Track Smack: Michigan

Some are suggesting NASCAR has lost credibility with its recent snafus. Do you agree?

Marty Smith: Yes. Absolutely. No less than five prominent individuals that work in that garage every weekend have told me so. It's a consistency issue that must be addressed. As I said yesterday in Last Lap, NASCAR has a helluva tough job. But that's what they get paid to do. With time it will improve, for certain, but right now they've lost some cred.

Ryan Smithson: I think they have a little but I do not think extraordinary fixes are required. I think most of the problem simply comes from the lucky dog rule and freezing the field under caution. We didn't have a problem before this.

Dave Rodman: Well, in general we are talking about procedural issues, not just scoring, and that's even worse. Hurting their credibility? Definitely. But I think Chad Knaus nailed it when he said people would still come. But then, professional wrasslin' is pretty darned popular, too -- isn't it?

Lee Montgomery: After what we saw in Pocono and Dover, I think they most certainly have. You can't keep making mistakes in any profession and keep credibility. But is it irrevocably damaged? Not on your life.

Ricky Craven: No, I don't think they've lost credibility. It is no different than umpiring a baseball game. Not everyone is going to agree with balls and strikes.

Marty Smith: Anybody who says NASCAR is fixed is plumb insane. Do you really think that with USA Today and CNN out there working their tales off to keep NASCAR honest, they'd blatantly fix a race? There's so much to lose. Plus, convincing the other 42 guys to go along with it would be like asking them to willingly pull a tooth sans Novocain.

Dave Rodman: Who said it was fixed?

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Marty Smith: Fans, dude.

Lee Montgomery: Lots of them.

Marty Smith: I get emails every single day that complain it's a fixed game.

Dave Rodman: Well, an alleged "fan" hit Jimmy Howell with a cooler full of beer, too -- or full of something -- so I hate to write off so many of them due to an action of one -- but that shoe too often fits.

Lee Montgomery: Tell us, Ricky, how impossible it is to fix a race.

Ricky Craven: It is completely unreasonable to even suggest a race would be fixed. It couldn't happen. The only way I could see that happening if there were two cars in the field by the same owner.

	For some reason, Mark Martin prepares to interview Morgan Shepherd (rear) at Pocono. Credit: Autostock

Marty Smith: That's got to piss guys like Ricky off. He goes out there and busts his tail all day at Martinsville, wins the show, and people think it was given to him? Doesn't that frustrate you, Rick?

Ricky Craven: No, because I believe you are talking about the minority of people. Like all of you, you know what you know. Don't buy into all the other gossip.

Marty Smith: Interesting perspective, Ricky. If I went out and won a race that no one thought was legit, I'd be a bit miffed by that.

Ricky Craven: Well, if you won a race by four laps over the second place car, then you've built a pretty strong argument for someone to speculate. When you look at the quality of racing over the past few years, you realize that this is the purest of sports.

Marty Smith: Preach the word, brother.

Lee Montgomery: Amen.

Ryan Smithson: Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin's wins were warranted. End of discussion. Hopefully this will never happen again. And no one will remember in six months.

Ricky Craven: For three and half hours a week, under green flag racing, you run against 42 others.

Does being in the rumor mill hamper a team's performance?

Ryan Smithson: I don't see how something non-mechanical can affect it more than rumors can.

Marty Smith: Well, I'm sure it gets guys point fingers at times, but I think it also lights a fire under their rear ends. Oftentimes a guy in the rumor mill starts lighting it up.

Lee Montgomery: Depends on the driver and team. It bothers some, for sure, but not others.

	Matt, that was NASCAR on the line. They wanted to let you know that they do take checks. Credit: Autostock

Ricky Craven: It is an element of any sport and an element of competing and we are not performing well so it certainly exists, but I can only speak for myself and I'm every bit as determined to run well as I've ever been and I'm not going to buy into any of that.

Ricky Craven: I've got a very good race team and one thing that bothers each of us on a weekly basis is not running well.

Ryan Smithson: The bad thing these days is that it could happen to anyone, not just a guy running 22nd, and that is kind of sad. Even a guy like Rusty was thrown into the mix last year. It's not like it used to be.

Lee Montgomery: Yeah, this isn't an easy business at all.

