NBC Sports analysts give thoughts on 2014 Chase, what we’ll see in 2015
Play: NASCAR Fantasy Live | Related: Burton, Letarte explain Jeff Gordon’s major decision
By now, it’s safe to say that last season’s revamped Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and the drama surrounding its race action immediately left us speechless, but eventually kept us talking.
With NBC Sports’ NASCAR tenure set to resume this season after nine years away from the sport, its all-star crew of Jeff Burton, Dale Jarrett, Steve Letarte and Kyle Petty gave their thoughts last week at Charlotte Motor Speedway Media Tour presented by Technocom on the new format — what they enjoyed and what we’re bound to see in 2015.
According to these NASCAR heavyweights, it sounds like we’re going to see even more intense action than last year, as hard as that is to imagine.
Jeff Burton, 21-time Sprint Cup Series winner
“I’ve always believed that I was giving 100 percent. That no matter where I was in points, no matter what was going on, that I brought everything that I could bring. This points structure made you bring more. And it made the teams find a way to be better. And I think in our sport, that’s what this is all about. It’s about being better. You’re good in April? Hey, that’s great. But if you’re not good enough in August and September, it ain’t good enough.
“The idea that you have to improve throughout the whole year — that if you win a race, you’re in — but points still matter. I think all of that is really cool. I would hate it if points didn’t matter. I know that everybody wanted the guy that won the most races and the right races to be the champion, but points should still matter. It’s always been a big part of this sport and it still currently is today. So the fact that points matter, the fact that winning covers up all other mistakes and the fact that you have to be right at the right time; that’s what a crunch moment is all about.
“As a fan of all kinds of sports, the reason I like the Super Bowl is because if you don’t win, you lose. You go home. … And that’s the mentality that has been brought to in racing today. You have to win. Or you have to compete at an exceptionally high level or you’re not going to win a championship; you’re not going to get done what you need to get done. I like the fact that it’s made it harder for the teams, it’s made it more intense for the teams. The more intense and the more stressful it is for the competitors, the more fun it is to watch. And this points structure has been without a doubt all those things.”
Dale Jarrett, NASCAR Hall of Famer
“Jeff put it better than I think I’ve ever heard it put it before. Everything that he’s saying there, he was spot-on with that. I think if you look back over the years, no matter how long we’ve been around this, whenever you have made things more difficult for the drivers, it’s more entertaining for the fans and I think that’s exactly what this did.
“Last year at (Media Tour), we heard a lot of drivers … say ‘Look, I race as hard as I can every week, I can’t do anymore to try to win than what I do.’ I understand that. I know the mentality. We’ve been there. We’ve done that. But, I think it proved out that if there is something different, just as Jeff was pointing out, you have to dig down and find another way to make yourself a part of that.
“Kyle Busch said something (last week) about his issue at Talladega and what happened to him. That was very unfortunate, because he had done everything right to get himself moved on. He said, ‘You know, if I’d got the job done a week before, and won that race, Talladega wouldn’t have mattered.’ So they’ve got a different mentality.
“There’s no perfect system out there, because everybody is not going to agree with it, but my gosh, we came pretty close. That was as exciting a 10-race schedule as I’ve ever seen in this sport.”
Steve Letarte, 15-time Sprint Cup Series-winning crew chief
“I think that’s going to be one of the biggest stories, is how are teams going to adapt? I was only able to take part in one (season) of this new Chase format and I know we learned a lot. It was a great season with a little bit of a letdown in the second round, but there were a lot of teams that have that same feeling. It’s going to be an interesting take on ‘How can I approach these 10 races differently? Is there a different way that maybe my team should’ve moved through? What crew chiefs are going to have a different approach? What drivers are going to put different weights on different race tracks?’
“You have to be at Homestead. I think that’s what’s unique about this playoff style. No matter how good of a year you’ve had, if you slip up, you can overcome with a win, but that’s the only way you’re going to overcome. And these short, three-race segments you really have to win or have a great three races to move forward. I think we saw some big hitters, some championship favorites last year get knocked out as the playoffs went on and I think that’s a big difference from in the years past where you maybe always had a chance. This year, your chances, your book can be closed. Your year can be over. And then we go to Homestead and I don’t think we could’ve asked for a better race at Homestead last year. I don’t think that’s going to be a rarity.
“I think when it’s all on the line, the four teams that have a chance are probably always going to find that next level to step up and put on a great race.”
Kyle Petty, eight-time Sprint Cup Series winner
“Being at the race track and being down there with it. … Dale’s been in a championship chase, I was with my father (Richard Petty) in the late 70s and you get down and it’s two guys working for a championship and the intensity in those two teams was always overwhelming. When The King and Darrell (Waltrip) went at it, man, it was crazy that year. I didn’t know what was going to happen that year and I was just a kid. But the intensity went to a different place and Darrell and The King went to a different place, as far as what they did on the race track and how they performed on the race track. Great drivers and great teams always find a way to step up.
“What we saw in the Chase was a lot of teams find that ability to step up. Step up in that first round; step up in that second round. The intensity just got greater and greater and greater. To be a part of that and to be able to try to convey to the race fans at home exactly what Dale Jr. was feeling or Steve Letarte felt sitting on that pit box last year or what Dale Jarrett felt in the car when he was racing for the championship going into that last race and the butterflies and how he felt. I think that’s what this Chase brings and that’s what we can bring.”