Weekend That Was: M'ville (cont'd)

Different times, Part II

Petty had more to say about the current crop of younger drivers in general.

NASCAR's most famous ponytail

"For us, the sport is our family. ... Older drivers, when you talk to Ricky [Rudd] or you talk to Bill [Elliott] or you talk to my father, they grew up being part of the sport, they became part of the sport, and they remain connected to the sport. Now we'll start to see drivers walk away and you'll never hear from them again," Petty said.

"We grew up in a time when you took from the sport, but at some point in time you gave back to the sport in some little way, whatever that may be. I think we're moving into a stage where everything is taken and nothing is given. We hear that all the time -- and some people call that a lack of respect. I don't call it that. It's just a totally different sport. These guys see and approach the sport different.

"When I grew up, I wanted to be a racecar driver. I dreamed about driving a racecar. That's all I dreamed about -- driving a racecar and getting a trophy. I didn't dream about sitting on my butt signing autographs; I didn't dream about talking to you guys [in the media]. I'm sorry, but I didn't dream about this. This was not my dream -- to grow up and talk to the media and be on TV and do all that stuff. My dream was to drive racecars. I think for some of these guys, their dream is to be famous. And to be famous, they dream about signing autographs, they dream about doing interviews. Now they may not act like it to you guys, but that's part of their package. They didn't dream about just driving racecars.

"We always saw ourselves as part of the sport, and they see themselves as different from the sport. Not above the sport, just different. Not as much a part of the sport."

Thumbs up

To Petty (who else?), for such an entertaining trip down memory lane and a peek into what he foresees as the future of racing. And, by the way, he pulled off a solid 21st-place finish in the Subway 500, which is respectable when you are racing to keep your team within the top 35 in owner points.

Thumbs down

To the 21 cautions Sunday, which made it difficult for anyone to gain any kind of real rhythm or long-term momentum.

Pit stops

• Look out for Juan Montoya next year at Martinsville, where knowing how to use and save your brakes is so important. Crew chief Donnie Wingo was pleasantly surprised -- and impressed -- to find that Montoya finished Sunday's race with over three-eighths of an inch left on his brake pads. "Here at Martinsville with these cars the way they are, as heavy as they are to stop, that's pretty huge," Wingo said after Montoya's eighth-place finish.

• Greg Biffle had another strong run Sunday, continuing his late-season surge that was interrupted briefly by a tough race in Charlotte the previous week. He finished seventh. The only non-Chaser to finish ahead of him was Ryan Newman, who grabbed second and might have given eventual race-winner Jimmie Johnson all he could handle at the end if not for the final caution flag.

• The Craftsman Truck Series continues be highly entertaining this year, with Mike Skinner capturing his fifth victory of the season this past Saturday at Martinsville to move from 14 points behind Ron Hornaday in the point standings to 11 ahead. It was the fourth time in the past five races they've swapped the top spot. Asked earlier if the Truck drivers had a special code where they left their anger on the track and didn't let it carry over, Skinner delivered one of the best quotes of the weekend when he replied: "I think NASCAR has helped us with that because years ago we could jump out of the truck and beat on somebody and it would cost us $250. Now it's $10,000, $15,000 or $25,000, so NASCAR definitely has helped us out with that."

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.