All of a sudden NASCAR is nearly a quarter of the way through the season. Unofficially, it already is.
Sure, there are 36 races in a season and there are still two weeks until the ninth race, but we are at the second restrictor-plate race of the year, which means it is time to take a break from the normal grind and get ready for the spectacle that is racing at Talladega.
Speedweeks at Daytona are always a great way to start the season and everybody is excited to see the close racing on such a big track, but after the Daytona 500, the talk about how great the race was and all of the media attention the winner receives dies down and restrictor-plate racing is forgotten. Until now.
Now it is time to jump into that world again where nearly the entire field has a legitimate shot to win and a huge wreck is almost guaranteed to happen, as well as a very close finish.
The start of a race at Talladega and Daytona is always filled with pent-up excitement and plenty of nerves because these are the tracks where NASCAR still seems dangerous. Either good or bad, fans know they will see something memorable happen at one of the four restrictor-plate races.
While all of the focus is on the pre-race ceremonies and all of the build up to the race, once the green flag drops, everyone’s attention goes strait to the cars on the track and it seems as though the rest of the world fades into the background.
The only time for a break in these races is after a big wreck that requires a lot of cleanup, and often a red flag. Other than that, there is hardly time to blink without fear something special will happen.
The talk about a race usually lasts for a few days into the following week, and then everybody gets geared up for the upcoming weekend, but that is not the case after races at Daytona or Talladega. No matter what happens, these races get played on all of the news shows the next few days and people debate on the aftermath for weeks, not days.
However, even the excitement from these races dies down in time, and that’s why the schedule works perfectly in this case. At each quarter pole in the season, there is a restrictor-plate race, granted the fall race at Talladega has been moved back in recent years to the halfway point of the Chase, but that one feels like the final big show of the season that is different from the general theme of that part of the year where the title contenders receive most of the attention.
Every NASCAR race is special, but the four restrictor-plate races are at another level. With the aerodynamic packages on the cars and the two-car draft, many people have said we might surpass the all-time record for lead changes in one race, which was set in this race one year ago.
Whoever misses this race is going to have to here about it for weeks to come and have to be satisfied with the highlights. But, everybody else will see the most exciting four hours of the month, if not the season.
Showing posts with label Speedweeks 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Speedweeks 2010. Show all posts
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Duel races have everything this year
By the time the Thursday of Speedweeks rolls around, there is usual at least one, often several, burning issues that have everybody talking.
But this year might have the most issues circling the garage area as teams and NASCAR get set for the Duel races.
In the past, the week leading up to the Daytona 500 has been filled with talk of restrictor-plate sizes, teams getting busted for cheating, or back in the days when which manufacturer a team used mattered more than the motor, one car make complaining its cars were at a disadvantage aerodynamically.
This year the talk has been about a myriad of issues, including the size of the restrictor plate, the technical ins and outs of the cars’ radiators and how they work in the two-car draft, which has been the major issue of the week.
Once Daytona International Speedway repaved the track to make it as smooth as could be, the drivers were able to push each other all of the way around the track without having to lift, and they could do it for many laps at a time.
While NASCAR has made restrictions to the cars’ cooling units and shrunk the restrictor plate, the two-car draft races will likely continue even if not to the extent that we saw in the Budweiser Shootout on Saturday.
All of the technical stuff led into Wednesday’s first practice session where Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashed his pole-winning car and will now have to start both the Duel race and the Daytona 500 from the back of the field.
This may be a big-time bummer for Dale Jr. fans, but it will make for an even more dramatic first Duel race because the winner will lead the field to the green flag Sunday.
The Duel races are always exciting, but this year even more is at stake than usual. The pole position is up for grabs, the race will show everyone how the new rules changes have affected the style of racing from Saturday to now and two go-or-go-homers will make the field while a host of others will have their dream crushed.
So get ready. This is going to be one heck of a show.
But this year might have the most issues circling the garage area as teams and NASCAR get set for the Duel races.
In the past, the week leading up to the Daytona 500 has been filled with talk of restrictor-plate sizes, teams getting busted for cheating, or back in the days when which manufacturer a team used mattered more than the motor, one car make complaining its cars were at a disadvantage aerodynamically.
This year the talk has been about a myriad of issues, including the size of the restrictor plate, the technical ins and outs of the cars’ radiators and how they work in the two-car draft, which has been the major issue of the week.
Once Daytona International Speedway repaved the track to make it as smooth as could be, the drivers were able to push each other all of the way around the track without having to lift, and they could do it for many laps at a time.
