Busch, More and Less

There are a lot of things about Kyle Busch that are “less”. He’s reckless, relentless, and a prick. OK, the last one isn’t a “less”, but I could use less of it. However, there was something totally different I saw in Kyle Busch this weekend, he was careless.

First be clear of the difference. While I’m all on board with the fact that what happened with him and Jr. at Richmond was a “racing deal”, it was also based out of Busch being over aggressive and really not caring about his fellow competitors. There’s no need for us all to go down that road, but we’ve seen a lot of similar instances where he over drives the car and as a result someone else is severely put at a disadvantage. (e.g. Johnny Benson) That’s him though, that’s how he drives. I don’t have to agree with it, but it’s exactly what we’re going to get every week.

What happened with Shrubbie this weekend was totally different in my mind. I didn’t get to see enough of the Truck and Nationwide series races to truly break them down, but I did see every lap of the pre happy hour practice and the entire race Sunday. In both he had major incidents that crippled his cars and both were very unlike Busch. Neither saw him over drive the car, neither saw him make a move that put him in jeopardy, what it seemed like to me was that for a split second he had a lack of focus and in that split second he paid a price.

I’m not 100% convinced that all the travel and additional racing played the only role in his mental breakdowns, but it has to be in the debate. I know that he’s flying top notch private jets, has travel arrangements that rival rock stars, and most of all is young…but he’s not partying all night and getting up to work a desk job. Driving these cars/trucks in these hot conditions take a toll on the body and mind.

The truth of the matter is that the Sprint Cup has to be his number 1 priority. And he is putting together the kind of year that people dream of. He’s the favorite to take the championship at this point and 9 times out of 10 is a factor in the finish of a race. I know everyone is out here preaching that Kyle Busch is the greatest thing since Joey Lagano, but we’ve seen people put together great years and fall back into mediocrity. Do I expect that to happen? No. However, when you have this kind of shot at the biggest honor in your sport, you have to take it and take it seriously. Yes, he may help in getting the owners point championship in the trucks and yes, he may be a factor in the Nationwide cars. However, if he accomplished both, but doesn’t get the Cup do you think it will be worth it?

Maybe he just had an off week. The thing is, he didn’t run out of talent, he didn’t get bad equipment, and no one else forced his errors. He wadded up 2 perfectly good cars in 2 very lackadaisical situations. If I’m Joe Gibbs I wouldn’t put the handcuffs on him yet. However, I would pay attention over the coming weeks and if similar situations start to occur then I would have to look at stepping in.

F18

In order to move on with my thoughts and my life I guess I need to address the turn 3 fracas with Kyle Busch and Dale Jr. As a fan I was violently angry and shared in a profanity laced tirade from the back stretch. However, trying remove my biases I've still got my issues.

My first being that Kyle Busch keeps getting a pass for "racing deals". Things happen, but there has to be some responsibility or culpability in everything. Kyle Busch is consistently reckless with his car and his attitude. If that exact scenario plays out with Jeff Burton or Mark Martin then it would be easy to write off as a major disappointment, but Shrub seems to do it over and over. If there was a teenager who constantly sped through your neighborhood and eventually ran down a kid who ran out in the street to get his ball...would that be a "driving deal"? I know, it's a little extreme of a jump but time and time again this kid's actions are written off. The announcers are always baffled at how Kyle Busch can run with the car sideways, but I'm under the impression if he could figure out how to drive with the car straight he might finish more races. Is he talented? You better believe it. He can wheel anything with 4 wheels under it. I'm just not ready to sign over the world to him because of his quick start.

I've heard several defenses with the biggest seeming to be a reference to Earnhardt Sr. and Texas Terry. Really? This kid racks up some wins and we feel we need to compare him to a legend? Let's forget the fact that once you've added up multiple championships that you get a bit more leeway in on track incidents. Instead let's focus on the biggest difference, when Dale Sr emerged from the #3 Chevy he made a point to apologize. Terry didn't seem to care what he said, but he still said it. Maybe he didn't mean it, maybe he did, but regardless he showed remorse. Kyle Busch is a cocky prick who feels there's no need to accept any responsiblity. We're just taking up space in his world and we need to get out of the way.

