Track Smack: Off week

Sonoma. Enough said.

Lee Montgomery: First off, I love it. Nothing like a little controversy to pick things up. Who's right and who's wrong? Frankly, I don't know and don't care. In this instance, it sounds like the drivers are going to be the ones to sort that out, and that's perfect!

Ryan Smithson: What Robby did was legal, but it's not 100 percent legal. But then again, Whitey Ford allegedly doctored the ball for most of his career. But he did what he had to win. So I really have no problem with what Robby did.

Marty Smith: Like I said yesterday in Last Lap, there's two distinct ways to look at this. On one hand you have a 34-year old driver whose chances at victory are few and far between and would and should do most anything possible to hoist the trophy. On the other, you have a driver flying the bird to loyalty among teammates.

Dave Rodman: You must be Jeff Gordon's cousin. Do what you need to do today, because it suits you? There is no rule saying Robby could not do what he did, therefore it was legal. Whether everyone swallows it, of course -- well, everyone hasn't, that's pretty obvious.

Lee Montgomery: Legal but not 100 percent legal? That is like saying almost pregnant, Ryan.

Ryan Smithson: Lee, been watching too much Pulp Fiction, sorry.

Send a mean letter Marty Ryan Dave Lee

Marty Smith: That's my problem, here. How he passed doesn't bother me in the least. It's whom he passed. If it were any driver other than Harvick or Steve Park, pass them each and every one. Every time. Caution flag be damned. But it was Harvick. That's the issue, in my mind. Hence, I'm siding with Jeff Gordon on this one.

Dave Rodman: Well, I would say Robby and Kevin's alliance is one that's based on an uneasy truce, on a good day. You didn't forget them sparring with each other at Lowe's, eh? A 190-mph speedway in which they were in the middle of the pack.

Ryan Smithson: Robby Gordon had the best car. That was his race. It's not like he stole it.

Marty Smith: And racing under green is different, too. Pass them under green. Hell, punt them under green. But under caution?

Dave Rodman: Racing, unfortunately, is not a game for gentlemen in this day and time. Robby studied the rules very well -- and had the officials explain them to him and everyone else three times in the drivers' meeting. After the way he flaunted "the agreement" in Texas I can't believe Jeff Gordon would complain in Sonoma.

Send a nice letter Marty Ryan Dave Lee

Lee Montgomery: Spencer said earlier that the gentleman's agreement is all well and good ... until the drivers put their helmets on -- then it's out the window.

Marty Smith: He surely did have the best car, Ryan. So why not wait a while and pass Kevin later? Dude, there were 40 laps to go.

Ryan Smithson: I don't have an answer for that, Marty. You got me on that one.

Dave Rodman: An opportunity has to be taken when it presents itself. Ron Fellows had an opportunity to pit and did not and what did that do for him? Cost him a win, me two bucks to Lee and proved again that on slop tires, Winston Cup drivers are as good at road racing as the best in the world.

Lee Montgomery: If Robby wants to race that way, he'll be raced that way. I can't wait for the next time Harvick or Jeff is behind Robby as the caution waves.

Ryan Smithson: Oh, man. I am sure Robby can wait for that.

	Ut oh. Looks like Jeff's mad. Credit: Autostock

Dave Rodman: I am sure Robby can't wait for the next opportunity to be in the lead under any circumstances. He's a racer, man -- just like Kevin and Jeff and all the rest of them, last time I checked.

Marty Smith: Kevin's statement says it all, man. Robby wants it that way, Robby gets it that way.

Lee Montgomery: Amen. That's pretty much all that needs to be said.

Ryan Smithson: The shame of it is, Robby did a yeoman's job keeping Jeff Gordon -- the best road racer -- behind him in the final laps. And that was forgotten.

Lee Montgomery: If NASCAR keeps the "rule" the way it is, then Robby will get raced that way.

	Did I leave my Radiohead CD in here? Credit: Autostock

Marty Smith: I hate to keep reusing statements from Last Lap, but I have to. If Jimmy Spencer doesn't forget, Harvick is a human palm pilot. He remembers everything and isn't quick to forgive.

Lee Montgomery: I don't think that was forgotten, Ryan. TV didn't really say too much about Robby's pass.

Ryan Smithson: NASCAR won't be changing that "rule" anytime soon, so they better get used to it.

Dave Rodman: Anyway, Kevin didn't do team unity any favors Monday when he ripped into Robby all over again.

Ryan Smithson: But how soon can Harvick enact revenge, Marty? He has not been leading a lot of races, and Robby hasn't been a lap down a lot this year.

Marty Smith: Look, Robby drove his can off. Jeff and Kevin both said so. Aside from that pass under yellow, anyway.

Ryan Smithson: Over time, this particular instance will die, although the main one issue won't.

Marty Smith: I don't know, Ryan. Both those ol' boys are pretty stubborn. That's what's so awesome about both of them. They don't take any crap.

