Last Lap: Mail Call

Over the past several days, it seems all anyone wants to talk about is Carl Edwards vs. Elliott Sadler: Cage Match.

Sadler was livid following the Funai 250 at Richmond International Raceway, during which Edwards bulldozed him out of the way en route to Victory Lane. Who wouldn't be furious?

But didn't Sadler get into Johnny Sauter in similar fashion just a few laps before that?

Absolutely. So does he really have a right to be upset?

I honestly don't know. It's tough to say. Ask veteran drivers, you'll get a resounding "yes." Ask newcomers, you'll hear just the opposite. Wins are so hard to come by these days, some say, that all bets are off. Respect and clean racing that applied earlier in the event no longer apply.

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Sadler said some things about Edwards in the media Friday that Edwards took exception to when he read the paper Saturday morning. So he sought Sadler out at the Nextel Cup drivers meeting to discuss it, but Sadler wasn't hearing it.

I asked Sadler about it after the race Saturday night.

"Carl wanted to come talk about last night and I just told him I didn't want to talk about it, that I came here to race tonight and didn't feel like having no meetings -- let bygones be bygones," Sadler explained.

Bottom line: Edwards won the race. But did he win it the right way? And is there even a "right way" anymore?

Jeff Green said it well last weekend: It's a conscience thing. If a driver can look at the trophy and feel good about how he won it, then it's all good.

Is there anything you can put in a tire to stabilize the pressures? Certain elements are more stable over a wider range of temperatures. -- John Vrba

Great question, John. Most folks, myself included, assume NASCAR teams use the same ol' simple air in their race tires that we get from the pump beside the economy-size vacuum cleaner down at the BP for a quarter. That's not the case.

NASCAR teams use nitrogen to pressurize tires. Nitrogen -- the driest form of air NASCAR will allow teams to use -- contains no moisture and therefore cannot expand. Any moisture present in the tire was already there when the tire was mounted.

Hey Marty,

Why doesn't Kurt Busch get penalized or fined for his actions in Darlington? OR what about (Michael) Waltrip and (Jeff) Green? Have you discussed this this week and did I miss it? It has been pretty quiet. Thanks -- Nolan Dix

Actually, I did discuss Busch's Darlington meltdown and the Green/Waltrip feud last week on NASCARi Nation, Nolan, but that doesn't mean I have a satisfactory answer for you.

Kurt Busch Credit: Autostock

I like Kurt, got a whole new perspective of the guy during my time with him in Manhattan last December. But how didn't he get penalized, I haven't the slightest clue.

NASCAR officials told me no further penalties were necessary, that those levied against Busch and Waltrip during competition sufficed.

Interesting. So dropping an inadvertent S-bomb (Dale Jr., Talladega, Oct. 2004) and flying the bird on an in-car camera (Shane Hmiel, Bristol, Apr. 2005) and placing team sponsor signage in front of official sponsor signage (Jimmie Johnson, Pocono Victory Lane, Aug. 2004) all warrant fines, yet blatant disrespect the rules and intentionally wrecking a competitor are tolerable? Hmm.

I understand and respect that Earnhardt was on national television and, therefore, NASCAR was forced to make an example of him in the post-Janet Jackson SuperBoob era. And I understand that Hmiel falls under that same umbrella.

But I have to think Busch's verbal tirade was equally "detrimental to stock car racing," even if it wasn't broadcast to a national audience.

That's not to say Mike Helton and John Darby weren't incensed with the defending Nextel Cup champion. His decision to verbally abuse those in the control tower did not sit well, but it was his decision to rev his engine on pit road that put Helton over the edge.

After the race, Helton called Busch to the "Phone Booth" and lit him up like the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center.

Waltrip and Green were also given a stern talking-to, and told to stay away from each other. They're both cool with it, but we all enjoyed it. Both of those guys are hilarious. This was the Hatfields and McCoys of NASCAR.

I thought you were a NASCAR reporter, not just a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series reporter. Last weekend at Darlington I saw you at the Outback Steakhouse in Florence, S. C. My problem with it is that you were there during the Busch race.

I think as a credible NASCAR reporter you should have been at the track covering the first race at night at Darlington, or something productive. Now stop eating the Bloomin' Onions and get to the track and provide us with some real news. -- Fanof24Nascar43

Jeez. You know it's a tough crowd when a guy can't even enjoy his Chicken on the Barbie without ridicule. (That might be the funniest email I've ever gotten.)

Marty,

Is there any word on who will replace Rusty in the No. 2 car next season? -- Jennelle Newton

I spoke with Rusty Wallace about that very subject last week, Jennelle, and he had no news for me other than to say that Roger Penske would make the final decision on Wallace's replacement.

Sam Hornish Credit: Robert Laberge/Getty Images

Currently, the hot rumor is former IRL champion Sam Hornish. That rumor holds water since he's young, marketable and proven, already drives for Penske in the Indy Racing League and has been in the NASCAR rumor mill before with DEI and Pennzoil.

Wallace, Penske and Miller Brewing Company would certainly love to have Jamie McMurray in the seat. But McMurray has one more option year on his current contract with Ganassi -- and it is Ganassi's decision whether or not to exercise that option (as if he wouldn't do so), and Wallace said that Penske has no desire to speak with drivers already under contract with another owner.

Along those same lines:

Marty,

Wednesday you were on NASCAR Nation and -- correct me if I'm wrong -- but did you say that Ryan (Newman) is going to ride a race for Rusty. If so, that is great, 'cause that means they found a way to get along. Thank you and have a good one. -- Christina, Tulsa, Okla.

No, that's not what I said, Christina. Wallace told me last week that Newman will run five or six Busch Series races in the Penske Racing Busch Series entry, and that the other allotted events in that machine will be used to evaluate talent -- including potential replacements for Wallace in the No. 2.

At this point it seems the Rusty/Ryan situation is irreconcilable.

Marty,

What the hell do you yell in that commercial after the part about Kasey Kahne's first pole? My friends and I have a bet. -- James

Hemi Power. I was hoarse for a week after that display.

Marty,

This may be a dumb question, and I'm sure there is a simple answer, but maybe it needs to be looked at and discussed. Every week it seems someone is caught speeding on pit road and penalized. NASCAR is using electronic monitoring devices now. So why don't the teams simply put a speedometer in the cars? Is there a rule against it, and if so why?

Thanks, Randy Sayer, Omaha, Neb.

In no way is this question stupid, Randy. In fact, Jeff Gordon posed the very same question during the drivers' meeting at California Speedway earlier this season.

Credit: Autostock

Gordon asked about the possibility of installing speedometers rather than matching tachometers to a rev limit. Nextel Cup director John Darby said that maintaining the proper speed was still the drivers' responsibility, and that maintaining a "certified calibration" for speedometers was a process NASCAR did not want to get into.

Some other possible remedies were broached during the same meeting, including Dale Jarrett's request of adding additional pace cars to further split the field during the pace laps. Doing so, Jarrett said, would assist drivers in establishing a pit road speed.

Darby's response was that if drivers stayed closed up and limited weaving, that concern would be alleviated.

Robby Gordon also asked about using GPS to establish speeds and Darby said the system was not accurate enough. So for now, tachometers it is.

Now if you'll please excuse me I must go lawnmower shopping. During last week's trim, the blade shot out from underneath my old mower like a steel boomerang from Nolan Ryan's right arm.

Scared me senseless. Maybe some shin guards are in order, too.

Last Lap appears on NASCAR.COM every Tuesday. The opinions listed here are solely those of the writer.