NASCAR news

[LizzyJackson-Davenport]

This is the crazy finnish they're talking about. My opinion, don't race the No. 3 car at Dayton. It happened shortly after 3 in the morning on the east coast.

 

[HossC]

If I may hijack this thread for a moment, I've just heard the sad news that Formula 1 driver Jules Bianchi has died. The 25-year-old Frenchman had been in a coma since a crash at the Japanese Grand Prix nine months ago. BBC F1 commentator and former team owner Eddie Jordan spoke this morning of how Jules had been on Ferrari's young driver program, and how he was destined for great things. During last year's rain-hit Japanese Grand Prix, Jules' car left the track and hit a recovery vehicle that was picking up the crashed car of Adrian Sutil.

 

His family said: "Jules fought right to the very end, as he always did, but today his battle came to an end."

 

This is the first death of a Formula 1 driver resulting from injuries sustained in a race since Ayrton Senna in 1991. Safety car procedures were changed by the next race, so hopefully this kind of accident will never happen again.

 

More info here.

[HossC]

Sadly, I have to hijack this thread once more. When I checked the news this morning, I saw that British IndyCar driver Justin Wilson had succumbed to head injuries suffered at Pocono Raceway on Sunday. Wilson had been in a coma since hitting debris from a car driven by Sage Karam. He is survived by his wife, Julia, and two daughters, aged seven and five. More info can be found on indycar.com.
 
RIP. Justin Boyd Wilson (31 July 1978 – 24 August 2015)

[Spike]

That was a tough moment to watch. I knew it wasn't good when all the guys swarmed Justin's car after Sage got out of his.

 

The aerokits were good idea to differentiate the cars from Honda & Chevy but man what a mess they cause when parts break off. I'd be happy if they just went back to the same aerokit for all the cars. And if they don't add a canopy for next season they at least should add a high windscreen to divert debris away from drivers heads.

[Roth Potter]

Definitely a black day for motorsport.

 

Tbh I don't see why Indycar should race on Ovals bar the Indy 500. I enjoyed Champ Car the most when it didn't have any ovals on the calendar. When I think ovals I think NASCAR. I only watch the Indycar road and street courses.

[Garrett Duke]

Well y'all, remember me? LOL. Last I tried signing in, I either got the wrong password or it didn't let me in...and well just gave up after that. Life is busy. I do still watch the races, but unlike last year, normally just have my tablet instead of my computer out to write the write ups. I apologize for disappearing on you. But you seemed to do great with out me, so I guess it doesn't matter much.

 

For better newsworthy news...Tony Stewart made it official yesterday. He is retiring after next year and Clint Bowyer will be taking his seat in the 14 car. After all Tony  has gone through in the past few years, it is kind of expected. Though still sad.

 

We are at Dover this weekend...it will be Jimmie Johnson's 500th NASCAR race. And they will start eliminating drivers after the race from the Chase...four to be exact.

 

So hard to believe we are at this point of the season. We are in the Chase and have eight races (counting Dover) til we find out who will be the 2015 Champion. More depressing, it also marks eight more races left to Jeff Gordon's career. I am appreciative of having the chance to watch him race...even if just on TV...and to be a big fan of his. But hate the fact that he is getting ready to walk away from the 24 car...but am also glad that he will be on FOX next season. NASCAR will not be the same with out him. For the sport. Or for me, the fan. I have heard a lot of Gordon fans say that when he is done, they are done with NASCAR. That probably would have been me several years ago when Gordon was my main driver. He is and always will be my all time favorite driver...but now I also follow the rest of the Hendrick drivers. Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are my two main favorite drivers...I get asked all the time who I will root for when Gordon calls it quits. Well my answer is always...Jimmie Johnson.

 

Well had to throw in my hello and to spread word about Tony Stewart...

[RogerDuke]

Big news in the world of NASCAR. Roger Duke finally won Garrett's fantasy NASCAR contest for the first time! I'm surprised this hasn't been on ESPN.

[Garrett Duke]

Big news in the world of NASCAR. Roger Duke finally won Garrett's fantasy NASCAR contest for the first time! I'm surprised this hasn't been on ESPN.

Congrats Roger...thought you would be happy about that. I would have done better, but I seemed to curse the drivers I picked and they end up wrecking out or having some sort of problems throughout the race. I am sure they all cringed every time I picked them to do good. Congrats Roger...you deserved it.

