NASCAR is by far the most popular form of auto racing in the United States—everybody knows this already. Every time I read about how big it is I wonder why. I have never really liked NASCAR and I have five reasons why.
1. Technology
One of the things that I have always loved about racing is the technology in the cars. NASCAR cars are very, very low tech. They still don't use fuel injection. They don't use sequential transmissions. They don't use carbon fiber. They don't use ceramic brakes. Why have all this amazing technology and not use it? If they would, they would actually have fast cars.
2. Restrictor Plate Races
Restrictor plate races are by far the most boring racing events on TV. There isn't good passing. The cars stay in one big group. One wreck can take out everybody. It's terrible racing. The COT makes this problem slightly less bad, but as a whole, Daytona and Talladega are crap races in my opinion.
3. Unneeded Drama
Racing is going to have wrecks—especially in a series where rubbing is an accepted part of the sport. Drivers need to get over themselves when they get wrecked by a little bump. It's not like they haven't done it to somebody before. If you get taken out there is no need to go starting fights. Settle it like real men on the track or talk it over.
4. Stupid Rules
Free pass? Lucky dog? If you get a lap down too bad. Get it back yourself. Drivers should have to earn their lap back not have it given to them. NASCAR has too many tech inspection rules. Let teams change things. It might make that crappy new car good if they are allowed to work with the cars. Car set up is part of racing. Let teams do custom work on their cars.
5. The Fans
I worked at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for almost four years. Nothing was more annoying than some of the NASCAR fans. Fighting because the other guy is wearing a different driver's shirt? Really? It happens.
My biggest beef with the fans are how biased they are. If Jr. gets wrecked it's always everybody else's fault. And whoever wrecked him should be kicked out and all that stuff is said. But if Jr. does the same to somebody else it's a good pass. Fans need to just want to see good racing.
If you want good racing watch the IRL or the ALMS.
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3 months ago
if you dont like NASCAR why are you writing about it?
3 months ago
I agree with you on the free pass and the lucky dog, but those rules were strictly safety precautions to prevent drivers from racing back to the caution which is what used to happen. To say NASCAR cars are very low tech is just plain silly, especially with the innovations safety wise in the past seven years. And with the creation of the COT car as well and the introduction of the Safer Barriers at all tracks. And since you seem to be such a big fan of the IRL, hot headed drivers such as Tony Kanaan and Danica Patrick always seem to go off the deep end when they are involved in an accident. Just look at the way they acted this year at the Indy 500. That is just part of the sport. And saying that the IRL and the American Le Mans Series has better racing than any form of stock car racing for that matter just makes me laugh. In the IRL there are 2 or 3 powerhouse teams you see winning everyone of their races and the racing in general is much less exciting as the cars are spread out most the time and the same goes for the Le Mans Series. It is two completely different types of racing that merits different types of racing fans.
from 3 months ago
I can't stand Danica's tantrums either and it needs to be gone in all racing. As for powerhouse teams, how many races has Joe Gibbs won this year? How many did Hendrick win last year? Nascar has powerhouse teams too and its getting worse.
p.s. Tony George, owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, had the safer barrier developed. It didn't start in NASCAR.
3 months ago
NASCAR may be "lower tech" that IRL or F1, but at least it's interesting. And Chad is right the Lucky Dog is a SAFETY messure, it wasn't made just because NASCAR thought it'd be cute. To agree further with Chad, have you ever heard Princess Danica on the radio after she has a problem? She needs to stop whining. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the street. Have you watched an IRL race lately? I'm a Graham Rahal fan, and seeing Chip Ganassi racing win nearly every single race is definitely getting old.
One last point- restrictor plate races aren't boring. If they're so boring, why are they the most popular races in a Cup season? With passes left and right, spectacular wrecks and ultra high speeds, before the COT they were some of the most entertaining races to watch.
If you don't agree, just go and watch Scott Dixon win every week. That's real interesting.
from 3 months ago
The reason I think restrictor plate races are boring is because it is all one big pack. The only reason there is passing is because somebody gets out of line. There is hardly any one on one passing.
3 months ago
Well, there's usually two packs (not to split hairs lol). Restrictor plate races are all about 'who can I draft with?' and is a huge measure of how much respect a driver has earned from his competitors. It's simply unlike any other race.
And if you haven't noticed most of the NASCAR races are getting pretty boring lol.
from 3 months ago
That is because the COT makes it so you can't race side by side. The aerodynamics of it are bad for passing.
3 months ago
Exactly. I just hope NASCAR fixes it. The COT wasn't all that bad last year but it seems to have just gotten worse. Maybe it's my imagination...
3 months ago
I'll start by saying that my preferred form of racing is open-wheels on road courses. However I have issues with F1 precisely BECAUSE of technology. The overabundance of it is what's created the nasty performance gap that makes it pretty much impossible for most teams to ever have a shot at winning a race. That's why I always liked Champ Car. I don't like fully-spec series, though - I like variety. The allowance of developing certain part of the chassis is not enough for IRL - it needs more engines and chassis selections(maybe take a page out of Grand-Am's book in that regard).
I'm starting to digress a bit here, though. In the end, I do enjoy NASCAR simply BECAUSE there's so little technology driving the series. That allows for a very small performance gap and even though the CoT has removed diversity among the cars, teams are still able to do a lot with the engines to make up for it.
No matter what you do, you'll never be able to eliminate superteams. There will ALWAYS be a group of guys who can do things better than the others. Champ Car in its final year was a spec series, and Newman/Haas/Lanigan was STILL able to dominate it. They even hold the sole win for a Champ Car team in IRL right now, which speaks volumes for their ability(can't wait for Watkins Glen!). But the thing with NASCAR is that despite the Gibbs domination(and Hendrick last year), EVERY driver of reasonable skill has a reasonable chance at taking a win.
I personally like restrictor plates because you absolutely canNOT get more different from my preferred form of racing. I LIKE the big packs and the almost-constant passing that occurs in it(seriously, at the upcoming Daytona race write down who's in what position as the lap tracker rolls by, then see how many of those people are still in those positions next time it rolls by - it'll be less than half of them), all of which are extremely difficult in open-wheels. Sure, I prefer hard-fought well-earned overtakes(hence why I like road courses), but when you're racing THAT close, EVERY overtake, no matter how easy it appears, is well-earned.
You have an excellent point about the fans, though. But there is a problem with your perception... The overall percentage of crazy, rowdy NASCAR fans is no higher than in any other sport. Its just that NASCAR is so huge that these guys are in larger actual numbers, and these guys are most often the ones who make it to a race.
The fighting over "shirts," or to be more specific certain drivers, is not a problem limited to NASCAR. I've been to every Cleveland Grand Prix(that MUST COME BACK NEXT YEAR) since 1993, except for '03, '04, and '05(due to personal financial issues). In '06(which was also almost added my list of non-attendance. Many thanks to Eric Mauk) I was nearly in a fistfight because I supported A.J. Allmendinger instead of Paul Tracy. In '07 I was nearly decked by a(fellow) Graham Rahal fan for applauding Paul Tracy's victory. Its not a problem limited to NASCAR.
Its not likely I'll ever be completely converted to NASCAR and treat it as the god of all motorsport like many of its fans do. But I feel its good entertainment when there's nothing else good on the TV.
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