Marty Smith: Ricky, you're a saint. From my perspective, no one likes to have their performance questioned, doesn't matter what you do. So I'd say regardless who you are, if you're job's in question it would probably weigh on you at least a little bit.

Lee Montgomery: So set the record straight, Ricky. You aren't going anywhere, right?

	Yep. My hand is bigger than your hand.

Ricky Craven: I am the driver of the No. 32 Tide Monte Carlo for at least the next two and a half years.

Lee Montgomery: Perfect.

Ricky Craven: Period.

Lee Montgomery: Now, do you think that'll stop the rumors? I wish it would, but this is a strange business.

Ryan Smithson: The Craven rumors have been suspect anyway because all they say is that Craven might be out, but they don't even mention a possible replacement, because there isn't one.

Marty Smith: Sweet. I got some dirty clothes upstairs. Can you help a brother out?

Ryan Smithson: Marty, Ricky's probably in Moose Lake, it's not like he can drive down and drop it off at your house.

Ricky Craven: In my spare time I'll put that request for Tide detergent in for you.

Lee Montgomery: Yeah, all your spare time, huh?

Send some feedback our way Marty Ryan Dave Lee

Marty Smith: Ballpark turkey dogs rule. I eat them for lunch about four days a week.

Ricky Craven: The only thing that prevents this type of discussion is performance. It is a performance business and I have no problem with that.

Lee Montgomery: Most winners don't mind that.

Marty Smith: No doubt, Ricky. Running up front fixes everything.

Lee Montgomery: Say, where's the best place to get lobster in New Hampshire when we go there for the race next month?

Ryan Smithson: Red Lobster.

Marty Smith: Captain D's.

Ricky Craven: My favorite in Newick's in Dover, NH. It is about a 45-minute ride from the track toward Portsmith. But it is worth the trip

	Rookies have to sit on the garage floor, Scott.

Lee Montgomery: Great. I hope they take American Express.

Ryan Smithson: Dover, New Hampshire. Not like that is confusing.

Ryan Smithson: Man, if I were a lobster, those rubber bands would really irritate me.

Marty Smith: If Smithson were a lobster, he'd be sold at Captain D's, not Newick's.

Ryan Smithson: You'd be sold at Texaco, Marty.

Marty Smith: For sure. I love Texaco. And John Deere. Two of my favorite brands.

Ricky Craven: If you got five hours to kill go to Belfast, Maine and go to Young's Lobster Pound and have a New England lobster dinner.

Ryan Smithson: This is a sponsor-fest today. We sound like Waltrip.

Predictions for Michigan?

Marty Smith: This is Kasey Kahne's week. He was awesome at California, a very comparable track, and he's been beating on the door so hard it's bound to break down soon. Kahne, winner.

Pocono Predictions  Not a good week, but then again, that ain't nothing new.  Marty picked MacMary (9th)  Ryan picked Newman (30th)  Lee picked Kahne (14th)

Ryan Smithson: Geez. Ryan Newman I guess. This is starting to get frustrating. Can't imagine how the boys in the 12 shop feel. 0-for-14 already, 0-for-16 if you count the Clash and the All-Star.

Ricky Craven: the obvious contenders for Michigan include Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart and I think the Evernham cars will run well.

Ricky Craven: Historically, it has been a good track for the Tide team. We finished second in 2001 and won the pole and the past two races, we've run well, but ran into some late problems.

Lee Montgomery: I remember that race in 2001. You should've won there.

Lee Montgomery: It's hard to bet against Jimmie Johnson. Michigan is a big down force track, and they seem to have their aero program together. JJ gets two in a row.

Ryan Smithson: Hey Ricky, I got a great Michigan story for you.

Ryan Smithson: In 2001, when you won the pole, I was ready to publish NASCAR.com with Bill Elliott on the pole, but you went out last. I figured you couldn't get him -- you were not great in practice -- and I was ready to hit the button when your speed flashed through. I mean, that button was on the way down. But I caught it. Barely.

Ricky Craven: That's great. Sorry about creating some overtime for you!

Lee Montgomery: Uh, great, uh, story, Statboy.

Ryan Smithson: Eat my shorts, Lee. That story isn't bad. And you ain't got any.

Track Smack appears every Wednesday at 11 a.m. ET.

The opinions listed here are solely those of the participants