Ryan Smithson: Here is what Harvick should do:

Fan email  Jeff Gordon really did have a point when it came to Robby's pass of Harvick as they took the yellow.  I agreed with him 100 percent. However, Jeff Gordon is the last person who should be criticizing someone for a move like that.  After all, it wasn't that long ago, at Texas, that the 24 raced back to the caution, and deliberately broke "the gentlemen's agreement" to take the race lead and keep Kurt Busch and company a lap down.

Wait until the 31 gets a bad qualifying lap. Harvick should not take a qualifying lap, ensuring a pit stall right in front of him, because Harvick is right in front of Robby in the owner points, so they'd pit near each other, if not right on top of each other. When Robby tries to exit his pit, Harvick should throw a nice block on him.

Dave Rodman: Ryan, that is such a ridiculous concept, you need to get a second job -- you have too much time on your hands.

Lee Montgomery: I wonder if Robby will be e-mailing us this week.

Ryan Smithson: Robby e-mails you, Lee?

Lee Montgomery: Not me. I'm a nobody.

Marty Smith: He'll probably call and cuss us, which is fine. He should feel good about winning; I just wish it wasn't his teammate. He won legally, and I wouldn't care if he passed a driver from another team in that very instance. It just sucks it was a teammate.

Do you guys see a lot more driver changes happening in the next few weeks?

Dave Rodman: As usual, it's impossible to tell. There is always a lot of behind the scenes maneuvering going on, and if the tumblers line up -- whoops, a trap door opens and a guy drops out of sight. Look at John Andretti -- if you can find him.

	New York scowl

Lee Montgomery: Not really. But it's hard to predict. Remember last year when there was supposed to be this enormous amount of changes, and there really wasn't? Might be that way this time. Somebody's gotta get in the 4, but after that .... ?

Ryan Smithson: I think Silly Season is over with for another month or so. When the Brickyard rolls around, it'll kick back into high gear. Of course, we gotta get this Morgan-McClure situation resolved.

Marty Smith: Driver changes, maybe, but among the same cars that are now in the mix. I don't see a bunch of teams shuffling drivers. The 4 and the 43 might continue to switch up some guys, though.

Ryan Smithson: I agree, Marty, and I think we all know what cars we mean.

	California scowl

Dave Rodman: Speaking of silly, how ridiculous is the way the 88 car's been running? What will the next change be there -- and how happy can the sponsor be, with no truck and no results, either?

Marty Smith: Jeremy Mayfield seems to have picked it up of late. He finished eighth at Daytona in the season-opener, too.

Ryan Smithson: Compared to last year, Mayfield's practically on fire.

Lee Montgomery: I agree, Dawg, I think Mayfield is safe for now. Who else is there on the hot seat? No one, really.

	North Carolina scowl

Dave Rodman: On the one hand, if your car owner is saying you're safe, you mostly have to believe him (see Ray Evernham) -- but if the driver is saying "We're turning the corner," look out (see Mike Skinner -- again, if you can find him).

Ryan Smithson: Jeff Green has got to run better.

Lee Montgomery: He was on the hot seat when he got in that car.

Marty Smith: I bet he hated life sitting on that pit box last Sunday. That had to be torture.

	Wisconsin scowl

Ryan Smithson: I am sure. He really needs either a pole or a top-five run in the worst way.

Marty Smith: Green drove his tail off at Pocono, Ryan, until Terry Labonte hit him and he broke his tail.

Ryan Smithson: Yeah, Marty, that is what I meant. Dover, too.

Lee Montgomery: And not to pick on Steve Park, but with Robby and Kevin running so well, I was surprised Park wasn't better. He's won on a road course.

	Texas scowl

Dave Rodman: Well, if Steve was gonna make a comeback, Kyle Petty sure fixed that. I think Kyle's head was probably already 550 miles out on the Charity Ride. That was the most boneheaded move I've seen in about three years.

Ryan Smithson: Watkins Glen ain't anything like Sonoma, Lee.

Lee Montgomery: Still, he shouldn't have been that bad.

Ryan Smithson: Watkins Glen is practically a superspeedway compared to Sonoma.

Marty Smith: Smithson acts so knowledgeable about racetracks. You ever run Sonoma or Watkins Glen in your Mini Cooper, son?

	Kentucky scowl

Ryan Smithson: Nah, I admit, just on the PC. Is that bad?

Lee Montgomery: I hear he's a terror on I-285, though.

Marty Smith: He almost killed me once in Atlanta. Some curve he swears is just like Richmond. Yet another track he's never been on.

Ryan Smithson: It is like Richmond, except it bends to the right. But I swear, it's real similar.

Lee Montgomery: So it's like Watkins Glen.

Ryan Smithson: No, this has more banking.

Lee Montgomery: Except it's not a racetrack.

Ryan Smithson: Never mind. See y'all next week.

Track Smack appears every Wednesday on NASCAR.com at 11 a.m. ET sharp. Even if there's no Winston Cup event that weekend.

The opinions listed here are solely those of the participants.