While NASCAR has made restrictions to the cars’ cooling units and shrunk the restrictor plate, the two-car draft races will likely continue even if not to the extent that we saw in the Budweiser Shootout on Saturday.
All of the technical stuff led into Wednesday’s first practice session where Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashed his pole-winning car and will now have to start both the Duel race and the Daytona 500 from the back of the field.
This may be a big-time bummer for Dale Jr. fans, but it will make for an even more dramatic first Duel race because the winner will lead the field to the green flag Sunday.
The Duel races are always exciting, but this year even more is at stake than usual. The pole position is up for grabs, the race will show everyone how the new rules changes have affected the style of racing from Saturday to now and two go-or-go-homers will make the field while a host of others will have their dream crushed.
So get ready. This is going to be one heck of a show.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Welcome to Speedweeks 2011
Now that the Super Bowl and all that goes with it is finished, it’s time to quickly turn the page and get ready for the most wonderful time of the year — Speedweeks.
After enduring the 11 longest weeks of the year, its time for the world to start moving again. The cars will be all gussied up for the first time with glistening new paint schemes, the drivers will be ready to get after it and the racing surface will be as new and shiny as everything else this year.
These two weeks almost feel like a vacation. Beginning Thursday, almost all NASCAR television coverage will originate from beautiful Daytona Beach, Fla., where the sun will shine and the high temperatures aren’t expected to drop out of the 60s.
Also, the rest of the season doesn’t matter during Speedweeks, which is nice. There is plenty of time for people to complain about the points, the quality of the racing and which driver might switch teams.
For now, its just time to let the drivers take to the best racetrack in the world and put on a show that is unrivaled in motorsports.
Twenty-four of the eventual 43 starters for the Daytona 500 will get an extra 75 laps Saturday night in the Budweiser Shootout. Unfortunately, this even has been watered down in recent years after Budweiser quit sponsoring the Pole Award.
However, a 30-car field for a 75-lap shootout on new pavement at Daytona International Speedway could be a lot of fun, especially since qualifying is done by random draw. Shoot, Matt Kenseth could start from the pole position, which would be just the fifth time that has happened in his 400 career starts.
In any case, we are about to embark on a journey that will once again fill fans’ eyes with stars and end with a new Daytona 500 champion, something that will make that driver’s season a success no matter what happens.
So get ready. Practice begins Friday, the shootout is Saturday, qualifying is Sunday, the Duel is next Thursday and the following Sunday is the big one, the 53rd Daytona 500.
After enduring the 11 longest weeks of the year, its time for the world to start moving again. The cars will be all gussied up for the first time with glistening new paint schemes, the drivers will be ready to get after it and the racing surface will be as new and shiny as everything else this year.
These two weeks almost feel like a vacation. Beginning Thursday, almost all NASCAR television coverage will originate from beautiful Daytona Beach, Fla., where the sun will shine and the high temperatures aren’t expected to drop out of the 60s.
Also, the rest of the season doesn’t matter during Speedweeks, which is nice. There is plenty of time for people to complain about the points, the quality of the racing and which driver might switch teams.
For now, its just time to let the drivers take to the best racetrack in the world and put on a show that is unrivaled in motorsports.
Twenty-four of the eventual 43 starters for the Daytona 500 will get an extra 75 laps Saturday night in the Budweiser Shootout. Unfortunately, this even has been watered down in recent years after Budweiser quit sponsoring the Pole Award.
However, a 30-car field for a 75-lap shootout on new pavement at Daytona International Speedway could be a lot of fun, especially since qualifying is done by random draw. Shoot, Matt Kenseth could start from the pole position, which would be just the fifth time that has happened in his 400 career starts.
In any case, we are about to embark on a journey that will once again fill fans’ eyes with stars and end with a new Daytona 500 champion, something that will make that driver’s season a success no matter what happens.
So get ready. Practice begins Friday, the shootout is Saturday, qualifying is Sunday, the Duel is next Thursday and the following Sunday is the big one, the 53rd Daytona 500.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Bump-Drafting Into the New Year
Welcome, NASCAR fans, to the final weekend without NASCAR racing. Even that is only half true because there are several NASCAR drivers competing in the 24 hour race at Daytona this weekend. With that said, Speedweeks will begin soon and before you know it there will be plenty of NASCAR action on one of the greatest tracks on the circuit.
Last week, NASCAR made their highly-anticipated announcements regarding rule changes for the upcoming season. There will be larger restrictor plates on the cars at Daytona, which will likely give the drivers better throttle response. However, the big change (and it was really only outlawed for one race) is that bump-drafting will once again be allowed.
