Reality check

97forever

97forever

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Conspiracy theorists.There.I said it.

After all I am one.Blame growing up around B.I.R and old B.J Parker being an in-law,the 'Iceberg' cafe in Hueytown and the reality that the old Alabama Gang were Nascar 'outsiders'(at least in their own minds!)and you have a recipe for a conspiracy-nut that makes Fox Mulder look like a hardened skeptic!

So with that aside,I want to pose a simple and direct question to my fellow forum-ites:Do you believe conspiracies exist in Nascar's top level?Simple,right?

But this time,I am not speaking about Jr.,Chevrolet,the France family or the Stop-Elliott lore of some of my past posts.This time without bashing or emotional input,you folks just give your pure thoughts on this subject.And I know----I am one of the worst at getting-uh-vocal on the subject!lol

However this time we have a pretty good collection of brainpower on here...some of you folks are just downright sharp on this subject!I think most of us that go to the trouble of typing a response or just reading others responses share a pretty deep love for this sport and truly want to see,hear and feel a really fair competition between different men in different machines letting it all hang out for that ol' checkered flag.

My opinion,of course(duh)is that 'conspiracies'...or at the very least 'vested-interest' do in fact play a large part in WC racing.Daddy always said where you have millions of dollars involved you have a million opportunities for corruption.Maybe that is right,maybe not.But at any rate all the signs of the 'modern era' certainly have ME convinced that big-money sponsorships and media influence,the marketable driver,the 'sexiest' driver in Nascar,etc.are going to pull the heart right out of this sport.But I could be wrong of course.

The hot topic on most 'net forums have centered around a certain driver and whether this certain driver receives 'allowances' from the sanctioning body.That is irrelevant to this post,but it does serve to focus attention on the bigger question of 'VESTED INTEREST BY THE SANCTIONING BODY to influence or manipulate races to increase revenue/profit for themselves'.So that is how I will DEFINE 'conspiracy' in this context.

So please give your opinions folks.If all is right with our favorite sport this is a good exercise in speculation.No harm done.

But if all is wrong in our favorite sport....then instead of hiding from it and denying it,we fans need to blow it out of the water while we can!Call me a nut all you want NASCAR,just dont question my love of the sport.


Opinions?
 
Whoa!One more rant real quick:

Where in the @#$% is the motorsports press??THEY should be asking the hard questions,grilling Helton like a baloney sandwich,and demanding to see a damn 'rulebook'!
 
Ya might like this take on the deal by Monte Dutton. I don't agree with him necessarily, but he has earned respect from me. Things happen from time to time that may be labeled a conspiracy, but I do not think there is any master plan other than to put on good racing and make money...........and if NASCAR does not do that where the hell would we be?? :eek:

FONTANA, Calif. — Once again, NASCAR’s Winston Cup Series put on a good race. It’s a recurring theme.
Oddly enough, only the Daytona 500 was a stinker among the 10 races run to this point in the season. NASCAR, of course, would undoubtedly prefer that its season opener and most prestigious race was the one about which people were still talking. A few are still talking, all right, but they’re talking in terms of derision. In fairness, though, not even all-powerful, answerable-to-no-one NASCAR can control the weather. And, after the first lap, there was one lead change! What do you want?

Since Daytona, though, the races have been compelling and entertaining. If one can get past the notion that the principal difference between a Ford and a Chevy is a set of decals, then it’s even possible to make the argument that the so-called “common templates” have made the racing closer. Jack Roush keeps grousing about having to run “a ‘97 Taurus,” but that’s OK. Roush is probably going to be grousing about something if anything happens other than his Fords winning every race. Roush is a competitor, and competitors always seek the unfair advantage. It’s because they all want to win.

Nine different drivers have won races, and that general phenomenon — Kurt Busch finally become the season’s first two-time winner notwithstanding — is nowhere near running its course. Tony Stewart hasn’t won. Jimmie Johnson hasn’t won. Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace, Sterling Marlin, Bill Elliott, Kevin Harvick, Ricky Rudd, Johnny Benson, Elliott Sadler and many others too numerous to mention haven’t won.

While, as always, stung by the criticism that they run their sport all too much like pro wrestling — imagine that! — NASCAR’s officials have to be smiling smugly, because what is happening is almost exactly what they want.

