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Indianapolis-Just another race or not
Growing up I didn't follow Nascar or any other kind of racing. I was either on the football field or basketball court and could care less who won the Daytona 500 or any other race. Most of the old school racers cant stand guys like me. I'm the guy that knows nothing about racing but found my way into the sport thru the pit crew arena. That is why this weekend to me is no different than any other race weekend. A win at Indy would be great but I'd take a win any where. At this point in the season the points are so close it doesn't matter what track you go to you need a good points finish. The hoopla surrounding the race is getting out of control. I think I read one driver say that he would give up his championship to win at Indy. Come on now, are you serious. OK, its a famed track that all young drivers dream of winning at, but to give up a championship to win one race there. That's when I really started thinking that this race is getting built up to be much bigger than it is. A win at Indy counts as much as a win any where, even-though kissing the bricks would be something that would be cool. The pay for Indy is not bad either, I think it is the second highest paying race of the year. Any ways, a good finish is all we are looking for right now whether it be at Indy or the Glen we'll take it.
August 2, 2005 in Race talk | Permalink
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Comments
Trent, it's just a race...that's it. And I'm sure you boys will treat it as such. Great pit stops, great car, great driver, great team...with all of that together the 12 team definatly has a winning combination, no matter what the outcome of the race is!!!!! God's speed this weekend.
Posted by: Toni | Aug 2, 2005 11:17:55 PM
I grew up watching NASCAR, not Indy cars. Indy might be special to open wheelers, but it's boring for me to watch NASCAR on. Count me out on Indy mania.
Posted by: AKScott | Aug 3, 2005 12:21:09 AM
i think the driver that said he'd give up his championship for a win at the brickyard was tony stewart. he's got an obsession with indy being a hometown boy, so i think what he said has to be taken with a grain of salt.
that being said, i don't think you can compare the brickyard with daytona when it comes to nascar. daytona really is the superbowl of nascar racing, it has the same amount of points as any other race but it also comes with a certain notoriety. if you win daytona, you won the biggie and you got something you can brag to your kids about. that's a big deal. as for the brickyard, it's not the indy 500. i get the 500, i don't get all the hoopla about the brickyard. it's been going on for 11 years, it doesn't have the tradition or history of a daytona 500 or indy 500. i admit, it'd be cool to win at indy, probably the most famous racetrack in the world, but in the world of nascar it doesn't have the historical weight that's needed to make it bigger than it is in the larger scheme of things, namely a championship.
Posted by: ewa | Aug 3, 2005 1:00:29 AM
Indy, for sure it's a historic track and a terrific venue for a Nascar race but it's history isn't with Nascar cars it's with the Indy cars (I would have said open wheeled cars but F1 cars were afraid to make the show)."EWA" is probably right on Stewart because he's the home boy and an open wheel racer. Daytona is our Classic race. A cup driver can win it all but at the end of his Nascar career he still wants that Daytona 500 to complete his resume.
Posted by: Keith | Aug 3, 2005 6:53:53 AM
Trent,
those 'old school' fans hate you because you're getting paid to do something they could not be paid to do. They'll hafta get over themselves. as you said in a hilarious previous blog, they'll have to remove the peanut butter from the genitals and hide the dog because, well, just because okay.
I'm a fan of Smoke's, and he's known to speak an occasional hyperbole or two, but I think he's a numbnut for saying that on record. In smokes defense, if he's given a proper car, he could probably step back into the IRL and whoop up on them boys and girl.
Posted by: cliff wahl | Aug 3, 2005 8:52:14 AM
Trent,
Had a discussion with some freinds about the Indy race and it's importance over the years. Some said that it is the 2nd "biggest" race in NASCAR (to Daytona). My thought is that since the inception of the Chase, the fall Richmond race has quickly become the second "biggest" race as far as importance and viewership goes. Indy may now be 3rd.
As you said, it counts as much as any other, and finshing well there is the key.
Drop in on RNO sometime. Even just to say Hi!
Posted by: Mr Mom | Aug 3, 2005 10:36:29 AM
As everyone has pointed out...I can see the importance to the IRL fans and drivers. That's where that tracks history is. NASCAR is beginning to build a history at that track also. I think NASCAR wanted to race at Indy so bad that they're turned it into a hyped-up event. I personally like the track just because its the only NASCAR track I've ever been to in person. I like all the little extra's they do there for the fans also.
But from your perspective, I can see where if you win there, its a win. If you lose there, its a loss. No matter what the track is.
