The Boredom of Bristol

An opinion by Bruce Simmons

I've read a lot of commentary that people did not like the Bristol race. From what I can gather, folks are looking for the angry fender rubbing and chrome bumper applications that result in the feuds that erupt later. (OK, so those can be fun when a driver tosses his helmet at a car, and then gets hit by it when it bounces back.)

Yes, the race seemed, boring, if that was what you were looking for.

On the other hand, how often have you seen 3 wide happen for extended (OK, more than a corner or two) periods of time at Bristol? I found that interesting.

I even saw 4 wide at moments through the weekend, and through it all, Carl Edwards worked the wheel to win the first reconfigured track surface race at Britsol Motor Speedway.

You know what I didn't miss? So many yellow flags that the race extended to a 4 or 5 hour television program nap!

Combining the 3 wide, the oft side by side racing, and the lack of yellows (David Ragan being 1/3 of the yellows!) is what contributes my positive perspective of the race.

YET, the COT and the harder tires could be components to what made the race so bland for most.

One other issue I noted: During one of the spins in the race, I watched one of these COT's get so out of hand, that it was more the 45 degrees sideways headed out of the turn, and it snapped back to facing the right direction without much loss of momentum as if it was on a rail.

My perspective is that with the COT that 'pushes' more than the older design, what I saw did not surprise me, though that could have been driver skill also, BUT ESPN did not even make mention of the deed, and the challenging camera angle prevented me from ID'ing who it was.

We also saw how hard it is to move someone, as evidenced from Martinsville, when Jeff Gordon collapsed his front end from hitting Jimmy Johnson so hard in the back end in the corners to move him, and not succeeding. If you remember, Jeff said after the race something to the effect that these cars (COT's) are a lot harder to move than I thought.

I think, as Goodyear does get some tire tests under it's belt, and now that the drivers have a better feel for this new Bristol configuration, we might see more drivers meeting the threshold of sane racing to get past their opponents next time we visit this track.

If you think about it, this was a short track race as they tend to pan out, if they didn't have yellow flags. The better teams worked their way through the field, got out there, and stayed out there., unless they "blowed up" like Denny Hamlin did when he got himself from 43rd to 7th before the flame out.

So from what I see, the feuds are what you want to see and yes, this could become a mini-Michigan or California, but on the bright side, you can see the cars at every point on the track!!

The funny part is that the Busch and Truck races were better! Go figure.
Here's another pespective on the issue over at: foxsports.com

Take care and thanks for reading.