This sets up an interesting situation once cars actually get on the track Thursday for Bud Shootout practice. Every year we hear drivers come in after the first couple of practices and complain about all the bump-drafting that is going on around the track. The drivers have complained for years about this issue, and then for one race NASCAR actually does something about it and everyone hates it even more.
A few examples:
Tony Stewart, speaking about bump-drafting before the 2006 Daytona 500; “Five years from now, we’re probably going to have to do another tribute to another driver because we’re probably going to kill somebody. It could be me. It could be Dale [Earnhardt] Jr. It could be anybody out there… We’re going to do what it takes to win the race. It needs to come from NASCAR.”
Carl Edwards, on bump-drafting after the 2009 Aaron’s 499 in which he sailed into the fence on the final lap, “We’ll race like this until we kill somebody; then NASCAR will change it.”
This type of talk has gone on for years, but once NASCAR did change it, the drivers were singing a much different tune.
“It’s kind of like the NFL going from tackle to two-hand touch,” said Dale Earnhardt Jr., after the Amp Energy 500 at Talladega last fall.
“It was just kind of a terrible race today in general,” said David Ragan, also following the fall race at Talladega.
So drivers begged for NASCAR to clamp down on bump-drafting and they did, but then everybody really had problems with what NASCAR had done. It looks as if NASCAR is in a no-win situation. You can bet at some point during Speedweeks 2010 there will be a driver stepping out of his car furious with all of the bump-drafting in the corners that is going on. That’s just how drivers are. However, I think most of us learned our lesson when we saw what would happen if NASCAR really did police bump-drafting.
Aside from all of that, I can’t help but be excited when Speedweeks is just around the corner. These two weeks are some of the best of the entire season. There will be large packs, fast speeds, big wrecks, and several surprises along the way. Each year there seems to be one small-time team that steps up and has a very good Speedweeks and maybe even a few decent weeks to follow before fading back. Those stories are what make this time of year the best of each NASCAR season.
However, before Speedweeks can begin, we need to know exactly how the field is set for the Great American Race. Enjoy the cartoon and have a great Speedweeks! The Monday Morning Crew Chief ratings will return the Tuesday following the Bud Shootout.
Last week, NASCAR made their highly-anticipated announcements regarding rule changes for the upcoming season. There will be larger restrictor plates on the cars at Daytona, which will likely give the drivers better throttle response. However, the big change (and it was really only outlawed for one race) is that bump-drafting will once again be allowed.
This sets up an interesting situation once cars actually get on the track Thursday for Bud Shootout practice. Every year we hear drivers come in after the first couple of practices and complain about all the bump-drafting that is going on around the track. The drivers have complained for years about this issue, and then for one race NASCAR actually does something about it and everyone hates it even more.
A few examples:
Tony Stewart, speaking about bump-drafting before the 2006 Daytona 500; “Five years from now, we’re probably going to have to do another tribute to another driver because we’re probably going to kill somebody. It could be me. It could be Dale [Earnhardt] Jr. It could be anybody out there… We’re going to do what it takes to win the race. It needs to come from NASCAR.”
Carl Edwards, on bump-drafting after the 2009 Aaron’s 499 in which he sailed into the fence on the final lap, “We’ll race like this until we kill somebody; then NASCAR will change it.”
This type of talk has gone on for years, but once NASCAR did change it, the drivers were singing a much different tune.
“It’s kind of like the NFL going from tackle to two-hand touch,” said Dale Earnhardt Jr., after the Amp Energy 500 at Talladega last fall.
“It was just kind of a terrible race today in general,” said David Ragan, also following the fall race at Talladega.
So drivers begged for NASCAR to clamp down on bump-drafting and they did, but then everybody really had problems with what NASCAR had done. It looks as if NASCAR is in a no-win situation. You can bet at some point during Speedweeks 2010 there will be a driver stepping out of his car furious with all of the bump-drafting in the corners that is going on. That’s just how drivers are. However, I think most of us learned our lesson when we saw what would happen if NASCAR really did police bump-drafting.
Aside from all of that, I can’t help but be excited when Speedweeks is just around the corner. These two weeks are some of the best of the entire season. There will be large packs, fast speeds, big wrecks, and several surprises along the way. Each year there seems to be one small-time team that steps up and has a very good Speedweeks and maybe even a few decent weeks to follow before fading back. Those stories are what make this time of year the best of each NASCAR season.
However, before Speedweeks can begin, we need to know exactly how the field is set for the Great American Race. Enjoy the cartoon and have a great Speedweeks! The Monday Morning Crew Chief ratings will return the Tuesday following the Bud Shootout.
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