 | | Chad Knaus, left, and Jimmie Johnson have won eight 500-plus mile races. Credit: Autostock |
By B. Duane Cross, NASCAR.COM
June 13, 2005
02:42 PM EDT (18:42 GMT)
Many of the 500-mile Cup races should go the way of Dave Marcis' wingtip driving shoes, one of the last NASCAR dinosaurs. Exhibit A: Sunday's Pocono 500. It was a four-hour Sominex ad. If Hollywood had the rights, they would promote it as "The Race That Wouldn't End!" -- and it would be a box-office blockbuster ... in the horror genre.  |
| Inside the Numbers |
| Past 50 500-plus mile races |
| Rank. |
Driver |
W |
LML * |
| 1. |
J. Johnson |
8 |
6 |
| 2. |
D. Earnhardt Jr. |
7 |
6 |
| 3. |
J. Gordon |
6 |
8 |
| 4. |
G. Biffle |
3 |
2 |
| |
B. Labonte |
3 |
1 |
| |
T. Stewart |
3 |
7 |
| 7. |
W. Burton |
2 |
-- |
| |
C. Edwards |
2 |
-- |
| |
R. Newman |
2 |
2 |
| |
E. Sadler |
2 |
1 |
| 11. |
J. Burton |
1 |
1 |
| |
Ku. Busch |
1 |
1 |
| |
B. Hamilton |
1 |
-- |
| |
D. Jarrett |
1 |
1 |
| |
M. Kenseth |
1 |
-- |
| |
T. Labonte |
1 |
-- |
| |
S. Marlin |
1 |
4 |
| |
M. Martin |
1 |
2 |
| |
J. McMurray |
1 |
1 |
| |
R. Rudd |
1 |
1 |
| |
R. Wallace |
1 |
1 |
| |
M. Waltrip |
1 |
-- |
| 23. |
K. Kahne |
-- |
2 |
| 24. |
J. Nemechek |
-- |
1 |
| 25. |
B. Vickers |
-- |
2 |
|
|
|
It was a race that should be sponsored by Burlington Northern Santa Fe -- a large train. Passing? There's more passing in football's Wing-T offense. In a time when drivers are openly dissing the Cup Series 36-race schedule, the time has come to trim the fat from many of the 500-mile events. There have been eight 500-plus mile races this year: • Daytona 500 at Daytona
• Auto Club 500 at California
• Golden Corral 500 at Atlanta
• Samsung / Radio Shack 500 at Texas
• Aaron's 499 at Talladega
• Dodge Charger 500 at Darlington
• Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte
• Pocono 500 at Pocono And here's the kicker: The series returns to seven of those eight tracks in the second half of the schedule. The excuse of giving fans the opportunity to see a Cup race is null; fans will be cross-eyed by the time they sit through these mind-numbing, sleep-inducing, merry-go-'round, follow-the-leader races. In the past 50 500-plus mile races, only 20 times has the driver leading the most laps eventually won. It's grueling on drivers, crews, equipment. Some would argue that 500-milers separate the wheat from the chaff; the better team eventually prevails. I would counter with the better team should prevail -- whether it's 300, 400 or 500 miles. What's the difference, another 60 or 90 minutes for more commercials? More time to sell concessions and souvenirs at the track? Rusty Wallace and Mark Martin are retiring from Cup racing at the end of 2005, both citing the year-round schedule as a large part of their decision. In recent years, Bill Elliott and Terry Labonte have trimmed their schedules, opting to pick and choose which races they want to compete in. As time goes by, more and more drivers will run limited schedules. The young drivers now coming into the sport have more money and do not need to race each week in order to make ends meet. It's the natural evolution of the sport. Why tempt fate each week when you have enough to retire on before age 35? As NASCAR continues to examine ways to expand its fan base, here's hoping that it also looks at ways to keep its current fans -- and drivers. Flags • Red -- Dale Earnhardt Jr., mired in 16th place in the points standings, has been among the top 10 in points after just three of 14 races this season. He ranked first in the point standings after 14 races last year. He is now 504 points behind points leader Jimmie Johnson. • Yellow -- Brian Vickers led 121 of 201 laps at Pocono, the most laps that he has led in a race in his 55-race Cup career. He now has led 22 percent (219 of 980) of his laps raced since Charlotte with back-to-back top-10s. ... Anyone want to talk about his "job security"? • Green -- Kyle Busch has five top-10 finishes this year, including three top-fives in his past four races. He's now 18th in points, one of four Hendrick drivers ranked in the top 21 in points -- Jimmie Johnson (first), Jeff Gordon (ninth), Busch and Brian Vickers (21st). • Greener (yeah, it's cheating, but these guys deserve big props) -- As good as Hendrick has been this year, Roush Racing's stable has been better -- seven wins and five drivers in the top 24: Greg Biffle (second), Carl Edwards (fourth), Mark Martin (fifth), Kurt Busch (11th) and Matt Kenseth (24th). |  | POCONO 500 | |
|
Around the Track • Kurt Busch ended a 48-race streak of ranking among the top 10 in points, dropping to 11th. The streak began at Rockingham in February 2004. • Jimmie Johnson has ranked among the top 10 since Las Vegas in March 2004, a streak of 47 consecutive races, which now is the longest current streak. • Mike Garvey became the 41st different driver to lead a race this year. Lap 70 at Pocono was the first time that Garvey has led in a Cup race. • There are 12 drivers still eligible for the 10-race Chase for the Cup. After 14 races last year, only nine drivers were still within 400 points. • After 14 races, there are nine drivers who won in 2004 that have not won in '05: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Matt Kenseth, Elliott Sadler, Jeremy Mayfield, Rusty Wallace and Joe Nemechek. Quote, Unquote "I hate it for Jason Leffler. He cut a tire or something and spun and was about out of the way. There's a Truck driver [Brendan Gaughan] driving one of those cars out there, and he ran all over the back of me and spun me around. I ran into the back of Jason. Jason wouldn't be out of the race if I hadn't been out of the race. That guy [Gaughan] should have stayed in Texas I think."
