1. It's been 16 years since the All-Star Race went under the lights at Charlotte, a move that made the event a hit. Has it lost any of its luster since then?

David Caraviello: I will admit, much of me is surprised the event became this big. This, after all, is the same group of "all-stars" that competes against one another every other week. But people seem to love it, and that short-track action on the big track does play well under the lights.

Mark Aumann: I think the actual race is still exciting. From a neutral observer's standpoint, though, I'm not sure the pre-race pomp and circumstance is worthy.

Raygan Swan: What Mark, you don't have 3 Doors Down on your iPod? I think it still has loads of appeal. Anytime you see guys racing for a cool million is going to exciting.

David Caraviello: Mark, I will agree wholeheartedly with that one. The wrestling-like introductions and mosh pit have really gotten old. It's like David Stern recently told NBA teams about their intros: Tone it down.

Mark Aumann: I'd like to see it run more as a "heat race elimination" format, so that only the best cars make it to the actual "all-star race." I think there are way too many cars in the final event (read more).

David Caraviello: Agreed again. I liked the old "survivor" format that Ryan Newman won several years ago.

Mark Aumann: And I don't really see the point of adding anybody who is breathing and has a car to the Showdown. What's all-star worthy about that?

Raygan Swan: Same reason I don't agree with the fan vote (vote here). This is a race for winners.

David Caraviello: They got rid of the inversion, now they need to get rid of the fan vote as well. You have all these drivers with their little advertising campaigns to get in. Please.

Mark Aumann: It's gimmicky, but at the same time, the race itself has had great drama. So I can live with it. It's a welcome change from points racing each week.

Raygan Swan: Yeah, drama as in the Busch brother wrecking each other (watch video). But this year has some nostalgia with Dale Jarrett running his last race.

David Caraviello: Humpy is on to something with how relatively short this race is. Several points races could take note that folks like this dash-for-cash stuff. Of course, they stretch it out to three hours anyway. And as Mark alluded earlier, the race has given the sport some fantastic moments. Perhaps the last really great one was Jeff Gordon winning in a backup car after they restarted the event due to rain. When was that, 2002? Boy, that left the anti-24 crowd howling.

All-Star Race

SPEED will again broadcast the Sprint Showdown and All-Star Race. Tune in at 7 p.m. ET on May 17 to watch rivals race for $1 million -- and the fireworks!

• All-Star coverage

Mark Aumann: It's certainly innovative, and perhaps other tracks should take a serious look at how they present their product. I'd like to see some variety to the schedule, rather than just a series of 500-mile races. Funny how this race matches people's attention span almost perfectly.

Raygan Swan: An inverted field?

David Caraviello: Raygan, no inverted fields please. Anywhere. But be a little more selective as to who gets in. Again, I can't shake the point that this really isn't an "all-star" race. Maybe we need more heat races and a smaller main field. Of course, that would mean tweaking the format again, but they do that every year anyway.

Mark Aumann: Yeah, I agree with David. There's still room to improve this. And I know sponsors want TV time, but at the expense of a watered-down product?

David Caraviello: Really, what separates this from the Shootout at Daytona? The $1 million at the end? (read more)

Raygan Swan: Wins are a lot harder to come by than poles.

Mark Aumann: But the fields are almost exactly the same.

David Caraviello: Thus the quandary. To make it more selective, a true "all-star" event, you need fewer cars, But fewer cars don't make for a better race.

Mark Aumann: Yeah, it's all about having a unique identity, and I think the All-Star Race can achieve that. But right now it's the same product in a different package.

David Caraviello: Of course, it's done pretty well to this point. Humpy and Co. are evidently doing something right.

2. Kyle Busch has won three races and is leading the points. Is he this year's Jimmie Johnson?

Mark Aumann: You know, I looked that up. At this point last season, Johnson had four wins to Jeff Gordon's three. But Gordon had a huge lead in the points. In a way, I think Kyle's season looks more like Gordon's 2007. I wonder if Carl Edwards compares closer to Johnson?

