We refused to let go of the drama that was the Coca Cola 600 as we analyze the decisions of Tony Stewart and Greg Zipadelli on pit road late in the race. We will also examine the struggles of Dale Earnhardt Jr. to get into Victory Lane, and we also tackle NASCAR’s “great debate” … otherwise known as “Give and Take”.
So, sit back and buckle up tight. Three questions, three voices, and three different answers in Loose in Turn Three!
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The question I ask this week has been raised in my mind because of a few incidents of late, the latest being Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch where Busch got his panties in a bunch because Jeff Gordon kept racing him hard for position in the Coca-Cola 600. My question is whether drivers should get over the idea of people moving over for them because they think they're faster than they are:(Image from SceneDaily.com)
Bruce: For some reason, I got the idea that racing meant racing.. not an endurance race with etiquette. In the classic car races where someone is driving a 50 year old car, sure, move over buddy, these cars are hard to repair, but in this level of racing in NASCAR, I don't get where some drivers expect to be given their spot and left to keep it. If you're slower than the cars coming up on ya, sure move over, it's stupid to hold them at bay but if you're competitive and all you're doing is stalking the guy in front of you waiting for their tires to wear down, I'm all for it. Basketball would be boring if the attitude was "Oh, excuse me, you have the ball, let me move aside for you..." NOT! Race 'em and make them earn it and make them work to keep their spot. Enough whining about it people, let's race.
Charlie: There is a difference between racing for position, blocking a pass attempt and clogging up the race track. Some drivers are more pissy about the being raced - or blocked - than others. My problem with the phenomenum in NASCAR is that this "unwritten set of laws" that usually be-fowl the new drivers is , well, unwritten. How exactly are you as a driver - whether the passer or passee - to know whose set of rules your are racing under? I say, get over it.
TZ: I think you guys are setting yourselves up for a Catch 22 situation here. Bruce, to your point, in the NBA, every basket of every second counts ... in NASCAR it doesn't matter where you're running at the halfway point, only at the end of the race. And, Charlie, to your comment about this being a phenom with the newer generation of drivers, to my recollection, I believe it was Mark Martin that laid the foundation for the whole "give and take" rule, and then Tony Stewart sort of enforced it from there on out. The fact of the matter is that it just boils down to smart racing. These are long races, and it makes no sense to have to use up everything under the hood for every position on the track on every lap, because if you do, there's not going to be anything left at the end of 500 - or, even 600 miles.
Tim Zaegel, DoYouNASCAR?:
Should the no. 20 team have called for two right-side tires on Tony Stewart's next-to-last stop at the Coca Cola 600?
Charlie Turner, On Pit Row:
Why Can’t Junior Finish?
Everybody says they want to be like Mark Martin, but when it comes down to going for the win, nobody can be like Mark Martin. As Martin has shown, "Give and Take" goes both ways. Even Martin will side-bump you if you get in his way.
ReplyDeleteRevJim: Are you referring more to his earlier years? I haven't seen too much aggression from him of late.
ReplyDeleteAggression isn't always blatant, and Martin's aggression is of the more subtle type. When somebody does spin as a result, he apologizes very well, but that doesn't mean he wasn't trying to get by for the win. How many times did he and Harvick bang doors on the way to the finish line at Daytona in 2007? And what about Brad Keselowski, who could have had his first win last year, but was spun by Martin in the closing laps? Mark was sorry he crashed, he was just trying to hold his line and maybe get him loose.
ReplyDeleteHe's aggressive in his own way, and is a master at it.
I'd like to add, also, that I find it very interesting that the "Give and Take" debate has suddenly turned into a Nationwide vs. Sprint Cup Series war.
ReplyDeleteGee, I wonder who will win that one.