 

Well the 2015 season has ended this past weekend and I for one am an emotional wreck about it. One: it was Jeff Gordon's very last race of his career. He is now retired. Though he will be in the Fox booth next season with Darrell Waltrip. And two: I hate NASCAR's off season...LOL.

 

Long season short...after missing eleven races due to a horrendous accident in the Xfinity Series race at Daytona last February, Kyle Busch over come all that when NASCAR gave him a waiver to get into the Chase...as long as he was in the top thirty in points and a win. He strung along several wins to make it into the Chase...and he held on despite several shaky races by the 18 team...to win the championship. KYLE BUSCH IS THE 2015 NASCAR SPRINT CUP CHAMPION!!  I know he is getting criticized for not being a true champion due to the eleven missed races, but if you asked me, NASCAR owed Kyle that waiver they gave him. After all, if that track had a safety barrier around the whole track, he probably wouldn't have missed those races.

 

Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, and Martin Truex Jr. are the top four driver in points.

 

I guess it goes without saying that I was really pulling and hoping for Gordon to win his fifth championship...to be celebrating with him - well from my space in this world...LOL. But third place is still something to be proud about. He had the best average finish in the Chase of all the Chase drivers...he had a great Chase with his one and last win coming at Martinsville. So hard to believe that Jeff Gordon is done. Finished. That there is now a new driver that will be driving the 24 car...Chase Elliot. Don't get me wrong, I do like Chase. I have followed him before his Xfinity Series start last year...after all he was tagged to be Gordon's replacement. But I am not ready to watch Gordon leave. Then again, I'll never be ready to see my hero walk away from the sport he helped me to love and follow the past thirteen years or so. Especially not ready to see someone else take over the 24 car...even if it was Gordon's idea for Elliot to take the 24 after him. Yeah, it is great to see the 24 continue it's legacy, but it is hard for me to see it being taken over by anyone. Just so you all know...I will always love Jeff Gordon. Look up to him. Respect him. Jeff Gordon helped change NASCAR, help NASCAR grow. Helped shape NASCAR. He has had a great career, one to be proud of. Not only does he have a great career to be proud about, but most importantly he is a great person and has done so much to help with children cancer. He even has his own children's hospital. He does a lot to help those children and give them some hope they all deserve. I am sure he will continue to do so and maybe more so now that he is retired.

 

Last week I was an nervous wreck about this last race...thinking of all that could go wrong for his last race. I wanted it to be perfect for him. Well...I missed the race...but it sounds like it was less than perfect as he had a tire go down. He went in for a vibration and they worked on what they thought was wrong...only to find out it was a tire. So they got that fixed. So perhaps he didn't get the win I was hoping for and didn't win the championship, but he came home sixth on his last week, third for the overall season. Now I am sad to see him go, to say his career is over, but happy for him. He deserves to walk away when he is ready, and he is ready. I am just glad and thankful that he will be in the booth next year...even more so that it is with FOX and Darrell Waltrip. I love it when the races are on FOX and I love DW...so I will still get to see Jeff Gordon. Or more likely than not, to hear him.

 

I think the number one question that I have been asked since he announced his retirement is, who will you follow next year? And the answer is an easy one...JIMMIE JOHNSON. Jimmie has been my second favorite driver for a long while now...because of Jeff Gordon. Jeff Gordon spotted his talent. Talked Hendrick into hiring Jimmie to race for him...which in turn, Rick Hendrick told Gordon to put his money where his mouth is. . .so Jeff Gordon is car owner of Jimmie Johnson. I see a lot of similarities between the two. If I didn't have Jimmie Johnson to turn to to follow next season, I don't know if I could get excited about NASCAR. Or as excited as I am. Especially after how frustrating this Chase is for me or NASCAR punishment policy. (I agree with what Kyle Busch said a couple of weeks ago...it all depends on the name above the driver's door on whether or not they will cast out punishment. Been like that for some time now and it is beyond frustrating for  me.)

 

With all that said, I will keep an eye on Chase Elliot and hope he will do great in the Sprint Cup Series as well.

[Spike]

Just watched Carl Edwards Retirement Press Conference. It was sort of like he was still trying to talk himself into retiring. I bet Dale Earnhardt Jr's concussion last year weighed heavily on him to make this decision.

[RogerDuke]

I wouldn't be surprised if he comes back.

