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I think the quality of the race had a lot to do with the quality of the racetrack than the manufactured chase B.S.
I think I'll add Homestead races to the few I catch next season ('Tona, 'DEGA, Road Courses, Dover, Darlington...etc)

All we need is a way of motivating the teams and drivers to go all out 100% of the time instead of riding around waiting for the last 30 laps, without artificially manufacturing the championship, and NASCAR suddenly is saved.


I'm also curious how Dale Jr would've done under an older championship format.
Seems to be the first season since I started watching him that he has managed some form of consistency rather than just being fast at the plate tracks and 1 or 2 other places through the year.

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RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

I don't think they ride around until the last 30 laps anywhere except the plate tracks. Everywhere else, by halfway, they're already thinking about putting themselves as far front as possible for the end.

Points racing isn't bad but it shouldn't be the focus like it was all these years. That should be on winning. Points should be something to fall back on if you can't win, like Newman.

You have to race hard for every spot you want. And even in the last couple years when the rules were being tinkered with constantly to "race harder", several drivers commented that it really didn't make a difference because they constantly give it all they have irrespective of the supposed incentivized rules.

Huh? What do you think they've been doing all these years? There is no points racing, there is only racing, which pays points and money based on finishing position. Consequently, finishing first gets you the most of both. Can't win, get as high up as possible without firing the car into the wall. Terry Labonte won 2 Championships by brining a 5th place car home in 5th place instead of on the wrecker going for 4th.

It only got you 4 points over 2nd place (or 15 in the old 5-4-3 system). You had a lot more too lose with a bad finish by taking a gamble on trying to win. But yea, I want Terry Labonte and his team to try and fucking win with their 5th place car.

Remember the 2007 Texas fall race where Jimmie and Matt fought it out for the win? Matt asked his cc, during the heat of the battle, if he's better off finishing 2nd. Now, you don't ask that question.

He may be good if it was Winston, when all you need is top10 finishes. But his ability to perform well in the format that is not currently in use may be due that he cracks under pressure. So, any format that is the current one, he wont do good.

Dale Earnhardt would not have won the 1980 or 1991 championships under any playoff system, nor would Jeff Gordon have won the 1995 championship. I guess they're both known for cracking under pressure too - it's not like the playoff system is retarded or anything.

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If Dale Sr would've been involved in a race like Homestead there'd have been a hell of a lot more wrecks that Sunday night.

His form of cracking under pressure was cracking the pressure onto someone else's rear bumper.

_________________
RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

Anyone else missing NASCAR?

nope

Nope

Nope

I can't wait to see how the new changes gonna affect the racing at the first 1.5 mile racetrack. And Fontana and Michigan. Will we have the draft train like in the good old days? Or how much aero push can they endure to pass. And how dependant of the tyres. And the new strategies they have to come up with. And who will be the dominant forces?

All I'm really interested in is the spoiler reduction. I'll still bitch about the Chase but I'll be able to live with it (within reason) if the racing is somehow improved despite the lower HP output.

Spoiler reduction is something, but what about the splitter? Are they doing anything with that? It sounded to me like there's still going to be far too much front end downforce. Are they actually reducing HP? That will probably offset the downforce lost and the cars won't be any harder to drive. I just can't see the racing being any different. Why didn't they listen to the drivers after the Michigan test?

It's way too late for questions like that. Once you start thinking it just creates more and more and the lack of any discernible plan from NASCAR regarding the on-track product just makes the whole process irrelevant.

No. So the clean air situation will remain 100% the same.

If you had ground clearance like this, the racing would be incredible. You'd have to shave off close to 100 mph for the turns and depend entirely on mechanical grip to get around them.

Yeaa but didn't the big teams factor in trick suspension setting that meant at a standstill they had clearence and at racing speed it lowered.

Let me peer into my crystal ball...

1) They won't. The removed downforce, and then stupidly removed HP, thus balancing the equation back to what we had this year, just slower.
2) Doubt it.
3) The same amount as now since clean air on the nose remains unchanged.
4) Goodyear blows (litterally and figuratively), dependence on not pushing the bondaries so as not to blow a tire remains the same.
5) None.
6) Penske Racing and Hendrick Motorsports... And Harvick... Gibbs Cars back to the front... Honorable mention to Larson. Everyone else plays second fiddle.

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. See y'all in Daytona.