LCQ, Clash RACE thread

Spotter22 said:
I watched the same race so tell me what the shenanigans were?
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NASCAR was obviously running the non-shenanigans Kumbaya- shenanigans playbook last night.

The high risk of an outbreak of post race Bowman Gray Giggling was a very serious concern. Sedating the drivers with Valium and Xanax prior to the main event was the best way to ensure that someone would be able to complete all 200 laps.
 
Really good race and super-pumped about how Chase drove. Many complain he is not aggressive enough but was a lot of fun to see him pushing his way through lapped traffic for the win. I will say though...where were the rest of the Chevy's? I hope that is not a sign of things to come for the season again but I am really a little concerned as to Chevy's commitment to the sport at this point. Toyota and Ford have had them covered mostly of late - particularly at flat tracks and I just feel no response or urgency. They are not even making a street Camaro anymore so what are they doing? Do they have a new body in development? I thought I heard that but not sure..

Either way though I hope this boosts the entire 9 team's confidence and momentum for the season. Also a big supporter of going back to BGS next season for this. Would just prefer that they start the race a little earlier. My son missed the end of it and was really mad that he didn't see it when he found out Chase won.
 
How is Chase still and always the “most popular driver? I honestly didn’t think there were that many teen girl NASCAR fans and I’d think most adults would find him as exciting as watching paint dry. What am I missing? Ah well it’s just the Clash. Would have been fun to see a dark horse win but such was not in the cards. Congrats Chase I guess.
 
RaceCritter said:
How is Chase still and always the “most popular driver?
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The MPD is statistically uncontrolled. The poll allows participants to vote multiple times. The winner is the driver whose fan base does the best job of mobilizing, not necessarily the one truly most popular.

Chase benefits from being associated with two strong legacy fanbases. Bill Elliott's fans will support his son. Jeff Gordon's fans will support the driver who took over what is essentially Gordon's #24 team with a new number.

Still, combined with last year's souvenir sales, I think it's safe to say Chase is currently the most popular. It's how much more popular than the next guy that's debatable.
 
RaceCritter said:
How is Chase still and always the “most popular driver? I honestly didn’t think there were that many teen girl NASCAR fans and I’d think most adults would find him as exciting as watching paint dry. What am I missing? Ah well it’s just the Clash. Would have been fun to see a dark horse win but such was not in the cards. Congrats Chase I guess.
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Have you been to a race recently? I usually go to 2-3 a year and rarely see young female fans of his. There are still a lot of fans in NASCAR my age (45) or older that were fans of his dad and automatically gravitated to him. Plus he had times with Dale JR driving for him in XFINITY which pushed a lot of his fans to Chase as well.

Also not sure what your issue with Chase is. No he's not terribly exciting but that's more a NASCAR thing now that they want all the drivers to be more vanilla apparently. I mean who is "exciting" right now? Chase seems to me like he'd be a fun guy to hang with and have a beer. He also seems more quick to me than other drivers to acknowledge the fans. I feel like there is a large contingent of folks looking for reasons to not like him and criticize him quickly if they are not running well but I feel like those people just don't understand the ups and downs of racing. The team has toe be clicking in all areas. Chase a young good-looking dude with a bright past and future and a smoking hot-GF and he even flies his own planes and has not let success change him - still lives to live in rural GA. That creates loyal fans.
 
RaceCritter said:
How is Chase still and always the “most popular driver? I honestly didn’t think there were that many teen girl NASCAR fans and I’d think most adults would find him as exciting as watching paint dry. What am I missing? Ah well it’s just the Clash. Would have been fun to see a dark horse win but such was not in the cards. Congrats Chase I guess.
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I always wonder that myself. He's not close to the most successful driver, doesn't have much of a personality (at least publicly) and doesn't really do anything outside of the track for the fans.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
The MPD is statistically uncontrolled. The poll allows participants to vote multiple times. The winner is the driver whose fan base does the best job of mobilizing, not necessarily the one truly most popular.

Chase benefits from being associated with two strong legacy fanbases. Bill Elliott's fans will support his son. Jeff Gordon's fans will support the driver who took over what is essentially Gordon's #24 team with a new number.

Still, combined with last year's souvenir sales, I think it's safe to say Chase is currently the most popular. It's how much more popular than the next guy that's debatable.
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Agree 100%. The MPD is debatable, but as mentioned, Chase's dad was MPD forever, and how exciting was he? The merch sales is a more concrete test of popularity, but who REALLY knows. I think it speaks as much to the fact that there really isn't ANYONE else poised to assume the mantle of MPD, than it does Chase having any overwhelming support. People say Blaney, but he's not exactly at top of mind either. In fact, I would guess his fanbase comes 95% from people still HEAVILY into NASCAR, where I think Chase has a lot more name recognition and support among casual and legacy fans. Either way, it wouldn't break my heart one bit if someone snatched the MPD away from Chase, but I'm sure it helps when it comes to selling sponsorships.
 
dirtfan said:
I think the biggest reason has already been mentioned above - he drove for JRM in the past. That and the popularity of his father.
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Yeah, I forgot about that one. He's effectively drawing from the fanbases of three popular retired drivers whose fans were looking for someone active to pull for.
 
This debate is old and stupid. He is and your driver isn't deal with it.
 
Well anyway, about the actual race. I think it was a success, the weather was decent which I'm sure was a worry. Three wide was interesting lol. I don't think there were enough wrecks for the fans in the stands, but it looked fine from where I was at. The whole thing came out looking professional and the track got a much needed facelift.
 
