Daytona 500 2012: Restored Pack Racing Will Cause Controversy

By restoring the Daytona 500's "pack mentality" this year, NASCAR has put the fans before the drivers.

And, judging by Saturday's Budweiser Shootout exhibition, there are bound to be plenty of upset drivers after Sunday's big race.

NASCAR's new rules this year force drivers into pack racing, which caused three multi-car wrecks on Saturday, including an eight-car pileup near the end that left Jeff Gordon upside down.

We've seen what happens when NASCAR values ratings over safety. Gordon himself was very outspoken after Dan Wheldon's tragic death in October, saying he was concerned about NASCAR's oval tracks.

Gordon said after Wheldon's crash at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, via the LA Times:

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Under the current conditions, I wouldn't say that the cars are safe enough to race on those types of high-banked, 1.5-mile race tracks.

I think between the owners, the drivers in that series, you'll see some big changes coming. What those changes will be, I'm not sure. Obviously, under current conditions you can't climb a wheel [of another car] at 200-plus mph and get airborne and not expect there to be serious consequences.

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The problem is, some "big changes" have come, but they're not exactly a step in the right direction. Drivers haven't complained yet, even after Saturday's wrecks, but you can bet when we get to the heart of the season there will be controversy. In fact, I expect some drivers to be unhappy after this year's Daytona 500.

It must be said that not all drivers are opposed to pack racing, but there are enough who feel their safety is being neglected, and it continues to be a hot topic in racing.

There are always going to be wrecks in NASCAR; that's inevitable. But there are measures that can be taken to at least make things safer out on the track.

Those measures will be absent at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday.