A Little Mind Game by Reiser?

H

HardScrabble

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Could not keep from wondering about the stop - don't stop strategy of the DeWalt team in the final stages of yesterday's race.

Methinks perhaps Robby was playing with Matt just a bit. In a fairly serious game.

According to the common taters the decision of the CC was that the team was gonna go for it all and not stop for a splash and go. Despite the report that they were some 9 laps short according to the numbers. A bold and daring move to take a chance on losing at least one lap and many many positions in order to grab a win.

Immediately it came to mind that a few races ago there were a couple of instances where Matt openly questioned the "safe" fuel strategy that Robby employed. Strategy which led to good finishes, but added a fuel stop which removed any chance of victory lane. Matt wanted to win the races.

So now comes word that yesterday Matt decides it ain't worth it to gamble. Let's grab soem fuel and be sure we don't run out and lose a bunch. We will win the race if we make it without stopping, but if we don't make it.........

So the old vet Robby let Matt feel the heat of making the call. "It's all on you pal, how ya wanna play? Your race, your call." Hee, hee, hee -- walk a mile in these shoes. LOL

Matt is a great driver, but still young. Betcha nothing much will be made of the valuable lesson Robby just led him through, at least not in the media. But I bet it burned into Matt's grey cells just fine.
 
Matt is young compared to whom? Rusty, Awesome Bill, Terry & DJ yes...but he is only a half year younger than Jeff Gordon and I believe Tony is a year older?

Personally, I was disappointed Matt didn't chance it. It would have been a 105 laps on fuel and Dale Jr. was able to run that far, albeit some of the laps under caution, but the Roush Fords presumably always have the advantage when it comes to fuel mileage. With a 400+ points cushion over 2nd place, I felt it was worth the risk. He would have probably finished in the high 20's if he didn't make it? And his point lead would only be around 330 to 350 maybe?
 
This is a perfect example why Kenseth is running away with this championship. Every race he has been thinking: points and championship, points and championship. If he wasnt thinking this then he wouldnt have played it safe yesterday.

Meanwhile all the other drivers are thinking win win win. For example (one that comes to mind) is Jeff Gordon at Watkins Glen. Had he been thinking points, he might have gotten out of the way and limped back home in the top 10, instead he was in the way and got put in the wall and finished 30-something.

Didnt Jeff Gordon run out of gas yesterday as well? Almost in similar fashion as in Watkins Glen. Costly mistakes you normally dont see the #24 team making.

RobbyG was only 4 laps shy. Had he saved a little more he could have made it. Probably wouldnt have won, since Jimmie had caught him anyways, but would have came home 2nd.
 
That may have been a bit of a mind game with the competition to. If they heard matt was not going to stop, they may not either. :idunno:
 
Young as only in his 4th full season at this level. It has nothing at all to do with age. Jeff Gordon though not much older has several years experience more at this level.

Matt is very good, but he is inexperienced in a lot of aspects of the game.

And odds are chancing it would have proved disastrous. I don't think for one minute that Robby would have let him run to the finish. Momentum is a very very big factor and a team should never give that away by trying something foolish.
 
RobbyG Fan, totally agree about the winning championship. This is where He used skill, brains or whatever someone wants to call it. Not Luck.. :p He could have chanced it but, he would probably ended up like Jeff G or Harvik.
 
Originally posted by RobbyG Fan@Sep 15 2003, 01:58 PM

Didnt Jeff Gordon run out of gas yesterday as well? Almost in similar fashion as in Watkins Glen. Costly mistakes you normally dont see the #24 team making.
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Jeff did run out of fuel yesterday, even though they made the splash and go stip. Not enough splash and too much go at the moment.

But it is interesting because I think what you point out with Jeff is exactly what happens with momentum or confidence whichever you prefer to call it. I goes beyond fuel, but to on track decisions, pit strategy decisions, and even set up decisions.

Once you get on a downhill slope, it just keeps coming. Bad decisions breed bad decisions. Seems once thing get moving the wrong way, every decision is wrong. So ya think on it some more and make it worse.

Conversely when a team is on a roll...every decision works out. And every time it works the next gets easier. Little or no time is spent wondering what if.............and the good times just keep coming.

But the good times are so very fragile.............it might take a half dozen or dozen good decisions to get back on the up slope, but one bad call can start the slide. Kinda like the "attaboy" and "aw****" rule.

It becomes either a nightmare or seemingly pure magic depending on which side of the wall you're on.
 
Yep i agree just look at the 88 team once they started down that hill it just got worse and worse.
 
This is just a really, really bad year for the #88 team. This will be the first time since RYR started the #88 team that they will finish out of the top 10 in points (not including the short time Ernie Irvan was in the car in late '95 when DJ was in the #28). Last season was the first time the #88 team didn't finish in the top 5 of points.
 
Originally posted by HardScrabble@Sep 15 2003, 05:07 PM
Conversely when a team is on a roll...every decision works out. And every time it works the next gets easier. Little or no time is spent wondering what if.............and the good times just keep coming.
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Just like the have all year for Matt...
 
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