We know cutbacks are coming and they let NASCAR know in a series of meetings that were held in Indianapolis and it's a good guess that NASCAR now understands that Detroit's involvement may not be an automatic 'gimme' in the future for anyone involved.
Over on the web magazine Autoextremist, they've got a pretty interesting article about some of the presures Detriot is going to start squeezing NASCAR with.
Here's a list of some of the issues put on the table for NASCAR to evaluate:
- Pony cars on the track in Cup, not Nationwide, by 2010 to help sales in the showroom, like it used to be.
- Get fuel injection under the hood, rather than NASCAR's head under the tech sand.
- They want to skip the unleaded fuel and go to E85.
- They want to see more road courses in the schedule with specialized road course cars.
- Cut the schedule back to save development money.
- With the decline in truck sales, the manufacturers wouldn't mind if NASCAR's truck series went bye-bye.
- They want the Nationwide Series to be strictly a driver development series.
According to this article, they're saying toss out the CoT, catch up to technology, use alternative fuels, add road courses when they're already questioned, cut back on some tracks double visits, dump the truck series and restrict the Cup drivers to the Cup series.
I don't have any real problem with items 2 & 3. Cutting back the schedule has also been something I've wondered about. This could allow more down time, or sponsor commitment time for everyone involved.
But the other items seem rather drastic or dramatic. Have we ever known NASCAR to let anyone else call the shots with THEIR sport? Or watched as a track entity sat quietly by while it's dates get threatened? Or toss out all the work put into the CoT by NASCAR development while reintroducing the weekly banter about fender shapes and wing angles. And to think about removing the Truck series is nuts, even if it's rumored that one of the manufacturers is done with it. (Per the article.) That's been some of the best racing out there.
This is a drastic list at best and I don't know how it's going to pan out.
The article is a great read and I urge you to go check it out for all the details I've left out.
Source: AutoExtremist
I'm all for money saving with gas, and such but not on shortening the number of races. I say take away some double tracks, go places like Iowa and heck an extra road course wouldn't hurt. As for nationwide being development only that's a garbage idea, sponsors don't want new guys in the sport they want to get their money worth with a proven professional. And getting rid of the trucks???? That's the only racing I've seen recently that I can honestly say NASCAR hasn't tried to ruin. They should stick to making the cars, and let the people who know the sport control how to manage it.
ReplyDeleteTicket prices could drop a little. (but of course that's not one of the mentioned things) Does Detroit even have manufactures anymore? Maybe we should outsource NASCAR too.
Hey Charles, good points, all of them.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be a death knell to pull cup drivers out of the nationwide series... I think they're allowed in to bring the fans to the nationwide events. The only way the nationwide would have any measurable success without cup drivers would be when highly anticipated new blood showed up in the series.
If the truck series were to go away, that would be a shame.
And yes, it would be nice if tickets prices got more affordable, not to mention quit making them non-refundable.
Thanks for visiting.