Viewer's Guide: Michigan

ATLANTA -- Sunday is Father's Day and the NASCAR on FOX crew will mark the occassion during the prerace show for this weekend's DHL 400.

	Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Credit: ASP

Fathers and sons have been a part of racing seemingly since the first green flag.

Retiring in 1964 after 427 NASCAR races, Lee Petty left behind his legacy of 54 wins, 231 top-fives, 332 top-10s and 18 poles. He was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers before passing away at the age of 86 in April of 2000.

Often referred to as one of the founding fathers of NASCAR, he was the leader of the only four-generation family in sports. The year he retired, was the year his son, Richard, won the Daytona 500 and his first of seven championships. Richard's son, Kyle, has eight wins on the premier circuit.

Sterling Marlin was changing tires for his father Coo Coo at the age of 15. Nearly 30 years later, he has amassed 10 Cup victories.

And then, there are the Earnhardts.

Ralph Earnhardt provided the guidance that started his son Dale's career in racing while growing up in southern North Carolina. From a very early age, Dale wanted to follow in his father's footsteps.

Dale quit school in the ninth grade at age 16 in 1967. He began his professional racing career shortly thereafter, but didn't make it to the big-time until the age of 28. The rest, of course, is history.

Now Dale Jr. carries on the Earnhardt legacy, holding the Nextel Cup Series lead heading into this weekend's action at Michigan and still riding high after his Daytona 500 victory earlier this season.

Ask The Producer: This week's question comes from comes from Mallory Duff of Hampstead, Md.:

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"I would like to know why FOX always seems to go to commercial right after the winner takes the checkered flag and when they come back, the winner is already in Victory Lane. I know that this does not always happen, but when it does it is very annoying. I like to see the drivers celebrate in their own way and not be given a cue on when to come out of their cars."

NASCAR on FOX producer Neil Goldberg explains:

	Neil Goldberg

"We do try to stay for the celebration after the checkered flag. The past two weeks Mark Martin in Dover and Jimmie Johnson in Pocono came right off the track. They did not stay out and do any burnouts or victory laps.

"As far as the break goes... we have a commitment to take a post race break as close to the race finish as possible. We most often wait until after the winner's interview. The past two weeks with out the post-race hoopla and the race running over its time slot, we chose to go right to the break.

"Thanks for the e-mail and keep watching."

Let your voice be heard: Each week, we'll pick one question to ask the producer of the FOX telecast. Why did they do things this way? Why did they talk to that driver? Any question that eats at you could be answered right here in the Viewer's Guide.

Send your questions to the e-mail box in this piece.

The Rant: This week, Phillip Jones of Wilson, N.C. spews about a segment on FOX's NASCAR broadcast that looks an awful lot like a commercial:

"Frankly, the 'embedded ads' in FOX's Nextel Cup coverage make me sick. The 'Focus on Ford' (or whatever they're called) segments completely destroy any flow that FOX somehow mustered into its broadcasts and absolutely blurs the line between relevant content and advertising.

EMAIL Send Mark a question for "Ask The Producer" or your take for "The Rant"

"I'd venture to guess that the vast majority of the viewers of FOX's Nextel Cup coverage can't separate these segments from the rest of FOX's race coverage and take FOX at its word for what it's saying...not realizing they've just watched an ad.

"It's deceptive and I just wonder at what point will it stop."

Phillip, most of what you write is valid. However, there are issues that need discussion. First, you'd hope that most fans know that they're watching a sponsored feature. The big Ford logo is somewhat of a tell. They do disrupt the flow somewhat. However, usually those feature come at the back end of commercial breaks, so the "flow" is somewhat minimal.

Simply put, if the networks can't make enough money to make broadcasting NASCAR races profitable -- they won't. Also, for clarification's sake, FOX is not the only network to do this, nor is NASCAR the only sport in which it happens.

Get in on the action: In "The Rant," we'll pick e-mails each week to argue about a TV coverage issue, be it a commentator's comment, a driver's comment, a pre-race feature -- basically anything you want to spout off about.

Come with an intelligent, passionate argument and you may see your take on NASCAR.COM.

Quote of the week: "Just got in Reckless Robby's way." -- Ryan Newman answering a question from FOX's Steve Byrnes after what happened with Gordon on Lap 184 at Pocono.

On to this weekend's busy schedule:

Nextel Cup Series: DHL 400

Site: Brooklyn, Mich.

Track: Michigan International Speedway (2-mile oval, 18-degree banking in turns. Frontstretch: 3,600 feet. Backstretch: 2,242 feet).

