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[/media-credit]A competitive chase is all any fan wants for the last ten races of the Sprint Cup Series season. As we stand right now, the chase races could use a little adjustment. A few qualities a chase track should have are; competitive racing, a unique track layout and no other track in the chase to compare to it. Right now the Chase for the Sprint Cup includes the following tracks; Chicagoland, New Hampshire, Dover, Talladega, Charlotte, Kansas, Martinsville, Texas, Phoenix and Homestead Miami. Some of these tracks fit like a puzzle piece into the chase format, some others don’t have the smooth edges to fit into the chase puzzle.
Tracks I believe deserve a spot in the chase are; New Hampshire, Dover, Talladega, Charlotte, Martinsville and Homestead Miami. These tracks are uniquely different from each other and always put on a show. The “Magic Mile” in New Hampshire is a tough little track. Your car needs to have the perfect set up to compete and you need great strategy to win. Last year strategy hurt Clint Bowyer who was leading on the last lap until he ran out of fuel and Tony Stewart passed him for the win. The “Monster Mile” in Dover is a great tough track that features great racing. Every lap around Dover there is threat for disaster. Anything can happen at any minute there, that’s a track you should need to conquer to be called a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship.
Talladega is always the wild card of the chase and that’s an aspect we need in the chase, to be a true champion you’ll need to survive a race at Talladega. Charlotte is the classic mile and a half track but its curved front straightaway provides a different aspect for the track. If your car can stay out front all day and stay competitive for 500 miles at Charlotte, then one day you’ll be considered one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR.
Martinsville is the ‘ole short track, a beating and banging track. This is one of the toughest tracks on the circuit even though it’s the smallest. It’s a perfect fit for the chase due to its small but tough track structure. Homestead Miami is a great track to determine the champion because we only go there for one race, no team will have an advantage. To become the champion you’ll need to outdo your opponent all weekend.
The Chase for the Sprint Cup doesn’t just include six races, it has ten. Four tracks that are uniquely different than any others in the chase need to be added to accommodate the six I mentioned of being a great fit for the chase. I believe Darlington should be added to the chase races because there is no other track like it. “The Lady in Black” has a track layout that doesn’t have its corners matching. Turns one and two are very different then turns three and four, that’s a great way to determine who can set up their car the best to get around the track. Another track that I think should be added to the track is Pocono. Pocono features three completely different corners that need to be mastered one by one. With the newly repaved surface, it now is a very fast track and a great fit for the chase.
The third new track I think should be added to the chase is Indianapolis. The “Brickyard” is a very unique and special track. Indianapolis is one of the few tracks that is a rectangle shape rather than an oval. It features very fast speeds and requires the perfect race to be victorious. The final puzzle piece to complete the chase should be a road course. I can’t pick a certain road course to be in the chase but any road course will do. After this past weekends’ race in Sonoma, it brought up the annual question of should a road course race be in the chase. I say yes because to be a true champion, you need to posses all racing skills that includes road course racing as well. To be a NASCAR champion you need to be able to turn left and right.
My perfect chase is very unique and different than anything else. To be a champion in NASCAR you need to show tremendous skill and talent. If one day NASCAR tweaks the chase schedule, expect some of the changes I stated to be put in the chase. To shake up the chase format like this isn’t easy but it can be done. One day we’ll have the perfect chase and we can say that the champion is a true champion.
Having no Chase at all is all most fans want for the last 10 races of the season. The Chase has proven to be a failure. Last year was an exception rather than the rule. The points racing is worse than the “regular season” and the regular season has become useless to. Lets get back to crowning a true 36 race champ and get the racing back. Nascar is all about points racing now and that is killing the sport.