David Caraviello: Yeah, what moron came up with this question? At this time last season, Johnson was indeed looking up to Gordon. But if we're talking about whether Kyle can wind up dominating the year like Johnson's done much of the last two seasons, the answer is an unequivocal yes.

Raygan Swan: He has seven more wins to go, but Jimmie already had four wins this time last season. So anything is possible.

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Well, every sport needs a villain. No more than NASCAR. That's the basic fabric of the weekly "soap opera" aspect. So Kyle Busch is the perfect foil. It was fun to watch fans react when he took the lead Saturday night. It's the whole "morality play" issue. Good vs. evil.

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MARK AUMANN

Mark Aumann: And how much does the Chase render the entire issue moot? No matter how big a lead Busch builds, it all goes out the window after Richmond. However, the momentum he's carrying right now is impressive. There's nobody out there who is that good everywhere, like Kyle's been in 2008.

Raygan Swan: I agree, momentum across three national series is enough to make you believe you can dominate the entire season.

David Caraviello: And all of the Gibbs cars are good every week. That's what concerns me about Edwards, those Roush teams seem a little spotty sometimes. But then again, Gibbs has a much better track record for sharing information.

Raygan Swan: And I think everyone is in Kyle's ear telling him he can do it and that is fueling his drive. That and, umm, the incessant booing from fans (read more).

Mark Aumann: Interesting how he seems to thrive on the negative energy thrown his way, almost as if he is on a mission to prove everyone wrong. I wonder how much last year sticks in his craw. Motivation from a perceived slight is a very powerful tool.

David Caraviello: Yeah, that booing is going to backfire on them. All they're doing is driving him. Thing is, they're all turning him into more of a villain. Hard to come across as a nice guy when everybody's on you all the time.

Raygan Swan: His mom said he's always had a defiant personality and whatever the kid next to him was doing, Kyle would do better.

Mark Aumann: Interesting how a lot of folks are doing the Intimidator comparison. I find him more like a young Darrell Waltrip.

David Caraviello: Yeah, I don't get the Earnhardt stuff, either. Earnhardt was a larger-than-life, polarizing figure. Busch doesn't come across that way. Of course, he's also 23.

Raygan Swan: I think Jimmie Johnson dominated because not all the teams were caught up on the new car setups and programs. But this season everyone is caught up. Yes, Kyle will make the Chase and win more races. But I don't know about 10.

David Caraviello: I will say, judging from the e-mails I've received in the wake of the Darlington race, that Kyle has a lot more fans out there than it seems. People are writing saying he's made racing exciting again. Can't disagree with that.

Raygan Swan: Bottom line: Fans get behind winners. That's all it is, and yes, his exciting style helps.

Mark Aumann: Well, every sport needs a villain. No more than NASCAR. That's the basic fabric of the weekly "soap opera" aspect. So Kyle Busch is the perfect foil. It was fun to watch fans react when he took the lead Saturday night. It's the whole "morality play" issue. Good vs. evil.

Raygan Swan: Kyle even looks like a villain. Most of the drivers out there aren't above 5-foot-7, and here comes Kyle.

David Caraviello: While I think Kyle gets a raw deal from the fans, he could work on his public image a bit. A little humility goes a long way in the grandstand. Sometimes he's so defiant, it's grating. Like how he answers so many media questions with, "Well, obviously ...", which comes across as condescending. Of course, no one's probably ever sat him down and told him that.

Raygan Swan: Or when he says, "Mess with the bull, you get the horns." I hate that. It's so John Wayne and artificial coming from a 23-year-old.

David Caraviello: I thought that was Menzer's line?

Raygan Swan: Yeah, Kyle got it from him.

Mark Aumann: Well, Joe knows bull, that's for sure. But I'd rather hear that than "the (fill in the blank sponsor/car make) was awesome today and I'd like to thank the guys on the crew for a swell job ..."

