Cup RACE thread --- The All-Star race

[Dr_B_UNC]

I went to bed and skipped the fourth segment as I was bored to tears and had no dog in the fight. Sounds like I missed a doozy.

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

Pete sounds like he’s done with All Star Race Shenanigans.

 

[Spotter22]

He said that they probably shouldn’t have issued that caution.

I'm not disputing the cauion, it happened right or wrong and you have to be ready for that.

 

[Pat]

Pete sounds like he’s done with All Star Race Shenanigans.

There was a noticeable lack of excitement in a lot of the drivers at intros. There seemed to be a lot of fun missing.

 

[Spotter22]

The point everyone is trying to make is, they made the wrong call to bring out the yellow. Doesn’t matter if they did. Doesn’t change the fact it was the wrong call. Why don’t you understand that?

I'm putting myself in the team position, not NASCAR. We can get upset that they threw a caution but they did, you have to be ready regardless.

 

[Spotter22]

Nobody is confused by the rules. Nobody is suggesting the race should have ended with that yellow. We're simply pointing out how wrong it was to throw a yellow in that situation.

asked and answered several times. I'm not NASCAR, I'm on a team and I should be ready and aware at all times.

 

[Mispeedway15]

I'm going to come out swinging with a mildly long reply here folks...

Lets not forget that Martinsville has the worst rated race of the year. Even great tracks can have bad races. I will say I thought it was good old school racing, you saw guys spinning out all on there own. Speeds were pushing 200 mph into Turn 1 and without sideforce these things were a tough handle. Biggest problem in my opinion with the All-Star event is that you lose lap traffic. So running these 25-50 lap heats essentially is kinda boring on a 1.5 mile track where you don't have to work through any traffic or have the ability to set your car up for long runs. Ryan Blaney nailed the only setup you could have, fast out of the box, and ran away with it once top contenders wrecked out.

NASCAR needs to look to either places like Eldora, or other great American short tracks like South Boston or Five Flags for this race. MLB had an absolute success with the "Field of Dreams" game last year out in Iowa. I think if you did a grassroots thing for the All-Star Race similar to that, theme and all, it would be awesome with a limited field. There just isn't a cool factor for a race that's an exhibition and that's a problem

 

[DIDIT]

There was a noticeable lack of excitement in a lot of the drivers at intros. There seemed to be a lot of fun missing.

I agree, maybe because it just seems like "another" race on the schedule for the drivers. NASCAR has introduced so many changes into the regular races that this format is just another one. I do think the crews get jacked up for it and enjoy seeing them being a big part of the weekend as well as in the introductions.

 

[Pat]

I agree, maybe because it just seems like "another" race on the schedule for the drivers. NASCAR has introduced so many changes into the regular races that this format is just another one. I do think the crews get jacked up for it and enjoy seeing them being a big part of the weekend as well as in the introductions.

I agree about the crews.

 

[9050lx]

As long as Nascar isn't afraid to try new things they will hit on formulas that work. I like the fact that they continue to tweak the system.I however don't agree with an unfastened window net. That was just plain bad judgement. Blaney knows he screwed up, at least I hope he does.

 

[DIDIT]

When you get black flagged don't you have a couple laps before you have to come in? Blaney was told to stay out and make them black flag you if he couldn't get the net up. Can you still win even if you been black flagged?

 

[Tim_Richmond_Fan]

Nascar is suffering from the same thing that the NFL does/is. Nobody really cares for their all star weekend. Same with the Pro-Bowl. An all star event should showcase the talent that makes these athletes above average in their particular profession. How that needs to be implemented is up for debate, but I think I can pretty safely say that the current format needs some work.

 

[DewChaser988]

I have a radical idea: Bring back the elimination format from the early 2000s

 

[Spotter22]

When you get black flagged don't you have a couple laps before you have to come in? Blaney was told to stay out and make them black flag you if he couldn't get the net up. Can you still win even if you been black flagged?

Yes, they quit scoring after 3 laps but I think safety equipment is immediate.

 

[antman12]

Im not going to pretend to have any ideas on how to fix the all star race however I do believe theres a solution.

I didnt even care to turn it on yesterday....no interest. Probably the first race I had ZERO interest in watching in my short fandom.

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

This one is going to be ugly

 

[Revman]

Nascar is suffering from the same thing that the NFL does/is. Nobody really cares for their all star weekend. Same with the Pro-Bowl. An all star event should showcase the talent that makes these athletes above average in their particular profession. How that needs to be implemented is up for debate, but I think I can pretty safely say that the current format needs some work.

I think that All Star events should go the way of Hall of Fames.

 

[DIDIT]

This one is going to be ugly

Here is where it currently is.

 

[Nitro Dude]

Instead of having the All-star race, just let the teams have a weekend off to spend some time at home with their families. That would also give the teams a chance to have their haulers sent in for any needed repairs during such a rigorous schedule. I'm sure we can all find something else to do for that weekend.

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

Bring the race back to Charlotte where it successful for many years in 2023. Then alternate years with North Wilkesboro starting in 2024. This will also alleviate travel for drivers, crews, and many other in the weekly circus that travel so many weeks during the season, gives these people another week at home.

 

[Spotter22]

Lets have an Australian pursuit race. Fastest qualifier starts in the rear and each car he passes has to leave the track. 2- 50 lap segments and one final 20 lap segment at La Coliseum. Who ever is leading after the 1st segment becomes the pursuit car in the second, etc..

