw. There were reports that later, in the Nascar hauler, Tony took a swing at Kurt. Those reports remain unconfirmed.
To me, it appeared that Kurt, understandably upset about the damage caused by his contact with Tony and the subsequent spin, was attempting to damage Tony's car on pit road in retaliation. I might be wrong. Perhaps if Nascar had inspected Tony's car more closely, they would have discovered the super magnets that Tony's team has hidden in the passenger side door of the number 20 car, causing the number 2 car, through magnetic attraction, to repeatedly strike the 20 car in the passenger side door. I'm still weighing those two possibilities before I make a decision on which way to think about this.
It's possible that Tony, in the Nascar hauler, was so enraged by Kurt's on track antics, that he resorted to violence. It's also possible that Kurt was so enraged by the realization that Tony had wrecked his car with super magnets, attempted to physically assault Tony's fist with his face. The jury's still out on that one too.
Over the last couple of years, Kurt has become a changed man, so the media tells us. On camera during interviews, he smiles like Ward Cleaver, and appears to be about as threatening as Mr. Rogers. Kurt is also always very presentable, clean shaven, hair neatly shorn, and he's even keeping his ears glued to the sides of his head these days.
Tony on the other hand, often appears with a stubbly beard, and lately, long hair. At times he appears to be unhappy during interviews, and has been known to give snide answers to such hard hitting questions such as "What do you expect to get out of the race today?" Indeed, Tony actually resembles a small football linebacker more than he does Mr. Rogers. Tsk Tsk.
Probation in Nascar is a very serious thing indeed, and I hope both of these drivers have learned their lesson. Having to stay after class and straighten the desks for six whole weeks is not a lesson either one of these fellows will soon forget.
I imagine we'll see no more tomfoolery out of Mr. Stewart and Mr. Busch again any time soon!
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Full Circle
After months of hype and speculation, Dale Earnhardt Jr. fulfilled a promise on Saturday night. It was a promise he made to his team and to his fans, but more important, it was a promise he made to himself. Dale Jr. was back in Victory Lane!
It was a non-points event, but it was still a huge victory for the 88 team. After months of speculation that finally led to Dale Earnhardt Jr. leaving the team that was started by his father, and joining Rick Hendrick Motorsports, a racing team that many Earnhardt fans have always considered the 'Dark Force', Dale Jr. got back into Victory Lane for the first time in well over a year. Dale Jr. showed us the finesse that won his earlier victories on the tracks at Daytona and Talladega. As Tony Stewart said after the race, and I'm paraphrasing, Dale Jr. might be the best restrictor plate driver that's ever lived.
Many fans and reporters have been critical of Dale Jr.'s talent over the years. Is he only good on RP tracks like Daytona and Talladega? Jr.'s other wins include Phoenix, Bristol, Richmond, Chicago, Atlanta, and even the All Star race at Charlotte. He's won at what many consider a very difficult track in Dover. Yet people persist in questioning his talent.
I have a theory for this. Readers that are familiar with me know what my theory is, but I'll repeat it again. Jealousy. Pure jealousy. I read message boards of drivers who have not won 1/10 of the races that Dale Jr. has, and some of them have been driving much longer. They always blame the losses on equipment, but never on talent. Dale Jr. has driven with sub par equipment for the last several years, but has managed to claw out a few wins. Dale Jr. now has the best of all worlds now. He's got the best equipment, he's got the best people behind his efforts, and he's got a renewed drive to win races.
Dale Jr. is not alone in being criticized for lack of talent. Teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson have been criticized as having no talent as well, and their combined 6 Cup championships and 114 combined Cup victories are simply the result of cheating. Now that Dale Jr. has joined the team, I imagine that those claims will become even more prevalent.
As a fan of Dale Jr., I don't really care. My driver is back in Victory Lane, and let the haters hate all they want to. Last night, the haters were also the losers.
It was a non-points event, but it was still a huge victory for the 88 team. After months of speculation that finally led to Dale Earnhardt Jr. leaving the team that was started by his father, and joining Rick Hendrick Motorsports, a racing team that many Earnhardt fans have always considered the 'Dark Force', Dale Jr. got back into Victory Lane for the first time in well over a year. Dale Jr. showed us the finesse that won his earlier victories on the tracks at Daytona and Talladega. As Tony Stewart said after the race, and I'm paraphrasing, Dale Jr. might be the best restrictor plate driver that's ever lived.
Many fans and reporters have been critical of Dale Jr.'s talent over the years. Is he only good on RP tracks like Daytona and Talladega? Jr.'s other wins include Phoenix, Bristol, Richmond, Chicago, Atlanta, and even the All Star race at Charlotte. He's won at what many consider a very difficult track in Dover. Yet people persist in questioning his talent.
I have a theory for this. Readers that are familiar with me know what my theory is, but I'll repeat it again. Jealousy. Pure jealousy. I read message boards of drivers who have not won 1/10 of the races that Dale Jr. has, and some of them have been driving much longer. They always blame the losses on equipment, but never on talent. Dale Jr. has driven with sub par equipment for the last several years, but has managed to claw out a few wins. Dale Jr. now has the best of all worlds now. He's got the best equipment, he's got the best people behind his efforts, and he's got a renewed drive to win races.
Dale Jr. is not alone in being criticized for lack of talent. Teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson have been criticized as having no talent as well, and their combined 6 Cup championships and 114 combined Cup victories are simply the result of cheating. Now that Dale Jr. has joined the team, I imagine that those claims will become even more prevalent.
As a fan of Dale Jr., I don't really care. My driver is back in Victory Lane, and let the haters hate all they want to. Last night, the haters were also the losers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)