[media-credit name=”Kirk Schroll” align=”alignright” width=”285″]
[/media-credit]Why have the NASCAR races lately been so boring? NASCAR has been shooting themselves in the foot since the implementation of the COT for 16 races during the 2007 season. The racing has simply not been exciting for the fans this season. TV ratings are down along with attendance. This doesn’t have anything to do with the economy anymore. It is clearly the quality of the races. The economy does have an impact, but the quality of racing is making a bigger impact.
TNT did an amazing job at Daytona with the side-by-side commercials. Now, why wouldn’t they do that this weekend? TV ratings went up a lot from that race!!!! Did they just assume that because Daytona was so good that that same people would automatically follow? That may be true to an extent, but after about 20-30 laps of action at New Hampshire, I think most of those new fans either went to sleep or switched to baseball. NASCAR has ultimately made the cars so identical that the racing is just really awful. I’m very sad that I have to make so many entries like this, but that’s just the way that it is!
There was no need for the COT. The head and neck restraint plus the addition of the HANS device was absolutely fine. There will always be injuries in this sport. Eric McClure got hurt in the COT racing at Talladega in the Nationwide Series. Dario Franchitti was injured at Talladega in 2008 in the Nationwide Series as well. What was the main reason behind the COT? Dale Earnhardt. If Dale Earnhardt did not die at the Daytona 500 back in 2001, you can expect that nothing would have changed. NASCAR didn’t consider the COT after the deaths of Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin. Those drivers weren’t as important to NASCAR as Earnhardt. Naturally, NASCAR didn’t want to see a death of a superstar later down the road, which resulted in the COT.
Earnhardt’s seat belt was not installed properly during that race. That is what resulted in the blunt force trauma when his head slammed into the steering wheel. The crash was not all that hard. However; when your seat belt isn’t installed properly, you can expect a pretty hard hit when physics wins the game. NASCAR has damaged its reputation so bad that those fans that have left might never come back. NASCAR brought back the pack racing at Daytona and Talladega. Cool. Now, NASCAR is complaining that the fans are disloyal for dissing the two-car tandems and the pack racing.
Earth to NASCAR! The fans aren’t the problem. You guys are the problem. The two-car tangos were becoming a royal bore! This isn’t the same pack racing. The style of pack racing we have now involves having to watch your temperatures constantly in order to win the race. We did not have this problem as much as we are having it now with the new package. Something needs to be done with this! Do you fans remember the AMP Energy 500 race from 2009 and how terribly boring the action was? NASCAR required the drivers to not draft while in the turns. That is the problem with the new package. When you are in that turn, you have to not draft in there a lot of the time because of the problems with the temperatures.
Is it possible for NASCAR to revert to the old way? The Chase system needs to go! The COT needs to go! A lot of things need to go! NASCAR is turning into a $50.00 per ticket car show for all of the fans. Can we go back to the day where all the Chevrolet’s were Chevrolet’s and all the Fords were Fords? That would honestly make NASCAR a million times better!
Here is a test for race fans. Do you remember who won the fall Texas spring race in 2010? Do you remember who won at Chicagoland in 2009? Ok, did any of you have to think a little to figure that out? That means that the race wasn’t all that meaningful. Now, what about the 1999 Daytona 500 or the 2000 Cracker Barrel 500? For those of us who watched NASCAR then we could say Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt in the blink of an eye. Why? Those races will always be remembered for how exciting the ENTIRE race was.
NASCAR needs to return to those days! NASCAR used my 1-43 points system that I implemented in my fantasy league starting in 2007, please take my advice on this.
my buddy and I watch the Daytona 500. we thought it was boring as all get-out. We couldn’t see how anything could have been more boring until the races this weekend. There is no competition in this style racing the cars are all strung out around the track it’s like taking a Sunday Drive. The most boring race I’ve ever seen. We have found we’ll find something different to do on Sundays from now on no more NASCAR. they have to get rid of the car tomorrow they have to stop micromanaging the teams you got to throw away the rulebook they have to get back to loving the team’s shut their cars up the way they want and not dictating spring packages and shock packages. they need to let the teams ingenuity dictate how they shut up the cars. the way they’re running now they don’t need anything more than a 50 lap feature like modifieds then the driver support their foot to the floor there will be some excitement in the racing again.
How boring has NASCAR become? I read a book while the race is on to keep from falling asleep. Up to the last few laps many races are a 200 MPH parking lot with an occasional slowing for debris on the track. Sad when the game changers are fuel mileage. It really adds to the thrill of racing to watch video of drivers flip the engine off and coast. To me that should be the same as a delay of game penalty.
We should change the car entirely, not add mandatory caution flags. That would make NASCAR more of a lottery and not actual racing.
Ryan. Bruton has done a fine job for years. Much greater than the suits at NA$CAR. One mistake, and some don’t see it as a mistake, does not the man incompetent. Give him some leewy and he could fix a lot of things.
JJ
Show Low, Az.
NASCAR is getting politicized and it’s annoying me. There will be an article on that later.
JJ, I wouldn’t listen to Bruton. Bruton only sees out of one side of his face. Remember…this is the guy that ruined Bristol.
Arnold, the addition of mandatory cautions is not the answer. The double-file restarts implemented in 2009 didn’t make the races any more exciting.
Thanks, Todd! You just reminded me to update my profile. I graduated high school nearly 2 months ago. Time for college!
Listen to Bruton. Also plow up the 1 1/2 mile dozing (sleeping to those of you in Daytona) episodes. Go to Iowa and Road America.
Go to dirt. Bring back Duquoin, Sacramento, Phoenix Fairgrounds, Indiana Fairgrounds, Springfield. Big cars and stocks both used to run there.
NA$CAR needs to ask somebody that knows something.
I am first of all a ford fan. Today the drivers are only interested in money. there is no loyalty. there needs to be more of a balance of manufactures. Long green flag runs make racing boring. I agree with burton smith, more cautions are needed. letting the field get streched out is not good.
Super article for a high chool student. In a nut shell you have hit the nail right on the head, and I’ve been a NASCAR (old school) since 1960. As you can plainely see it’s not the old NASCAR that’s driving fans off, but Brian France’s new NA$CAR that is. GREAT article!
I agree with this article. When everything’s the same there is no competition. This is the “oh, everything has to be fair and equal so no one gets hurt feelings” mentality. Some win, some lose. Quit trying to level the playing field. Sports are boring when there is no competition and everything is just cookie cutter.