[Garrett Duke]

Well y'all..I am out of hibernation. For now at least. Thanks to Roger. Life is just busy with two jobs and two dogs . . . and well life.  

I am beyond devastated to see Carl Edwards retire...Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart was predictable (whether I liked it or not...) but Edwards? Edwards is only 37 years old...and him and Jimmie Johnson are probably the most fit out of all the other drivers on the track. I was kinda predicting Dale Jr to be the next one to retire after this concussion like symptons he had. Reportedly his fifth concussion. (Trust me, I love Dale Jr...so am glad to see him hang around, but he also has to look out for himself and his health.) But Carl Edwards? Not at all. 

As for me, Carl Edwards was always my favorite driver outside of the Hendrick camp. He is always positive, has a smile on his face...and who doesn't like his backflips? So yeah...I am bummed. First Gordon, then Stewart...and now Edwards.  I am just glad that Jimmie Johnson is hanging around...I would be beyond devastated if he was the one to retire - especially with no warning. So I guess it could be worse and for that I am thankful. 

Well if y'all forgot how much I love NASCAR, let me tell you...I am BEYOND ready for Daytona. Six more Sundays...

[Spike]

Well Garrett if the rumors are true Nascar fans are in for a shock this season. Apparently Brian France hasn't instituted enough gimmicks and the latest rumor is races will now be segmented. It's unknown if it will be like Allstar format with 3 different lap segments or if it will be 100laps/miles or if like in the Truck series it will be a Caution Clock sort of rule. Me personally I don't care about Nascar anymore, sure I'll watch the Daytona 500, Talladega races, Darlington Races and the Road course races but for the rest of the races I'll just catch the Monday morning short youtube video recaps. Not gonna waste anymore Sundays on this Circus.

[RogerDuke]

Great to see you back in Hazzard County Garrett. Maybe we can get more NASCAR  race reviews from you this year. Since you're pretty busy they don't have to be as long as before. A quick  paragraph or two is better than nothing.

Daytona will be here before you know it Garrett. I'm now a Chase Elliott fan.

Edited January 20, 2017 by RogerDuke

[Garrett Duke]

Spike -Where did you hear that at? I haven't heard about it being switched like that. That format works for the All Star Race because it's a different race. It's not a points race...and it's only for one race. I really hope that that rumor is wrong. Brian France has done enough to ruin NASCAR with this horrible Chase format (that's my opinion...) and then to add onto it. Personally, I don't blame the older drivers for dropping out like they seem to. To me with this format now, they seem like they are just asking for drama that doesn't need to be there and focusing more on the drama than on the racing...my opinion once again. Yeah...I really hope that rumor is blown a way real quick like.

Thanks Roger. Have missed this place and would love to do a review for NASCAR. Sadly with events that happened last year, I didn't get to watch a lot of the races, but am hoping to watch more this year. I need to support my driver...ol' seven time!  I like Chase Elliot and I think he has a lot of talent and I can see him winning a race or two this season. It's coming. But I am still having a hard time having him drive the 24 car. 24 will always be Jeff Gordon to me. Always. 

[HossC]

I can't see anything in the 2017 rule changes about the races being segmented. Other than the title sponsor, the following changes are listed on Wikipedia:

 

There have been a few changes during the off-season.

• In a few races, teams will have less sets of tires then usual. The following races will have less sets of tires: Daytona (500), Phoenix, Fontana, and Martinsville (Spring) and Bristol, Kansas, Kentucky, Chicagoland, and Homestead (Fall). The following races will have extra sets of tires: Talladega, Sonoma, Daytona (July), New Hampshire, Watkins Glen, and Darlington.
• Now teams must start the race with the sames tires as they used in qualifying. If a team is caught changing tires before the races, they will suffer a penalty.
• The rear spoiler will be reduced from 3.5 inches to 2.5 inches for all races except Daytona and Talladega. The rear spoilers will remain 3.5 inches for the restrictor plate races.
• For restrictor plate races, the restrictor plates will be reduced by 1/64 of an inch to 7/8 of an inch.
• Due to the crash that Austin Dillon suffered in the 2015 Coke Zero 400 and due to the airborne crashes in the 2016 GEICO 500, a roof hatch escape has been made mandatory for races at Daytona and Talladega.