RaceCritter said:
How is Chase still and always the “most popular driver? I honestly didn’t think there were that many teen girl NASCAR fans and I’d think most adults would find him as exciting as watching paint dry. What am I missing? Ah well it’s just the Clash. Would have been fun to see a dark horse win but such was not in the cards. Congrats Chase I guess.
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He got all of what’s left of his dad’s fanbase, Dale Jr’s fanbase and Jeff Gordon’s fanbase.

And honestly, does anyone really believe Bill Elliott was more popular than Dale Earnhardt for so many years?
 
HoneyBadger said:
He got all of what’s left of his dad’s fanbase, Dale Jr’s fanbase and Jeff Gordon’s fanbase.

And honestly, does anyone really believe Bill Elliott was more popular than Dale Earnhardt for so many years?
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There is a difference between popular and iconic. Dale SR was more iconic for sure but for every fan that really liked him there were others that hated the way he drove. I will always remember the interview with Bill where he was asked about why he was more popular than Dale and he said "Dale is kind of like a schoolyard bully. A lot of people really like that but a lot of people don't." Bill was a very down to Earth and relatable guy. You were hard pressed to find people that hated him. I am sure there was but he rarely if ever wrecked anyone and drove with great respect.

I feel like as Chase gets older he seems to be more and more like his dad in that he is steady and smooth and mild-mannered.
 
HoneyBadger said:
I went to races in the 90s too.

Everyone wore either Earnhardt or Gordon swag.

Elliott had fans, but more popular than those two? Again, no.
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I think you are assuming that those who get the biggest reaction at races or those that have the most representation are automatically the most popular. Not necessarily true. In my experience, most Earnhardt fans were very loud and represented about it and most Elliott fans were more quiet and reserved - both a reflection of the person they root for so just because you could not always see/hear them, the Elliott fans were quiet and steady just like Bill. They were also not band-wagon jumpers as most stayed with him through a 226 race winless streak. You can't say that about many. Now a lot of those fans are fans of Chase and will show the same loyalty.
 
The fact that it's only the day after the clash and we're already having the once a month "I don't know how or why Chase Elliott is popular or why people root for him" argument is exactly why I take the entire offseason away from posting here. Damn I don't miss it lol.

I can explain it very carefully for the 100th time but what's the use?
 
wi_racefan said:
I always wonder that myself. He's not close to the most successful driver, doesn't have much of a personality (at least publicly) and doesn't really do anything outside of the track for the fans.
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I think for being under 30 Chase has plenty of on track success winning Xfinity and Cup titles and about 20 races and an all-star race and (now) Clash as well. The 9 has been off the last couple years for sure and I think that has a lot to do with Chase's injury, his slow adapting to the new car and some of Chevy's struggles as well. I am one that still questions if they will ever get that consistent race-winning speed back with AG on the box but that being said, they really seemed to get it together late last year contending for wins really consistently down the stretch. I think the one thing lacking from Chase's resume though is a crown-jewel win as he has yet to win the 600, Southern 500, Brickyard or Daytona 500. He should have the 600 in 2020 though if not for a bad call by Alan. Also finished 2nd in the 500 once I think so I am sure he will get a few of these big races but time will tell.
 
Definitely was better than the colliseum and the racing was better than I expected. Was nice that the outside line was there which I certainly didn't expect. That said I still don't think cup cars should run on a track shorter than 1/2 mile. There needs to be a straightaway.
 
Daytripper said:
Definitely was better than the colliseum and the racing was better than I expected. Was nice that the outside line was there which I certainly didn't expect. That said I still don't think cup cars should run on a track shorter than 1/2 mile. There needs to be a straightaway.
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Yeah - I just felt like the radius of the corners at the coliseum were not right for stick cars.
 
There’s a few reasons Chase is my favorite driver. Yes. One is he drove for Dale Jr, but that’s not enough. Brad drove for him, and I like Brad but I wouldn’t put him in my top 10 of current drivers. Truex drove for him as well, and when he was there he’s someone who probably barely makes my top 10. So that’s not enough. Add in the fact he’s also from my home state of Georgia and that gives him a big boost. I find myself cheering for a few drivers from Georgia whenever they got a chance to win. I’ve also met him before, and he was pretty nice when I did. So just those few things together and that’s why he’s my favorite.
 
Just watching it from the DVR.

My Melon Man got a solid 6th place finish. Cleanly worked his way up. (what little I saw of it cause the Cameras were always on 2 or 3 cars)

Same as last season, the broadcast sucked.

On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest possible score = I give it a 3

Running the best racing Stock Cars in the world on a 1/4 mile bull ring is pure BS.
 
Regarding Chase Elliott’s popularity, here’s the way I read it: a majority of fans still want their favorite driver to reflect the best part of humanity. Bill Elliott was popular because he was just a straight shooter southern guy who always seemed like the guy you wish lived next door. Everybody’s favorite friend. Bill still had (and has) lots of fans. Earnhardt Jr inherited those who loved his Dad AND a lot more who wanted him to carry on a dynasty. Chase brought so much of his Dad’s persona and became the natural heir to Junior’s reign.

I pull for Ross, Elliott and a couple others. Chase is real, and that keeps him MPD.
 
Thought the cars were sprung way too stiff. Suspensions were like go karts, only give was in the tires. I know NASCAR determines a minimum height or ground clearance, but is the team allowed any higher tolerance? Just a thought, seems if they allowed the suspensions to work there might have been more opportunity to pass.
 
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