Link for Home Depot Racing News

I am now adding the link for

Home Depot Racing News

to the sidebar on this blog. It is the official racing news site of Tony Stewart's excellent sponser, and is updated before and after each race. There are also images from each race. Enjoy

I Really want to like Jeff Gordon, But I Can't Because...

I didn’t really intend for this blog to be a Tony Stewart Lovefest, but it does tend to look like one. Face it, the word “awesome” was just sitting around waiting for a guy like Smoke. There really are other drivers I like: Dale Jarrett, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, Mark Martin, Kevin Harvick, Elliot Sadler, Matt Kenseth, Bobby Labonte, and Jimmie Johnson, to name a few in the NASCAR Cup series. I can enjoy watching any of these drivers race and/or win.
Then I have this category of “Drivers I really want to like...but don’t.” I will delve into this list in detail, a little bit now and some more in the future, as the racing season progresses. Here is how it, and my thought process, works.

I really want to like: Jeff Gordon.
Gordon has got to be one of the best drivers in NASCAR Cup history. With a career record, at the time of this writing, of 73 Nextel Cup victories, and four NASCAR points championships, he ranks 7th in wins among all the drivers in the history of NASCAR. He definitely knows every aspect of driving on any type of track, and his car control is usually impeccable. He has an expert touch on the throttle, and, with his ability to place other cars exactly where he wants them, could be considered the Master of the “bump and run.” All drivers have something in their personality that underscores their drive to excel, and Jeff’s is his huge ego and sense of self-importance. He is articulate and eloquent in speech, he is flashy and aggressive, and the importance of taking care of the fans is not lost on him. To many race fans, Jeff Gordon is the epitome of what would be the Ideal Driver.

But I don’t like him because:
Plain and simply, he is Jeff Gordon. Mainly, it is the very ego which makes him successful that rubs me the wrong way. I love to watch him race, but I also enjoy watching him get beat. He is quick to retaliate when he feels wronged, and often he is quick to point the finger of blame for his own misfortune. He owns a vast knowledge of all aspects of racing, including dirty tricks. At Watkins Glen, in 2001, the year of his most recent points championship, he ran out of gas in one of the final turns of the final lap. Rather than pulling his car off of the track, and out of traffic, he parked his car squarely in the middle of the turn, effectively blocking other drivers from racing to the finish, and causing a multiple car accident. Way to keep that points lead, Jeffy.

Could I Ever Be a Fan?
NASCAR racing would not be the same for me if it were not for Jeff Gordon. I appreciate his talent, and I thought it was good of him to take at least part of the blame for his incident with Stewart in last week’s race at Daytona. But every time he does something that would cause me to start liking him, he says or does something that really rubs me the wrong way. I apologize to my friends who are Jeffy fans, but, after all these years, if I don’t like him by now, I never will.