Posted by: Mandy24 | Aug 3, 2005 11:24:09 AM
As everyone has pointed out...I can see the importance to the IRL fans and drivers. That's where that tracks history is. NASCAR is beginning to build a history at that track also. I think NASCAR wanted to race at Indy so bad that they're turned it into a hyped-up event. I personally like the track just because its the only NASCAR track I've ever been to in person. I like all the little extra's they do there for the fans also.
But from your perspective, I can see where if you win there, its a win. If you lose there, its a loss. No matter what the track is.
Posted by: Mandy24 | Aug 3, 2005 11:25:10 AM
I agree that it's just another race. However, with the possible exception of Daytona and Homestead, they're ALL just another race. It isn't like the Red Sox - Yankees, because in NASCAR it's the same guys every week. It isn't like the U.S. Open in golf for the same reason. There ARE no "majors" that carry special rewards.
To me, there are races I try hard to watch and others that I can miss without regret. I try to watch Indianapolis, maybe because the first car race I ever went to in my life was the 1967 Indy 500. But if I could only watch, say, 5 races a year, they'd be Daytona, Bristol, Bristol, a road course, and Darlington. (That's on TV. If I could go to five races, it would be Bristol, Bristol, Martinsville, Richmond, and Darlington.)
Posted by: Doug | Aug 3, 2005 1:04:24 PM
The Brickyard isn't the best race by any means, but it is a prestigious race, mainly because of the track's rich history. I personally think that the race that personified NASCAR's tradition was the Southern 500 at Darlington on Labor Day. I looked forward to that race even more than the Daytona 500.
Posted by: 19Jay12 | Aug 3, 2005 2:25:23 PM
I agree with you 19Jay12. I love watching the Darlington race and although I'm still fairly new to the sport, I think it's a huge mistake changing that longtime tradition. I think Indy's like Lambeau for Packer fans, Wrigley for the Cubbies, and the "thunderdome" for LSU fans- it may just be another race/game but it feels different b/c of the history. Isn't Newman from Indiana? What's it mean to him?
Posted by: candiappels | Aug 3, 2005 3:45:28 PM
Although the major history of Indy is the Indy 500, it is important to some drivers because of motorsports history at that track. Ask anyone not familiar with motorsports to name a couple of major races and Daytona and Indy are the two that will be named. Daytona for stock cars and Indy for open wheel.
As far as NASCAR, I agree with Trent, this is just another race, but the track does have a long history in motorsports. I think that because of that, NASCAR is trying to hype the race up to catch some of the popularity from the Indy 500. It's all about the ratings and money. Again, ask anyone that does not follow racing, and I'll bet they have heard of Indianapolis.
Posted by: Marty | Aug 4, 2005 4:50:54 AM
I think it's interesting that the Cup series hasn't experimented with promotions like double points events that are standard in other Nascar racing series. Not that they need to resort to promotions like that to sell tickets, with the name recognition of the drivers and venues they use. As it is, the big ticket races like the Daytona 500 have larger purses than most races. I wonder if Nascar will ever play with the points awarded at "bigger" races to make them more of a spectacle. I certainly don't want to give them ideas - I think a race is a race is a race, and they should all have the same impact on points regardless of the "importance" of the event. A touchdown is still 6 points, even if it is scored at Lambeau Field.
Posted by: Sara | Aug 4, 2005 10:19:00 PM
With the addition of the "Chase for the Cup" and all the outside attention it gathers, I wouldn't doubt if NASCAR played with the points system. It would make it "even more exciting" (thats my attempt at sarcasim). I'd argue that with Jr. and Gordon's poor showing this season, that might be just what NASCAR and NBC needs to give them a last ditch chance to slip into the chase. They could make the last race before the chase worth 2 or 3 times as much for the top 5 spots. Gee, I guess that really does sound silly.
Posted by: Alltel_fan | Aug 5, 2005 8:46:22 PM
I'm mixed on this whole issue. Indianapolis being what it is, naturally a win there is something a win at many other tracks cannot be. But then the weekend schedule is so short (it should be four days instead of three - and saying three is stretching it) that there is a slapdash quality to preparation - get in, race, and go home. That doesn't make for a prestigious race.
Posted by: Mike Daly | Aug 6, 2005 2:18:41 AM
i've been to a lot of the tracks on the nextel cup circuit (daytona, talladega, charlotte, the rock, darlington, dover, pocono, richmond, martinsville, bristol, atlanta, and homestead), but if i ever go to the brickyard it will be for the indy 500. that is what made that track famous.
Posted by: theodore | Aug 6, 2005 2:17:23 PM
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