 

[Old 97]

You have it reversed but yes.

Just catching up this morning and snort laughed at this.

 

[StandOnIt]

 

[StandOnIt]

 

[JJ_14]

When you get black flagged don't you have a couple laps before you have to come in? Blaney was told to stay out and make them black flag you if he couldn't get the net up. Can you still win even if you been black flagged?

No. Once you're black flagged, your laps don't count. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[StandOnIt]

I could care less if it was a bad call or not. The million buck prize wasn't going to me either way. No points involved so what the hell. Watching heads explode was part of the entertainment. They think stuff up for the All Star that they think will work. I think the party and all of the side shows they had at the track worked, they had a good turnout, but the race format wasn't that great. I think the 50 lap ending is better than the 10 lap one but that was about it. Too complicated. Speeds are back up pushing 190 again. Charlotte will probably be more of the same.

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

Marcus iand Texas are not going down without a fight.

 

[StandOnIt]

A guy on twitter said at the Xfinity race they announced that the All Star race was coming back next year.

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

A guy on twitter said at the Xfinity race they announced that the All Star race was coming back next year.

I'd be shocked if it wasnt really. SMI probably feels it has zero reason to move it besides those complaining on a message board (myself included) and on other forms of social media.

 

[rd45usa]

Smith: "When we had it in Charlotte, we had some detractors who would always say 'Why is it in Charlotte?'... We move it and people say 'Let's put it back in Charlotte.' I've found nobody likes change and nobody likes anything to stay the same ... You can't make everybody happy."

Reminds me the old saying "be careful what you wish for, you just might get it."

 

[FLRacingFan]

Marcus is being disingenuous. Zero fans asked for the ASR to be moved to Texas on an annual basis. It was always “move it to Bristol” or some other non-Cup short track, or a rotation of tracks. But no one was yearning for Texas, and he knows this. It is more a result of the shuffling of SMI races that wound up with a points-paying TMS date going to an SMI-promoted weekend a few hours away at COTA.

 

[2 Sweet]

Smith: "When we had it in Charlotte, we had some detractors who would always say 'Why is it in Charlotte?'... We move it and people say 'Let's put it back in Charlotte.' I've found nobody likes change and nobody likes anything to stay the same ... You can't make everybody happy."

Guys like Smith are so full of ****. He will continue to live in denial about the ASR at Texas because "the people there enjoyed it." Head in the sand.

Who asked anyone to move the ASR to Texas? There was nothing wrong with having it in Charlotte. The problem was the lack of interest in the race itself and the stupid gimmicky formats every year. Moving it to Texas was never going to save it.

It used to be a big deal because of the special paint schemes, and it was only winners and champions. Now you have 75% of the field in the ASR, drivers change paint schemes every week so it's not special anymore, dumb gimmicks like the set of green letter tires, and weird formats to try and shake things up. Manufactured drama. Expecting fans to buy into this stuff, especially at a track like Texas? How silly.

When things are good, people don't like change unless it'll make it even better. When things aren't good, people want GOOD change. This isn't a difficult concept to understand. But clowns like Smith will continue to pull the "what can ya do" card like they can't win no matter what because of us stupid fans.

 

[Daytripper]

No. Once you're black flagged, your laps don't count. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

You are wrong, black flag tells you that you need to come in, laps keep counting until you are given the black flag with white crossed lines.

 

[pjmolo]

Sorry if I'm late in beating the dead horse but while Scott Miller owned up to NASCAR throwing an unnecessary caution, his explanation regarding the possibly unsecured window net is ludicrous.

Basically, he said they had no way of knowing if the net wasn't secured and therefore had no reason to bring Blaney to the pits to fix it.

But they also had no way of knowing if the net was secure, as required for safety reasons.

imo, mumbling Miller should see if a job sweeping floors is available somewhere.

 

[Jorge De Guzman]

Sorry if I'm late in beating the dead horse but while Scott Miller owned up to NASCAR throwing an unnecessary caution, his explanation regarding the possibly unsecured window net is ludicrous.

Basically, he said they had no way of knowing if the net wasn't secured and therefore had no reason to bring Blaney to the pits to fix it.

But they also had no way of knowing if the net was secure, as required for safety reasons.

imo, mumbling Miller should see if a job sweeping floors is available somewhere.

Yea the part that was eye opening for me was they werent sure if his window net was totally secured. Like what?

 

[StandOnIt]

Coming to the green, Blaney had both hands on the wheel and the net was up. Chewing gum, Velcro, or he beat it into submission who knows, they said it was good and dropped the flag.

 

[StandOnIt]

 

[Pat]

He has a ways to go.. got to get that boot above his head.

 

[Spotter22]

Sorry if I'm late in beating the dead horse but while Scott Miller owned up to NASCAR throwing an unnecessary caution, his explanation regarding the possibly unsecured window net is ludicrous.

Basically, he said they had no way of knowing if the net wasn't secured and therefore had no reason to bring Blaney to the pits to fix it.

But they also had no way of knowing if the net was secure, as required for safety reasons.

imo, mumbling Miller should see if a job sweeping floors is available somewhere.

Should have just made him come on in and have it checked then sent him out to the back of the line.

 

[Ford 222]

Blaney with some realism….good to hear someone that lives and operates in reality.