Before the discussion of yesterday's "race" begins, I would like to congratulate Jamie McMurray on winning the AMP Energy 500 at Talladega. It was his third career win and since he's looking for a ride every little bit helps. Jamie is a good guy and he deserves an 'atta boy for his efforts on Sunday. Also, props to my man Michael Waltrip on a solid sixth place finish too. He ran a great race and if the race had finished under green, Mikey may have been the victor. So congratulations to both Jamie and Mikey on a job well done.
But alas, those two drivers will go unheralded as NASCAR heads to the Lone Star State. The 2009 AMP Energy 500 will be remembered for it's lackluster racing and spectacular last lap crashes. The controversy all began during the pre-race drivers meeting when NASCAR president Mike Helton told the drivers that if they bump drafted in the corners, they would be penalized for aggressive driving. They were also warned not to use the new phenomenon that has surfaced with the new car, where two drivers can lock bumpers, gain about five to ten miles per hour and break from the pack, under threat of pass through penalty. But as drivers and fans know all too well, the rules have become nothing more than a list or gray areas and no driver knew what constituted a bump draft and what constituted being in the corner. But what NASCAR didn't understand was that with the smaller restrictor plate that they gave the teams, the only way that they could get up enough speed to pass was by bumping each other.
But the race went on as scheduled, the drivers left to ponder how to pass without drawing a race ruining penalty. This lead to about a quarter of the race being run single file around the top side of the race track, no passing, no wrecking, not even so much as a fender ducking out of line. Kevin Harvick was actually heard asking his crew for his iPod over the radio to help keep him occupied and Tony Stewart asked his crew to tell him something interesting before he fell asleep. It was speculated that this was the drivers way of protesting NASCAR and their ban on bumping. Hopefully NASCAR got the message. But this will typically happen at Talladega about halfway through the race for maybe 15-25 laps before all heck breaks loose at the end. Never before has it occurred for 55-65 laps at the beginning of the event. Aside from a Kurt Busch spin, nothing else happened in this race because of this single file riding along. That is until five laps to go. That is when the gloves came off.
Since drivers could not bump draft bin the corners, when the race actually got exciting, they bumped extra hard on the straightaways. This led cars darting around from being shoved and that led to one wild ride for Ryan Newman and his U.S. ARMY Chevy. The cars in front of Newman's #39 slowed, but Marcos Ambrose did not slow as quickly and bumped Newman into his boss, and teammate, Tony Stewart. This squeezed the #39 out of line and he spun backwards across Kevin Harvick's nose and while the car was backwards, the rear end lifted off the ground flipping the car backwards and lifting it off the ground. The rear of the #39 landed on the front of Harvick's #29, the car slid up the turn three banking on it's roof, down the banking and barrel rolled several times before coming to rest on it's roof on the grass. To see the footage, along with Ryan's comments afterwards, click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uolyLoCNmTc
After several tense moments, Newman was freed from the wreckage and walked to the ambulance under his own power. Say what you want about the new car and how i doesn't race or look as good as the old car, but it is head and shoulders above the old car from a safety standpoint and that is what really matters. The safety of the car was tested again on the final lap when Mark Martin's #5 Chevy rolled over, slid on it's roof and righted itself just before hitting the wall. This resulted in the caution being thrown and Jamie McMurray being declared the winner. You can see this wreck as well as the last lap here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2pgA-f4ZVQ
So as you can see, this was not a race by any stretch of the imagination. It was traffic on the parkway followed by two cars flipping over. Talladega has become known for being about it's high speeds, close, three and four wide racing and huge multi-car crashes. Yesterday's race was not even close to any of the classic 'Dega races we have seen in the past. Contrary to popular belief, NASCAR needs to be held at least somewhat accountable. They tell the drivers not to bump draft or be penalized and not to pass below the yellow line. And where did the two big wrecks happen? The frontstrech and backstretch, where bump drafting was allowed. (Also, without bumping in the corners two cars flipped as opposed to one in the spring when you could bump draft. Coincidence or irony? You decide.) These wrecks will happen no matter what NASCAR mandates. Let the drivers sort it out and stop telling them how to drive their cars. I used to, and still do, get really mad when I hear people say NASCAR is boring because it is just cars driving in circles for four and a half hours because there ids so much more to it. But after yesterday's pitiful display, those bogus accusations are becoming a reality. If NASCAR wants to gain fans and put butts in the seats at the track and at home, they need to do something, and fast. Oh, here's an idea. How about letting the drivers RACE and NOT RIDE!!! What a novel concept: Racing in NASCAR. We may be on to something here!
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