The Return of the Bad Boy

Sometimes even your favorite driver can be a bonehead. I was reminded of that while I was watching the Daytona 500 last Sunday.
Tony Stewart had an excellent car for the race. He moved effortlessly from a 17th position start to take third place by lap 25. An incident on lap 27 is important to note for future reference, because Smoke later said this is what got him angry: Dale Earnhardt, Jr. took the lead from Matt Kenseth on the frontstretch with Stewart directly behind him. Coming out of turn two, Kenseth was racing beside Stewart, and Tony got loose. Stewart’s car almost went into the infield, but Tony executed a characteristically good save and got back in line in the 5th position. By lap 28, he had taken the lead.
On or about lap 47, Stewart’s car drifted to the outside, while Jeff Gordon, who’s car was tight and couldn’t turn went up in front of him. The commentators said that Stewart should have let up off the throttle, but I think he was trying to save the car from hitting the wall. Anyway, Stewart hit the back of Gordon’s car, and both cars hit the wall, bringing out the caution. Much to Jeff’s credit, he reported over the team radio that it was his car that got tight, and that the accident really wasn’t anybody’s fault. It was Gordon’s car which received the most damage, the damage being heavy enough to knock him out of contention for the win.
After repairs, the race restarted on lap 51, with Tony “Smoke” Stewart starting back in the 27th position. But Tony was a man with a mission, and he immediately began moving up in the field with a vengeance.
Meanwhile, by lap 59, Matt Kenseth had retaken the lead. His Ford Fusion was definitely the car to beat. But Stewart’s car was apparently affected very little by damage, and at this point he had already moved into 17th position, and was still rapidly moving up through the field.
A big, scary wreck of the sort that can be expected at a restricter plate race, occurred around lap 77, when Dale Jarrett’s car got into the back of Jeff Green’s #66 car. Green went hard into the infield, then even harder back onto the track and into the wall in front of traffic. One of the things that is wrong with restricter plate racing is that the cars are packed so close together that the accordian effect can not be avoided. Several good cars, including some of the crowd favorites were caught up in the wreck. Joe Nemecheck, Carl Edwards, JJ Yeley, and Kyle Petty, along with Green, were all essentially taken out of the race. The only consolation, if there is any, is that no-one was hurt, and that, if this was the “big one” bound to happen at Daytona, it was not nearly as big as it has been in past restricter plate races.
The race restarted on lap 85, with Matt Kenseth still in the lead. By the next lap, Kevin Harvick had taken the 1st position. The lead changed several times after that, with Kenseth again leading the pack by lap 90. By this time, Stewart had moved up into 7th.
By lap 104, Mark Martin, who was working as a drafting partner with Tony Stewart, took the lead with Stewart pushing him to the front.
It is here I will interject some personal notes: As a long time Tony Stewart fan, there have been more than a few of what I like to call “awww Tony moments.” Those are the times when my favorite driver lets his infamous temper take him over. He becomes a single minded fool, with the only thought in his mind being to “get back” at a driver who “done him wrong.” Retaliation becomes a much stronger motive to him than winning the race or getting a good finish. What was about to happen became, to me, not just an “awww Tony moment,” but an “awwwwwwwwwww (expletive) Tony, what the (expletive) are you thinking,” moment.
Cutting in front of Matt Kenseth, Smoke clipped the front right fender of Kenseth, sending him into the infield. Kenseth spun back across the track and into the outside retaining wall. Stewart was penalized, and in serving the penalty, ran over the jack and received another penalty.
In the post race interviews, Jeff Gordon said that he was as much at fault as Stewart was, in the lap 47 incident, and Stewart blamed it on the damp conditions. Okay, I’ll buy that. But, Stewart fan or not, I think it’s wrong in any race, for any driver to make an offensive move as blatent as the one he put on Kenseth.
On another personal note, after the 2009 season, when Smoke is expected to retire from full time NASCAR racing, Kenseth is destined to become my new favorite driver. This may seem ironic, but it isn’t anything new; Matt Kenseth has been one of my favorite drivers since he was still in the Busch series.
Well, I guess I’ll get over it. Kenseth said he won’t hold a grudge and I believe him. But now, I have to listen to people like the guy on FSN’s Around the Track, who is a habitual Tony basher, use this new fodder against my driver the entire season. No doubt, any little racing incident will cause Darrell Waltrip, Fox’s expert race analyst, to bloviate about the common denominator. And, when I log on to the Tony Stewart fan forum on NASCAR.com, I’ll have to wear my helmet and flak jacket in protection from the Tony bashers who show up there. Well, I don’t have to do any of that, but my love for racing, and for Tony, is such that I will.
On a much happier note, congratulations to Jimmie Johnson on his first Daytona 500 win. Congratulations to RCR’s rookie Clint Bowyer for his top ten win in his first Daytona 500 race, and to Elliot Sadler for his top 5 finish. Well done to Robby Gordon, who didn’t even make the 500 last year, for a top 20 finish, and to my favorite underdog, Kirk Shelmerdine, for a lead lap finish, after he had to get money from his fans to get tires.
In the words of Dale Jarrett, “that’s just racin,’” Next Sunday we get the first real race of 2006, in California, with no restricter plates, and the cars can run wide open on the straightaways, and drivers’ skills come into play negotiating the turns and the traffic. Hopefully, we can all move on, without grudges and without feuds, and enjoy the rest of the season.