-- Kyle Petty, after a Lap 44 crash Up Next Michigan International Speedway • Ricky Rudd is expected to make his 57th start at MIS, surpassing Dave Marcis (56) for the most starts at the track. • Rusty Wallace and Dale Jarrett lead all active drivers with 15 top-five finishes at Michigan. • Mark Martin has 25 top-10 finishes at Michigan, the most among active drivers. • Matt Kenseth has four consecutive top-10s at MIS, the longest current streak there of any driver. • Tony Stewart has one win and seven top-10s in 12 races at Michigan. He has finished ninth or better in four of his last five races at MIS. |  | E-MAIL | |
|
Mail Call How do you think the "lucky dog" rule would work if a driver could only exercise the free pass one time during a race?
-- Harold Thompson, Taylors, S.C. I'd rather the phrase be nixed from the NASCAR lexicon; it's not one of my favorite rules. I don't know that giving drivers more than one free lap would make that much of a difference. There have only been a few times when the "lucky dog" has gone on to win the race, so there's not much evidence to suggest it would dramatically change on-track strategy. One idea you did not discuss concerning why so many wrecks happen: The deification of Earnhardt. Most all of these younger guys think they should be able to drive like The Intimidator and get by with it. The boos that rained down on the 3 car after he put Terry Labonte in the fence at Bristol are all but forgotten by drivers, fans and media. Everyone wants to emulate his driving style. Oh, Stewart gives a nod to Mark Martin in recent remarks, but if given a choice between Martin and Earnhardt, almost every driver on the circuit would choose to be identified with Earnhardt. I guess it's just more glamorous to be "The Intimidator" than a gentleman with no nickname.
-- Steven R. Skaggs, Paducah, Ky. It's more a reflection of where the sport is heading; I call it the SportsCenter mentality. Smash-'em-up highlights make for better tube time than clean racing. How many time did you see the Stewart-Gordon bump-and-run on the highlight reels? Now think about how many times you saw the clean racing finish between Jimmie Johnson and Bobby Labonte. ... Controversy sells -- on TV, with newspapers, on the 'Net. Good guys finish last in Q ratings, which seem to be the driving force in what folks want to see. Do you think it will help Sarah Fisher and Erin Crocker if they were full-time Buschwhackers like Kevin Harvick in 2001, Greg Biffle in 2004 and Carl Edwards in 2005?
-- Chris Fiegler, Latham, N.Y. I must have missed Fisher and Crocker getting Cup rides, if they're to be Buschwhackers. When Fisher and Crocker climb into Busch Series rides, it will be because they have earned it. No team -- RCR, Evernham, etc. -- is going to put these drivers behind the wheel because they are female. Even the media blitz over Danica Patrick lost sight of the fact she honed her craft in England, where open-wheel racing hopefuls cut their teeth. When Fisher and Crocker make their NASCAR debuts, rest assured they will be confident in their stock car abilities. Fantasy Perspective • Twelve of the last 27 races at MIS were won by drivers who started outside the top 10. Five of the last 11 races have been won from 15th or worse. • There have been 10 different winners in the past 11 races at MIS. Ryan Newman is the only repeat winner, scoring back-to-back Ws in August 2003 and June 2004. • Rusty Wallace has five victories at Michigan, the most among full-time drivers at the track. Part-timer Bill Elliott has seven. • Jeff Gordon has a 9.583 starting average and a 9.291 average finish in 24 races at MIS. He is the only active driver to have a starting and finishing average of 10th or better. • Dale Jarrett (third and third), Kasey Kahne (second and fifth) and Matt Kenseth (seventh and eighth) posted top-10 finishes in both races at Michigan last year. |
| Leading active drivers at Michigan |
| All races |
| Driver |
Races |
W |
T5 |
T10 |
Avg. Finish |
| K. Kahne |
2 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
3.5 |
| M. Kenseth |
11 |
1 |
3 |
7 |
8.9 |
| J. Gordon |
24 |
2 |
14 |
17 |
9.3 |
| C. Edwards |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
10.0 |
| M. Martin |
38 |
4 |
14 |
25 |
11.8 |
|
|
| Minimum five races |
| Driver |
Races |
W |
T5 |
T10 |
Avg. Finish |
| M. Kenseth |
11 |
1 |
3 |
7 |
8.9 |
| J. Gordon |
24 |
2 |
14 |
17 |
9.3 |
| M. Martin |
38 |
4 |
14 |
25 |
11.8 |
| R. Newman |
7 |
2 |
4 |
4 |
13.7 |
| T. Stewart |
12 |
1 |
4 |
7 |
14.0 |
|
| Fantasy Racing |
NASCAR.COM's Duane Cross takes part in a weekly
fantasy racing segment on 790 The Ball in High Point, N.C.
The season-to-date standings: |
| Player |
Points |
Last Week ... |
Show host
Marc Amazon |
219 |
5 from JJ, 4 from Martin, zippo from Biffle, Newman and Kenseth |
NASCAR.COM's
Duane Cross |
208 |
5 from JJ, 4 from Martin, 2 from Gordon, blanked on Biffle and Mayfield |
790 The Ball
Listeners |
195 |
5 from JJ, 3 from Harvick, whiffed on Stewart, Jarrett and Kahne |
Update anchor
Bill Kimm |
194 |
5 from JJ, 2 from Gordon, nada from Biffle, Newman and Mayfield |
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