So with all that said...I'm over it. I'm moving on to Darlington and gearing up for another great race. In the words of my dear wife who felt the need to text me as I was walking through the crowd at RIR Saturday night.

F18

Talladega Afternoon

So apparently I got married at just the right time. Last year I was in Jamaica for the 1^st ever Talladega to feature the Car Of Tomorrow. I came home to hear complaint after complaint about single file boring racing. Well, apparently something changed between then and now. Yesterday’s race was chocked full of excitement and I don’t care what Poole says, it was fun.

Side by side racing? Check
Lead changes? Check
Fresh faces at the front? Check
Fan favorites leading laps? Check
Big crash carnage? Check

If this is the kind of racing that I can expect from here on out at the 2.66 miler in Alabama then I’m all for it. Maybe they could release wild animals onto the track during caution, but I just don’t see it getting much better from a NASCAR stand point. With that said, I do think after the surface wears down some more, the drivers get more used to the car, and the crews get a better handle on the package we could see better racing…but that’s nothing Mike Helton can address.

Kyle Busch is on fire. There’s nothing else anyone can say but that. He’s winning everything he can win and finishing up front everywhere else. Even with the year he’s having Jeff Burton has the points lead and Jr is looming. Jeff “Gee I’m glad I’m not Ward” Burton is really impressing me over the past 12 months. His resurgence at RCR is amazing and couldn’t happen to a better guy. I hope he keeps on this pace and we seem him involved in the title picture from here on out. As for Jr. I stood in the living room yesterday after the “big one” and said “Jr. has to get in that top 20 and then what does he do? Top 10 again. I know a lot of people want to bash him until he gets that win, but when you get wrecked and turn out a top 10 finish…well, that’s the definition of a Championship year. I’m not saying he’s gonna win it, but I am saying he’s going to be a factor ALL year long.

In Race Updates - Dega

-getting ready for some green flag 'Dega
-Gibbs out the gate quick.
-Kyle can't be happy. This will be fun to watch.
-the 17 can't get a break can he?
-These guys at the front can't just ride all day can they?
-Didnt even take a full commercial.
-"rude" now that's funny.
-I think I'd be nervous with the 15 behind me too.
-I'm not sure I'd be so concerned about swapping leads.
-this blocking is a little rediculous.
-so what exactly was Kyle Busch thinking?
-jr and tony may put on a clinic now.
-time to hit the grill.
-when did Sadler move up front?
-I think Jr and Denny have something to work out next week on the short track.
-this is a really good race.
-this isn't exactly the list of names I thought would be up front.
-Stremme is gonna make a claim for that seat.
-alright, maybe menard won't have the finish I thought he would.
-Why do we need virtual looks when we have good footage?
-26 to go.
-Why do I have the feeling there's gonna be someone we are not thinking of stealing -this win?
-there goes over half the legit contendors.
-wow!
-well, its off to Richmond.

Oil lids, tires, and the burning Busch

So much has happened since my last entry and I'm not sure where to start. First things first, I've got to say how happy I am that Robby Gordon's Daytona penalty has been rescinded. Sure, he's out another $50k, but if teams could buy 100 points for $150k then you'd see points races in the 10's of thousands.

Speaking of penalties, the oil lid just "came off" did it Jack? Sure it did. And the passenger window clips came loose just enough to let some of that extra heat and possible fumes get out. When you're caught, you're caught boys. The thing that has blown my mind on this whole situation is that the garage has turned into the media's dream. Every single place you can turn there is someone ready to call out the Roush Fenway team. I've never seen anything like it. Last year when the 48 and 24 had their little incident with the body I never heard anything from other teams. Even the team members with their own tv/radio shows skirted the topic. Things are changing in the garage and I'm anxious to see where this is all headed. Obviously the Toyota official that made the initial comments about Jack had his own agenda. He'd previously worked for Rousch as well as currently working for Toyota, a company that Jack Roush likened to the Japanese Kamikaze bombers from Pearl Harbor just over a year ago. However, Elliot Sadler didn't have a real subversive agenda in calling out the Cat in the Hat, nor did Dale Jr. That didn't stop them though.

