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So the restrictor plate four wide drafting exercises came to an end for the 2008 season Sunday with the conclusion of Talladega. That’s not all that came to an end. It looks like common sense is running a little short too, but that could carry on for weeks to come. We as fans enjoy watching the mass of speed inches apart coming at us at over 200mph, but is it practical? It’s a matter of who you ask and what you like. Dale Earnhardt Jr. loves the place, while Mark Martin has said on many occasions he’d just as soon skip it. I’m middle of the road on this. On one hand, I think it’s pretty awesome to watch the large mass of horsepower just inches apart. But on the other, it’s not really racing so changing some rules might not be a bad idea.
Let’s take a look at things shall we? Restrictor plate racing is one thing and one thing only: It’s a chess match of who’s in the right line, where they are, and who can push the hardest. Where’s the racing in that? I mean come on, the Wallace brothers at one point and time were both in the top 10. Name one non-restrictor plate track where that happens? It doesn’t. That’s fine however, because every driver deserves a few moments in their careers to be in the spotlight.
NASCAR and Goodyear yet again dimmed the lights and twisted things up. Was anyone paying attention when Dale Jr. blew a tire with 13 laps on it in practice? That would be clue No. 1. Brian Vickers blowing another tire and causing a massive melee of scrap metal would be clue No. 2. And last but not least, Denny Hamlin hit the wall so hard after a tire exploded he spent the night in the hospital. NASCAR, is this really what needs to be going on? I guess nobody was paying attention to what happened at the Brickyard right?
No doubt the COT is a new animal for teams to learn, but Goodyear and NASCAR had plenty of R&D time to get a tire compound that would stay under the car and they’ve yet to do it. Fans yet again paid premium gas prices to see their favorite driver needlessly in the garage area. I hope someone out there is paying close attention. Fans aren’t going to keep giving NASCAR many more chances before they just turn to the NFL on Sunday.
Wait, I’m not done yet, while it was pretty awesome seeing Tony Stewart get his first win this year it would have been even sweeter for DEI’s Regan Smith to have gotten his first career win. Personally NASCAR can play high speed traffic cop all they want up until the last lap. On the last lap it’s like this: Get a new paint brush and paint the yellow line white, throw the gloves off and whoever crosses the line first will be in victory lane!
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