Waltrip, White see bright side of sport's problems (cont'd)

"Maybe, just maybe, it'll mean there will be people who aren't all running the same speed -- and there will be lapped cars, people to pass and picks, and a lot of different scenarios panning out. And maybe that will make it more fun to watch."

Thin out the herd?

Along with the legitimate concerns about the struggling economy come concerns about NASCAR being able to consistently find enough funded teams to fill their starting grids for each race.

There almost certainly are going to be events this year, especially in the Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series, where less than the desired full field takes the green flag at the beginning of some races. There is a fear that there might even be some Cup races where less than the usual field of 43 cars will take the green.

But again, Waltrip and White dispute that this necessarily is as bad a deal for NASCAR as it might seem on the surface.

"In my opinion, no, it's not a bad thing at all," Waltrip said. "There are always waves of cars that come and go. We started the 2007 season with the most competitive cars in the history of NASCAR. There is no way to argue that. There were 53 cars that had money when we started the 2007 season.

"We're going to start 2009 with considerably less than that, but there are going to be opportunities for guys like Tommy Baldwin and Phil Parsons [to perhaps field independent cars in certain races]. There will be opportunities for some guys to come in and learn what it takes to have teams in NASCAR at the Cup level. So I don't think it's a bad thing at all."

White added: "I absolutely agree with Michael. I don't think it's a bad thing. I think if there are 20 quality cars and quality drivers on the race track, there are going to be people in the grandstands watching them and pulling for their favorite guy. This is one of those things where it's a little bit of a downturn.

"Certainly 43 cars [in every Cup field] is the goal and we'd all like to see that -- but I also agree with Michael about this creating some opportunity for new blood to come in and see if they can figure it out. Have a shot. That's the American way."

Ah, there is nothing quite like a top dog from Toyota espousing the American Way.

Plus Waltrip really has it figured out. Laughing, he added truthfully that "all you need is enough people for Dale Jr. and Jeff Gordon to pass and everybody will be happy."

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.