 

A couple of sites suggest that the Cup series should introduce the caution clock which started in last year's Truck series. I don't watch the Truck series, but I found a lot of negative comments about it. The beyondtheflag.com website seemed more positive:

 

"Not only will  the new caution clock  finally do away with run away leaders, something that has plagued the sport for decades now, it will also bunch up the 36-truck field to keep things interesting and make sure that each race ends with a 25-30  lap shootout to the finish."

 

To me, if one driver is faster than the others, they should win. If that makes for boring racing, then the cars should be made more even. Bunching up the field at regular intervals is just too artificial for me. If people only want "a 25-30 lap shootout to the finish", just makes the races 25-30 laps long and save everyone a load of tires and gas!

[Spike]

We'll find out tonight if the rumors are true there's going to be a big press conference @ 6pm eastern which you can watch live here http://www.nascar.com/presspass.html. 

[Spike]

Wow I can't believe they just screwed Nascar up that bad. 

Races will be broken down into 3 segments with caution periods in between to give media enough time to interview segment winners. Redid the whole points system again. Top ten in points will receive points for first 2 segments and the 3rd segment will be awarded points like a regular race 40pts +5 bonus pts for the winner - 1 point for 40th place. 

[RogerDuke]

So much for keeping things simple.

[HossC]

The new points system certainly seems overly complicated. As for the three segments approach, a couple of comments I read suggested they just have three shorter races (e.g. 100 miles, 100 miles and 250 miles) over the weekend like they apparently do in V8 racing in Australia.

 

They do something similar with the BTCC (British Touring Car Championship), having three races (admittedly nowhere near as long) on a Sunday with support races in between. The grid for the first race is set by a qualifying session, the grid for second race is determined by the order they finished in the first, and the starting order for the last race is determined by the finishing order of the second race, but with the top six to ten cars reversed (the number is set by a random draw). The same points are awarded for each race. Obviously there are considerable differences, with no in-race tire changes or re-fuelling, and handicaps by way of weight penalties applied depending on finishing position in the previous race. It normally results is tightly matched racing.

 

We'll have to wait a couple of months to find out if the redesigned cars with wider tires make any difference to Formula 1 this year. Now that Bernie Ecclestone has gone after nearly 40 years in charge, things may be about to change. The new American owners want to engage better with social media, and have revived plans for a race in New York.

[RogerDuke]

All that really matters is that I beat Garrett in fantasy NASCAR this year. I hope the big wigs who run NASCAR slant the rules to help me out a little bit this year since I had a rough 2016. 

[Spike]

From Jayski.com:

Quote

New race flag for segments? Here's how [the race segments] will work at Phoenix Raceway's March 19 Camping World 500:
When approximately 25 percent of the 312 laps are complete (a little more than 75 laps; teams will be told in advance the exact distance), stage one will end. NASCAR is likely to signal this with a newly designed - and as yet not revealed - flag color and design. Points ranging from 10 to 1 will be awarded to the top drivers. They then can pit. Laps between stages will count toward the total distance. Restart positions will be based on the order drivers leave the pits. The process will be repeated halfway through the race, about lap 150. The third stage will go to the finish with overall race points scored. The green-white-checker "overtime" rule still applies.(Arizona Republic)(2-3-2017)

 

[RogerDuke]

One of the smartest most sophisticated rednecks in history.....Ralph Waldo Emerson once said "To be simple is to be great". 

Rednecks like simplicity. They ain't gonna go for this new system. 

Edited February 4, 2017 by RogerDuke

[Spike]

As the old saying goes Keep It Simple, Stupid

This is either going to be a big win or a huge fumble that could possibly wipeout Nascar. I think ARCA, Indycar, IMSA and other forms of American motorposrts on tv will be gaining some big ratings this year. 

 

[RogerDuke]

I agree Spike. It's a gamble.

I wonder how long it will be before some form of racing introduces a driverless car. I don't think it will catch on  (unless maybe every car in the race is driverless) but I do think folks would want to see it as a novelty....not me though.

[HossC]

3 hours ago, RogerDuke said:

I wonder how long it will be before some form of racing introduces a driverless car. I don't think it will catch on  (unless maybe every car in the race is driverless) but I do think folks would want to see it as a novelty....not me though.

 

Driverless racing is nearly with us. Roborace will see 10 teams, each with two driverless electric cars, compete against each other in support races to the Formula E championship, hopefully later this year. All cars for the first season will be identical mechanically, but each team will have to develop their own AI to control them. You can read more on the Wikipedia page.