Backing Into Leadership

Tony Stewart doesn't want to be the spokesman. He has said that several times in several different interviews. But somehow, whether he wants it or not, he is the spokesman for the drivers of NASCAR.

"It shouldn't matter how many points you have or how many races you've won," he told the Trackside Live crew on Wednesday, "Any driver who has a problem with a safety issue, or anything, should be able to go to NASCAR and discuss it."

Ironically, it is exactly that kind of statement that makes Stewart the leader. He has developed a reputation of saying what he means and meaning what he says. On top of that, he has the habit of taking younger drivers under his wing, just as AJ Foyt took the young Stewart under his wing. David Stremme, Jason Leffler, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, JJ Yeley, and Kasey Kahne have all, at one time or another, referred to Stewart as their mentor.

Curtis Turner didn't want the job when he was selected by the other drivers to bring up the idea of a drivers' union. He was picked because of his popularity among the fans, and his gregarious personality. Big Bill France subsequently banned Turner fromostensiblytensively for life, but, because of fan recognition, he was reinstated after a nearly two year suspension. Richard Petty was an obvious choice. Virtually the Father of NASCAR driver marketing, and proclaimed the "King" of NASCAR for his driving abilities, Petty was the one who presented to NASCAR the drivers' concerns about the safety of the new track at Talledega. He led the boycott of Talledega, which basically amounted to very little, as France replaced the boycotting drivers with drivers from the Sportsman (now Busch) and GT series. It wasn't until Dale Earnhardt was given the duties of spokesman that NASCAR began listening to and acting on what the drivers had to say. After Earnhardt's death, many drivers and fans looked to Jeff Gordon as the NASCAR spokesman. Gordon is perenually a fan favorite, and carries the burden of four NASCAR Cup championships, and is a logical choice for spokesman. Indeed, after the tragedy of the Hendrick plane crash in 2004, Gordon indeed stepped up and exhibited exceptional leadership ability. However, on the same Trackside program as the one Stewart appeared, Gordon said that he would rather concentrate on being leader of his team, than be the spokesman for all of the drivers. He said that his schedule was too full for him to carry drivers' concerns to NASCAR. Gordon acknowledged that Earnhardt was a great spokesman for the drivers, but added that "no-one can do what Earnhardt did."
It seems that Tony Stewart can, even though he doesn't believe it necessary. Dale Jarrett, Mark Martin, and many other drivers have, for years, expressed concern over the practice of slam drafting, and bump drafting in the corners. It seems that it was only after Stewart voiced his concern on the air, in his post-race interview, and then went to NASCAR to discuss the matter, that NASCAR decided to address those concerns.
Earnhardt was another driver whom Stewart considered a mentor, and he seems to be following in his footsteps. Tony's personality, his honesty, his humility, and his ability and drive to articulate his feelings have put him in a position he doesn't want to be. It seems to matter to NASCAR that he has won two NASCAR championships, plus the prestigious Speed Driver Of The Year Award, and that his fan base is rapidly growing. So, reluctantly, accidently, and circumstantually, Stewart has backed into the role of NASCAR spokesman.

