Tempers, tempers, tempers

By Liz Allison, Turner Sports Interactive
September 26, 2001
1:17 PM EDT (1717 GMT)

COMMENTARY

Liz Allison

Tempers and NASCAR racing go hand-in-hand without question. But when does the temper become too much?

This is a question that has been asked a lot lately by NASCAR and race fans. The answer -- well, the verdict -- is still out.

Video: Biffle/Sauter  Video: Wallace/Rudd  Video: Wimmer/Biffle  Liz Allison's Archive

It is understandable that drivers would have high tempers. Let's be real here: They are driving at speeds up to 200 mph door-to-door, sheet metal to sheet metal. That adrenaline is in overdrive to say the least, not to mention that these guys are fiercely competitive.

When something happens on the track, their response is quick and sometimes it might not be the "right thing."

Fines have been handed out to drivers from NASCAR over the last few weeks, mainly in the Busch Grand National Series for "rough driving." Now, I have got to tell you that fines mean nothing to these guys. Until you start parking them for a few races for using poor judgment on the track, you will not get to them.

Accidents will happen on the track -- this is just a part of racing. But when someone deliberately wrecks a fellow racer, they have crossed the line.

Greg Biffle got physical with Jay Sauter after an on-track incident.

If a car is out of the race and in the garage for 50 laps and comes out for one lap, and they just happen to get in to another car while they make that lap, and oh yeah, by the way, that car happens to be the same car he feels wrecked him. BINGO!

Getting even on the track has been a part of racing from the beginning, but one day someone is really going to get hurt. Drivers can deny it all day long, but it happens. I was married to a driver that set out to get even on the track more times than I would like to tell. He was also the driver being run down more times than I can count.

As my colleague, Benny Parsons put it. "One day, one of these guys is going to go out to get even on the track and kill somebody and then it is all over."

That is the harsh reality of what will happen if NASCAR does not get a hold of the situation. A court of law could see this no differently than a premeditated act of violence. Pretty stout, yes, but probably true none the less.

Biffle may or may not have been the target of Scott Wimmer's anger after the South Carolina 200.

Tempers? Yes, they are there and that is understandable. But you are crossing the line when you put someone else's life in danger.

So, NASCAR, put the heat on these guys and next time a car heads out on the track with duct tape holding it together and they just happen to wreck another driver while he makes a lap. Park him!

NOTE: Liz Allison's column appears every Wednesday on NASCAR.com. The opinions listed here are solely those of the writer. To provide feedback to Liz, email her at Liz.Allison@turner.com.