FUMES

February 29, 2012

As bad as it gets.

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

(Posted 2/28, 11:00 a.m.) Detroit. No, I'm not going to fault NASCAR for the bad weather, because as controlling as the France family juggernaut is even they can't do a thing about that. But the 2012 Daytona 500 was a debacle in every way possible. As euphoric, scintillating, dramatic and magical as Trevor Bayne's win in the Wood Brothers Ford was a year ago, this year's rain-delayed Daytona 500 was a relentless bore and a perfect example of everything wrong about NASCAR when they conduct business on their so-called "big" tracks.

Kyle Busch couldn't have said it better when he said on his radio, "Seriously?..." after the Lap 2 wreck that destroyed several cars and took Jimmie Johnson out of the race. Let me repeat that: Lap 2. After 36 hours of waiting around, this is the best that they can do? Ridiculous and stupid doesn't even begin to cover it.

I think it would behoove NASCAR to stop touting this collection of drivers "the best drivers in the world" until they fundamentally change this restrictor plate format "racing" and make their drivers actually drive their race cars on the super speedways.

I know. What a novel concept.

That means up the horsepower considerably and reduce the down force, which would then force the drivers to lift off of the throttle going into the corners. Drive the car, not drone around in a pack calculating where you need to be for the next "big one." If the racers lap Daytona and Talladega at 215 mph then so be it. And if NASCAR has to rip out the first 25 rows of seats to keep the spectators safe then that's what needs to be done as well, because what NASCAR is doing on their "big" tracks with this restrictor plate nonsense is a complete joke.

The powers that be in NASCAR steadfastly refuse to deal with the problems associated with racing on their so-called "big" tracks, but until they do they're always going to be playing Russian roulette with their star drivers. Making the cars as safe as possible because the "big one" is inevitable is patently ridiculous and not the answer, because one of these times someone is not going to walk away. And then what? More postmortem hand-wringing? What would that accomplish, exactly?

I have all the respect in the world for the drivers, teams and technicians that ply their trade in NASCAR because they are simply some of the best at what they do. (Don't believe it? You would be amazed at the level of talent in the NASCAR garage, including top-notch F1 experience if that's your particular barometer for gravitas.) But I have zero respect for a sanctimonious racing sanctioning body that thinks being relentlessly reactive instead of proactive is a perfectly acceptable way of doing business.

To put a finer point on things, NASCAR's way of pretending that "things are gonna work out just fine, they always do" is reprehensible and flat-out unacceptable.

NASCAR is the only sport in the world that has its biggest event at the start of the season. And what happened when they were given the chance to showcase what they have goin' on in prime time on a Monday night? They come up with a stinker of a race. I've seen the other media types waxing eloquently about the race being "wild" and "memorable" and all I have to say is, which race were they watching, exactly? The fact that the jet dryer crash and fire got more coverage than the race itself says all you need to know about the 2012 Daytona 500.

Memo to NASCAR: Make your drivers actually drive their cars on the big tracks. Figure it out. Stop pretending that what you're doing on the super speedways is justifiable and somehow acceptable because you deem it as such.

Because this just in, it well and truly isn't.

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

(Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives)
Ontario, California, February 28, 1971. A.J. Foyt drives the famed No. 21 Wood Brothers Purolator Mercury to victory in the first stock car race held at the now long gone 2.5-mile Ontario Motor Speedway, the Miller High Life 500. Foyt averaged 134.168 mph over the 200 laps in front of a crowd of 78,000. Buddy Baker was second in his No. 11 Petty Enterprises Dodge followed by his boss Richard Petty in his No. 43 Petty Enterprises Dodge. Watch the video here.

Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" with hosts John McElroy, from Autoline Detroit, and Peter De Lorenzo, The Autoextremist, and guests this Thursday evening, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.

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