Race distance: 400 miles, 200 laps.

Last year Busch holds off Gordon and Labonte for the win Play video Contact with Biffle takes Craven out of the race Play video Newman runs away from his flaming race car Play video

TV: Bud Pole Qualifying: SPEED, 4 p.m. ET Friday (tape-delayed). Happy Hour: FX, 6:30 p. m. ET Saturday (tape-delayed). Race: FOX, 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday.

Last year: Kurt Busch became the first three-time Cup winner of the season after snatching the lead from Jeff Gordon with 24 laps to go in the Sirius 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

Last race: Jimmie Johnson was the picture of cool after his trip to Victory Lane, mugging for cameras, swigging champagne and using a little math to figure out how close he was to the points lead.

Potential storyline: Dave Blaney was named this week by Richard Childress Racing as the new driver of Childress' No. 30 America Online Chevrolet, replacing rookie Johnny Sauter.

"This sport has gotten so tough and complicated, sometimes tough decisions have to be made," Childress said. "Our sport is driven by business decisions and that is what this driver change is, a business decision."

Sauter will remain under contract with RCR and drive additional Nextel Cup events this season.

Point to ponder: Bill Elliott has seven career wins at Michigan International Speedway. Four of those victories came in Michigan's spring race, then known as the Miller 500.

Busch Series: Meijer 300

Site: Sparta, Ky.

Track: Kentucky Speedway (1.5-mile tri-oval, 14-degree banking in turns. Backstretch: 1,600 feet).

Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.

TV: Busch Pole Qualifying: SPEED, 8 p.m. ET Friday (tape-delayed). Race: FX, 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday.

Last year Hamilton Jr. battles back for the victory at Memphis Play video Contact with Hornaday sends Riggs spinning Play video Three wide in the turn does not work for Teague Play video

Last year: Bobby Hamilton Jr. overcame a pit-stop error to win the Meijer 300. Hamilton pitted during a caution, and officials said that his crew failed to sufficiently tighten the lugnuts on the front left tire.

Last race: Jason Leffler won the first NASCAR Busch Series race of his career early Sunday morning in a wild ending to the Federated Auto Parts 300 following a nearly three-hour rain delay at Nashville Superspeedway.

Potential storyline: Chevrolet has built a fairly comfortable lead in the Bill France Performance Cup standings for manufacturers in the Busch Series.

Chevrolet has 10 wins and 118 points following the June 12 win by Jason Leffler at Nashville Superspeedway. Ford is second with 88 points and four wins. Dodge is in third place with 66 points and one win, while Pontiac is in fourth, with 58 points.

Point to ponder: Todd Bodine and Greg Biffle staged a furious battle for the win during the rain-delayed conclusion of the 2002 Kroger 300 presented by Oreo held on Father's Day.

The race began on June 15, but a torrential downpour halted the race at 9 :10 p.m. local time. The next afternoon, Bodine led the field to a Lap 198 restart, but Biffle charged by to take the lead for the next two circuits. As they roared off Turn 4 on the final lap, they touched doors and Biffle spun to the infield, allowing Bodine to score the victory.

Craftsman Truck Series: O'Reilly 200

Site: Millington, Tenn.

Track: Memphis Motorsports Park (.75-mile oval, 11-degree banking in turns. Frontstretch: 1,100 feet. Backstretch: 1,100 feet).

Race distance: 150 miles, 200 laps.

TV: Race: SPEED, 3 p.m. ET Saturday.

Last race Ted Musgrave takes the checkers in Memphis Play video Wood is upset with Musgrave following the race Play video Leffler and Crawford bring out the third caution Play video

Last year: Ted Musgrave pushed Jon Wood out of the way with 14 laps remaining to win the 2003 O'Reilly 200.

Last race: Dennis Setzer set a Texas Motor Speedway record by winning the O'Reilly 400K by 11.817 seconds over Musgrave, who led for 101 laps, but lost after something came loose on the right front of his Dodge.

Potential storyline: Three drivers -– Setzer, Travis Kvapil and Musgrave -– hope to extend their streaks of top-five finishes at Memphis Motorsports Park.

Setzer's string is the longest, five races beginning in 1999, while Kvapil and Musgrave are working on two straight appearances among the top five.

Point to ponder: Rick Crawford has failed to complete just three laps –- 2.25 of 1,200 miles –- at Memphis Motorsports Park.

Mark Spoor is an interactive producer of NASCAR.COM. The Domino's Viewers Guide appears each Thursday during race weeks.