Clever Crew Chief Knaus Caught (Again)

The legendary Smoky Yunick set the bar for all crew chiefs when he said, “It is NASCAR’s job to make and enforce the rules; it is the crew chief’s job to find a way around the rules.”
Chad Knaus, Crew Chief for Jimmie Johnson’s #48 Hendrick Motorsport/ Lowe’s racing team, is arguably the best of the current crew chiefs at what could be called “creative interpretation” of the rules. Last year, Knaus’ endeavors to find more speed for his driver resulted in points deductions and fines. However, you can’t blame the guy for trying.
One thing he did get away with, last fall, was using a set of shock aborbers which lowered the rear end of the car when the car got up to speed, changing the aerodynamic profile of the car only when it was moving. The pre race technical inspections only make sure the car fits the template when it is standing still. NASCAR inspecters found the strange shock absorbers during the post race inspection. They found that, although the shocks were unconventional, they were in line with the rules. So there was no penalty, but from that time forward, those shocks became illegal.
What got Chad banned from Daytona participation this week was another very clever trick. He altered the track bar adjustment position so that it would lower the height of the rear window only when the car got up to speed. NASCAR officials wouldn’t have caught it with the pre race template check. However, during Jimmie Johnson’s qualifying run, last Sunday, someone noticed tire smoke caused by fender rub. The car was inspected after the qualifying run, the infraction discovered, and action was taken. Knaus was barred from the remainder of the Daytona events, and Johnson has to start at the back of the pack in his qualifying race on Thursday. Starting in the rear at a restrictor plate race isn’t all that bad, so if you’re going to try something, why not try it at Daytona?
Personally, I feel that innovation makes better racing. If someone finds a way to make his car faster, the other teams will eventually find a way to catch up. But, just as the crew chief has to find a way to make the car faster, NASCAR has to find a way to keep things from getting out of hand. It is only another aspect of competition.

Notes:
I have to throw in a plug here for my friend and fellow NASCAR blogger Clance’. In her blog, The Church of the Great Oval, she has a commentary on the Bud Shootout, titled “Shootout at the OK Corral,” or something similar. I urge you to check it out. It is probably the most unique, interesting, and accurate race review I have seen. And, by the way, it’s all done in dialogue.

This may be pretentious, but I wonder if Hunter, Darby, and/ or Helton are reading my blog. Last week, I made a big deal about Carl Edwards “always being happy,” and subsequently, NASCAR did things to show that Edwards was not, in fact, always happy. Then, yesterday, I wrote that NASCAR could warn the drivers that they would get the black flag for slam drafting in the corners, and sure enough, NASCAR announced this morning that they would do just that. It is certainly mere coincidence, but I can’t help but to be a little paranoid. Do I really have to be more careful about what I write?

Stewart Steps Up

Tony Stewart seems to be taking his role as reigning NASCAR Nextel Cup Champion seriously. Voicing a very real concern about “bump drafting” getting out of hand, he declared “somebody is going to get killed.”
In making such a statement, he was exercising his ablility as Champion to act as a spokesperson for the NASCAR drivers, and utilizing his own personality trait of “telling it like it is.” It used to be that Tony would get out of his car after the race, and confront a driver he thought screwed up on the track, even fighting with him, if he felt he needed that to get his point across. That is the way race car drivers at all levels have always handled differences. But nowadays, with all the media attention on such incidents, NASCAR and the all-important sponsers frown on that kind of behavior, imposing heavy fines and sanctions.He knows, now, that as the reigning Champion, he can get his complaints out in the open by speaking to the media.