David Caraviello: Either way, love him or hate him, you have to completely respect the dude's ability to go fast and win races. I think sometimes fans get so wrapped up in the bad vs. good stuff that they fail to recognize sheer talent. And in this case, that's too bad.

3. Greg Biffle's frustration boiled over Saturday night at Darlington. Will that impact his stated intention to re-sign with Roush Fenway Racing?

Mark Aumann: It's hard to say. At first glance, I thought it was just frustration at having such a good car and it all falling apart. But then I wondered if it might be the tip of the iceberg, of a chasm a little deeper between Biffle and the team.

Raygan Swan: You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheel, is another adage I hate. But it pertains to Biffle last weekend.

David Caraviello: You know, the Biff has been saying for a while now that he's going to re-up with Roush, but it hasn't happened. And the longer it takes to happen, the more you wonder whether it ever will.

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You know, the Biff has been saying for a while now that he's going to re-up with Roush, but it hasn't happened. And the longer it takes to happen, the more you wonder whether it ever will.

”

DAVID CARAVIELLO

Raygan Swan: Other than the No. 20 car in 2009 or beyond, if Tony chooses to leave, there's not much better out there. He can be frustrated all he wants, but he's in a good ride.

Mark Aumann: I'm certain he's been frustrated that he hasn't been able to put together finishes like several of his teammates. But is it because of team issues? I really don't have the answer.

David Caraviello: Well, there is that fourth car at Childress coming on line next season. I think Biffle would fit right in with those other guys at RCR, if he ever chose to make a move.

Raygan Swan: Yeah but there's the points issue, right? I'm not saying Biffle has any problem with qualifying up front, but who wants the headache?

David Caraviello: The way those RCR cars have run the last two seasons, I don't think getting inside the top 35 would be much of an issue. But of course we're jumping the gun here. Thus far he's shown every intention of staying.

Mark Aumann: Well, there is precedence for someone leaving Roush for RCR. Didn't a fellow named Jeff Burton do it?

David Caraviello: Yes, and it's worked out pretty well for him.

Mark Aumann: On one hand, Jack Roush has been in Biffle's corner. But on the other, Roush has let veterans go in order to promote younger, less-costly talent. If I was a betting man, I'd say Biffle is staying. But I wouldn't want to set the odds.

David Caraviello: Right now he's at Roush, and he says he's staying at Roush. Does any team have a wider gulf in how its cars are running? From the excellence of Edwards to the surging of David Ragan, to the problems of Jamie McMurray and Matt Kenseth. These guys are all over the place. No wonder they don't have the best reputation for sharing information among teams.

Raygan Swan: After three tops-fives early in the season and now finding himself with a 43rd-place finish in Darlington, Biffle was just mad. He's staying put.

David Caraviello: In this business, I'll believe that when the ink dries.

Mark Aumann: Well, the other thing that plays in this is NASCAR's mandate for Jack to reduce his team from five cars to four. Is this a way for Jack to make that transition?

David Caraviello: I thought they had a deal to eventually shift one car over to Yates if needed?

Mark Aumann: But will Yates exist in some shape or form when we get to that point?

Raygan Swan: And who would that be? McMurray or Biffle?

David Caraviello: I think Yates will still be around. They've run much better than expected.

Raygan Swan: And without major sponsorship. My hat goes off to that organization.

Mark Aumann: Travis Kvapil's effort at Darlington was impressive. Plus, I loved the retro paint scheme. And I wonder how many cars Lafayette Ford sold on Monday?

Raygan Swan: Talk about a big ROI.

David Caraviello: What the heck is an ROI? Is Raygan dropping dealership talk on us?

Raygan Swan: Return on investment. I know no dealership lingo. But Used Cars is a good movie.

David Caraviello: Raygan, that film came out when you were like 4 years old.

Mark Aumann: Well, Track Smack is always 5 percent below dealer invoice. And we offer cash incentives.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writers.