Indy is a place, that while important to the history of motorsports, more often then not delivers less then exciting races won most often on fuel mileage and pit strategy. .jpg)
Sometimes the hype leading up to the Brickyard 400 sometimes seems more thrilling then the actual race itself.
Witness Sunday. Once Juan Pablo’s drama ended, Jimmie Johnson took control and despite a few feeble attempts from Mark Martin to wrest the lead away, Johnson cruised to his second straight Brickyard 400… with an emphasis on ‘cruise’.
Let’s face it, once a driver has the lead at Indy the show is pretty much over. As long as the teams fuel strategy is right, the outcome usually isn’t in doubt. Oh wait we’re talking about Michigan, no California…sorry I meant Kansas.
Get the idea?
Indy seems like a larger version of the mile and half cookie cutters that provide the (yawn) kind of racing that isn’t usually all that exciting.
Not that races won on fuel strategy aren’t fun to watch once in a while. In the last few years though, it seems that NASCAR has more fuel mileage mile and half snoozers on the schedule. And after Sunday some may be inclined to add Indy to that list.
But what makes a race exciting?
Not crashes, or blown engines. The most exciting races are those where passing is at a premium, not a minimum. Where packs hunt each other like wolves on the prowl, not strung out the entire length of the frontstretch like soldiers on parade.
Let’s see the type of race we saw in the Nationwide Series at O’Reilly Raceway Park Saturday night. Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch both fought their way from the back of the field and by halfway were slugging it out among themselves for the win.
Sunday at Indy, Edwards started near dead last and finished 15th, a feat he should have gotten a medal for along with Joey Logano who came from the back and finished 12th. As for Montoya, whether he made a mistake or got the shaft, once he was outside the top 10, there was no hope for a comeback. He restarted 13 and finished 11th.
For those who might blame the new car for the lack of action, think again. Looking at the average number of leaders through the entire 16-year history of the Brickyard, you’ll see there is no major difference from the old car to the new.
So what to do? Since there won’t ever be any type of rule change applicable to only one type of track, maybe NASCAR needs to look at how many of those types of tracks are on the schedule twice a year. Fewer races at those tracks where the racing is lacking would help. Twice a year at Michigan? California? Maybe not.
Maybe if the fuel mileage type races were fewer, we might actually enjoy watching them once in a while.
Maybe then we could look forward to the racing at the ‘hallowed’ Brickyard.
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Comments
I used to be the biggest NASCAR fan but these 400 and 500 mile races now bore me to tears. I fell asleep on the couch twice during yesterday's Indy 400 race. Now, I think the Truck series is much more watchable than the stock cars.
dump indy please please please. could give a crud about history. nationwide race was exciting, more of those tracks nascar for cup cars. i wouldn't walk across my street to attend some tracks on schedule.
Why not camp out at CharlotteGreg. Then you can watch cookie cutting all season. Give this personal thing you have against tracks a rest.
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