And his point is valid. Bump drafting is a natural technique in restrictor plate races, it is a way for two cars to help each other go faster; drivers have been doing it for a long time, and there is no harm in it if it is done on a straightaway. However, there are three or four drivers who don’t quite get it, and have modified bump drafting into something called “slam” drafting. Slam drafting is hitting the car in front with such force that it gets the car out of line, usually spinning it into the wall or into other cars. Often, the slam is commited on a turn, or on entering or exiting the turn, and this is a sure way to cause a wreck. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., speaking on the same subject, called bump drafting a “necessary evil.”
“If you don’t do it, there is no race. You just have a line of cars going around the track nose to tail.
“But,” he continued, “when you get turned coming off of a corner, the guys behind you don’t know you got turned, and that causes some real problems.”
There are actually only three or four drivers who are consistently guilty of slam drafting. I won’t mention any names, but two of them are brothers with the same last name as a popular brand of beer, who admit they don’t much care for restrictor plate racing. Another, who’s name rhymes with “Brian Vickers (oops),” seems to have to learn anew every season that he isn’t the only car on the track. Other drivers may take the practice up out of retaliation or just plain frustration. My point is, the the problem with slam drafting could be remedied simply by NASCAR being a little more liberal with using the black flag for rough driving. Not as liberal as they were during the Bud Shootout with Carl Edwards (who showed he isn’t always happy, after all), when he was penalized for going below the yellow line to avoid a wreck, but to let the drivers know that slam drafting, particularly in the corners, will not be tolerated.
While I’m still on the subject of Tony Stewart, here are some gems from his Speed Weeks Media Day press conference, courtesy of Motorsport.com network:


Q. Last year you changed a lot of things. You're
working with the team in a different way, getting
along better. Do you feel like you're a different
person now than you were before? Do you think that
has changed you?
TONY STEWART: Didn't we talk about that all year
last year?
Q. Yeah, but we're going into another year.
TONY STEWART: You think as soon as the calendar
year changed, all of a sudden the moon and the
stars were going to go a different direction?
Q. No.
TONY STEWART: Okay, there's your answer.

Q. Greg Biffle said during the media tour
qualifying at Daytona is the most boring thing we
do as race drivers. He said (inaudible) cell phone
for 40 minutes before he goes out. Do you view
qualifying as boring?
TONY STEWART: No, testing is boring -- the most
boring thing we do as a driver at Daytona. Yeah, I
mean, we spend -- it's kind of funny because we
spend two hours a weekend worrying about
qualifying and we spend two 45-minute sessions
working on race stuff, we spend two laps in the
qualifying, we spend three and a half hours in the
race. I think we spend way too much time and
effort for two laps of qualifying for sure.
Q. What do you do here sitting on pit road waiting
to go out to qualify? Talk on the cell phone?
TONY STEWART: I haven't figured out how to get a
cell phone inside my helmet yet.
Q. He said he keeps his helmet off.
TONY STEWART: The bad thing is NASCAR makes you
put your helmet on before you go on pit lane so we
can't do that any more. I normally am looking
through the net to see -- hopefully it's a hot day
and there are girls in tank tops out there. You
guys know me. You ask me an honest question, I'm
giving you an honest answer. I'm a single guy, I'm
looking for hot chicks on pit lane. That's all I'm
doing. If I can't see them, normally there's a
crew guy saying, you need to look at 11:00 to your
left, check it out.
Q. Far more interesting than talking on your cell
phone.
TONY STEWART: Yeah, who would you talk to? I don't
even like cell phones. I'm not the best at talking
on cell phones anyway. It's not a national pastime
of mine like it is most people.

Q. What's your opinion of restrictor plate racing?
How do you feel like you evolved as a driver over
the years?
TONY STEWART: Still a checkers player.
Q. You won, so.
TONY STEWART: Yeah, but it doesn't mean that you
got that confidence every week that you can go out
and win every week here. It's a chess match and
I'm a checkers player. Hopefully I make the right
move at the right time.

And this is what Smoke said at the end of the conference:

The rest of my day is going to suck. This is what
I was looking forward to because this is where you
have the most fun because everything else sucks.
You can put that on the record, too.

That’s actually a pretty nice thing to say, coming from a guy who supposedly doesn’t like the media.

A Correction

Sometimes, when one is trying to write about the action in a race, the chain of events gets confused. This blogger needs to learn to take notes during the race, rather than trying to remember everything after the fact. Therefore, I must post a correction here. In my previous post, I reported that Tony Stewart helped Denny Hamlin take the lead in the Bud Shootout after the mandatory green-flag pit stop, when in fact, the FedEx team got the car out of the pits ahead of everyone else. I stand corrected.