Head2Head: Caution

Mark Martin won the Daytona 500. But Kevin Harvick won the Daytona 505, at least under the rules as interpreted by NASCAR on Sunday night.

That wasn't the same interpretation during a similar last-lap incident at Talladega in 2005. That time, the caution came out immediately, handing the win to Dale Jarrett.

It's stated at every drivers' meeting before every race that there will be no racing back to the line once the caution is displayed. Of course, if you don't actually throw the caution, then it's not really "racing to the line," is it?

And that's exactly what NASCAR officials decided to do this time around. They fiddled while the yellow lights didn't burn -- and all hell broke loose.

Granted, throwing the caution at that point would have had as much effect on the crashing as telling college students on spring break to stop drinking. But it might have allowed safety vehicles a few extra precious seconds to get to any drivers who might have been trapped or injured.

Since Feb. 18, 2001, NASCAR officials have stated over and over that "safety is the highest priority." They've added SAFER barriers to tracks, head and neck restraints, countless safety features to the cars -- and eliminated racing back to the yellow. Even the primary goal of the Car of Tomorrow is driver safety.

If a driver so much as sneezes on the racing groove, NASCAR immediately throws the caution. And NASCAR officials deserve all the praise and accolades for doing those things. So why did it feel like safety took a backseat to "the show" this time around?

There's an old saying that you'd "rather be lucky than good." But another one fits here as well: Better safe than sorry.

• Mark Aumann, NASCAR.COM

The Daytona 500 was the epitome of contradiction, and that it happened on NASCAR's biggest stage was apropos for the ultimate storm of controversy:

• Throw the caution and let the Loop Data make the call on the race winner.
• Throw caution to the wind and let 'em race back to the line.

NASCAR chose Option 2 -- and opened up itself to scrutiny. After all, it was exactly six years earlier that safety became the sport's top priority after Dale Earnhardt died in a last-lap crash in the Daytona 500.

Of course hindsight is 20/20 and it's easy to snipe about NASCAR cramming "safety this" and "safety that" down the fans' throats (and the drivers'; COT ring a bell?), but there are extenuating circumstance to every decision -- even those rooted in safety measures.

When the decision to swallow the flag was made there was no question the no-call was going to revive the debate over NASCAR favoritism, NASCAR inconsistencies, NASCAR and the JFK assassination. In reality it came down to a split-second decision made as cars were -- from NASCAR's perspective -- skidding from harm's way while the leaders were making tracks to a memorable finish.

Thing is, in 2006 there were six races -- two in each series -- that featured last-laps crashes after the checkers, just like Sunday.

It's a no-win situation for this reason: Humans make decisions and others have differing opinions. In this case, letting Kevin Harvick and Mark Martin race to the stripe was the right decision and I hope NASCAR makes similar decisions in the future.

There is room for safety and racing -- and the Daytona 500 proved it (as did the Loop Data, in case you were wondering).

• B. Duane Cross, NASCAR.COM