Speaking of Toyota, Kyle Busch is doing work right now. I think people are making a little too much of the truck, Nationwide, & Cup trifecta. I could name about 10 drivers right now that could do something close to the same. If you can be a solid contender in Cup, you can do the same in all 3 I believe. However, regardless of the type of car Shrub is wheeling his car like nearly no one else. He's the definition of checkers or wreckers. He's so close to the edge that I think he'll go ever several times this year and catch some dnf's, but the risk/reward will pay off in points. The #18 is a contender and there's no other way to put it.

Finally, the big topic of the race was TIRES and the reactions to them. In a tactful way Jr., Gordon, and several other drivers crushed Goodyear with their comments. If that wasn't bad enough Tony Stewart did the equivelent of smacking Goodyear's mother in the mouth and kicking their dog. NASCAR said they wanted the personalities back in the sport and they've got it. We'll have to see how they react to one of their top tier drivers dog cussing one of their top sponsors.

As for the tire itself, I can see the drivers point. No one, and I mean no one, had a handle on their cars. All I've ever heard is how tight the COT is and Sunday it looked like they were driving on snow. Teams saw minimal tire wear at best and nearly everyone tapped the wall once. I understand Goodyear didn't want drivers hauling off into turn 1 at 200mph and popping a right front, but I'm gueesing teams didn't want to be sides ways at 170mph exiting 4 either. Goodyear missed it and they'll fix it, but it'll take more than a week. I heard Jeff Hammond say that Goodyear should start up a full Cup test team that runs year round. When he said it I thought, "That's a great idea." Then after a while I couldn't figure why this hadn't been something already in the works. If they're a non-competitive team they could tire test every track with all 4 makes if they like.

Now for the good news...Here comes Bristol!

500 thoughts

I’m not sure if I’ll have time to formulate a perfect blog entry for the 500, but I want to jump in and address a few things while they’re fresh on my mind.

The gopher cam is garbage. Shhhheeewwwww, I’ve been dying to get that off my chest. I spent my day with several family members watching the race and the gopher cam became the running joke of the day. If we were drinkers, I’m sure it would have quickly become a drinking game…and speaking of drinking…

AMP is undrinkable swill. I’m a fan, I do my part, I picked up a can, and then proceeded to attempt sips at this medicine like energy drink. I’ll admit, it does cause an increase in energy. If I were paralyzed and bed ridden, I can guarantee that this drink is enough to make me get up, walk over, and drop it in the garbage can.

On to some more positive notes.

I realize that for the most part of the race the 18 and the 11 were stinking up the show, but the rest of the field were all over each other. I thought it was a fairly enjoyable 500 and didn’t find myself bored at all. However, I had been dying for some competitive Cup racing and may have been blinded by finally getting it. We had a great finish and overall I had a great day watching it.

Congratulations to Richard Penske. I’m not a Newman fan and dislike Busch, but I am extremely happy for Penske to finally get a Daytona 500. Roger is a legend in the racing world and it would bother me if his time eventually passed without a 500 win. Just as it bothers me that Mark Martin is winding down and looks to retire without one as well.

I’m waiting for the influx of Hendrick hatred to begin. Jeff had a suspension issue, it happens. Jimmie just seemed off, but looked as though (like usual) they had worked the car to a decent finish before he was wrecked. I truly believed Casey was on his way to a top 3, if not a win, just seconds before he was turned into the wall. As for Jr., a ninth place finish after some questionable (at best) pit strategy is a fairly good save. If people want to read too much into Sunday, that’s fine, but HMS isn’t going away.

Great days for Reed Sorenson, MWR, and GEM. I also have to say that Sam Hornish Jr. really impressed me with how he paced his race out. It’s just one race, but don’t be shocked if he doesn’t walk away with rookie of the year.

Overall it was a very good start to the year and I can’t wait for California. I’m so happy that we don’t have the week off that we’ve had the previous years. Let’s get to racing and stick with it. If any break is needed I would think it would be the week prior to the Chase starting, but that’s a whole other blog all together.