Cheering for Disaster: Have NASCAR Fans Gone Too Far in Applauding Wrecks?

The one thing that separates NASCAR from many other sport is its fans.  Some of the most vocal, passionate and dedicated fans in America can be found in NASCAR.  With this type of fan base, the one aspect that is frustrating and confusing is how these same fans can cheer when certain drivers have misfortune on the race track.

Earlier today, during Sprint Cup Qualifying, Jeff Gordon started his run, but right at the exit of turn two the car snapped loose and went into the outside wall.  Immediately, you could hear a resounding cheer from the stands.  I just had to simply shake my head and just wonder at this type of response.

Mike Joy, who was broadcasting the event along with Larry McReynolds and Darrell Waltrip, said afterwards that he's glad the sport has such vocal fans, but "How can you cheer something like that?"  That question is one that has been asked a lot over the years, especially with Gordon.

Since the mid-1990s when Gordon won 33 races in the span of three seasons, he definitively became the driver that fans loved to hate.  However, they began hating him not because of the races won, but for other reasons.  

Fans created shirts that questioned his sexuality and made references to him covering it up by marrying his then-wife, Brooke.

As a fan, I refrain from getting into that kind of behavior, because I know that years ago, one of the most popular drivers in the sport had his share of hated fans.

Dale Earnhardt had a time in is career that fans loved to hate him, but at the same time, you didn't hear the fans get in a frenzy when he wrecked.

When Earnhardt crashed at the end of the 2001 Daytona 500, I did not cheer the wreck. I was not an Earnhardt fan, nor was I an Earnhardt Jr. fan, but my reaction has no bearing on the driver I cheered for.  When I found out he died, I had as much sadness as any die-hard Earnhardt fan.

If a similar incident happened to Gordon or any other driver, and the fans decide to cheer,it is absurd and disgraceful.

Can NASCAR do something to curb this type of reaction, probably not.  Truthfully, it isn't NASCAR's responsibility because they cannot control how the fans react to incidents. With out the fans, there is no NASCAR.

The real responsibility falls on the fans themselves.  The people that are in the grandstands need to keep some control over their emotions and know when it is right to cheer.

Gordon puts on a straight face as the fans boo him while he's going around the track during driver introductions, but their reaction must have some effect on him.  When he hit the wall in qualifying, he said on the radio to Steve Letarte, "That hurt," and coasted into the garage.  With the engine shut off, he had to hear the reaction from the fans.

Since last season, Gordon has been battling back pain.  When he hit the wall, the impact had to have an effect on him physically.  However, hearing the fans cheer his wreck must've had some mental effect on him, even if he doesn't acknowledge it.  The pain from the wreck will subside, but the effect from the fans continues week in and week out.

Looking back on this incident and many other incidents in the past, what needs to be asked is have the NASCAR fans gone too far in cheering for a driver's misfortunes?  If they have not, when will they?

The only people who can truly answer these questions are the fans themselves.