The sport has its share of storm-clouds out there on the horizon, but if the boom ends, its leaders will have no one but themselves to blame. They’re getting their way. They’re laughing all the way to the bank. The criticisms always seem eventually to blow over.

The guy who finished fifth in Sunday’s Auto Club 500, Jamie McMurray, entered the race ranked 30th in the point standings. John Andretti also finished in the top 10. On the other hand, Dale Jarrett was 37th, Tony Stewart was 41st and Ryan Newman was 42nd. If that’s not parity, what is?

Most of NASCAR’s rules still exist only in the minds of those who make them up. The biggest unwritten rule of all, by the way, is the one that says, “Never let the rules get in the way of the show.” NASCAR’s leaders live by that motto. They think baseball is silly to list officially the dimensions of its strike zone. If they ran basketball, where the three-point is would depend on who was shooting and whether his team was ahead or behind. Replay officials? No good can come from that. Who wants a correct call if swallowing the whistle would be more entertaining?

Fair play is overrated. They won’t say it, but that’s what they think.
 
Monte is one of my favorites too.And you were right again HS:I do like his take on this!*(normally I would place a smilie here,but once again My computer has decided to deny me that pleasure!)
 
Ok i have to put in my BS. here.....basically what i think is happening is Nascar has been pressured by the sponsors, not only The Bud guys, but the other major players also. After all it is the sponsors that really make the show go on, without them these multi-car teams would not be multi, they would be one ...if that. Bud pays a lot of money into Nascar and is a player in sponsoring the Cup next year, so is Macdonalds, Coke, and Visa... all leading candidates. So these huge conglomerates that put millions into Nascar and individual teams, want all the exposure they can get...it's obvious. Jr just happens to be driving the Bud car, very marketable individual, that happens to have a very famous daddy....not his fault by the way. Jr was a punk IMO when he first came into Cup, last year towards the end of the season he started to come around, partly because he was healing from his injury at Fontana and partly because he was maturing as a driver. This year he has shown he can drive, shown his team is consistent , shown that he is a threat for the championship(so far), and shown that he is one of the most popular drivers. Dei has a ton of money, an outstanding race organization, with great race shops that build very competitive cars. For me i see no conspiracy at all , i see sponsors pouring in tons of money and wanting results, wanting their brand to get the most exposure. Has there been a few bad calls this year------Yes, has their been bad calls in the past years ....hell yeh. Ever since i have been watching Nascar at its' highest level i have seen them blow calls, and folks that has been over 35 years. Nascar needs a sponsor for their sport that has a good image....does RJ Renolds fit that bill, i think not. They have done a lot for the sport, but it is time for them to go bye bye. It is all about sponsorship, not about conspiracy, no they don't go hand in hand either, contrary to what some of you might think.
 
HS...thanks for posting that article. That was amusing, but alarming accurate. I love their analogy about the strike zone and three-point lines being a silly notion.

As to the question on the table...I definitely think NASCAR has a different version of fair than the rest of us. I will admit that Jeff Gordon has benefited from this in the past, but never to the extent that the Bud team has this year. The mis-application of the Yellow Line Rule was absurd. I would venture to say that any, and I mean any other driver would have been penalized in that exact situation. Ask Tony Stewart, among others, if being "forced below the line" is an acceptable excuse.
 
Originally posted by 97forever@Apr 29 2003, 05:04 PM
Whoa!One more rant real quick:

Where in the @#$% is the motorsports press??THEY should be asking the hard questions,grilling Helton like a baloney sandwich,and demanding to see a damn 'rulebook'!
Click to expand...
Sadly, the majority of motorsport's press people are simply a cross section of the current fan base.

People that care little about the integrity of the sport, and do their best to tarnish the images of drivers like Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch.

Think about it this way...for example...90% of the people in the stands don't care how Jr wins, just as long as he does. 90% of those same people dislike drivers like Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart. 90% of racing articles you read simply cater to those people and spit in the face of raw talent and emotion,, and embrace the current money train that is DEI.

Were there to be actual integrity and truth telling in motorsports press, those same 90% would stop reading...because they wouldn't like what they saw.

As it stands, all it does is spoonfeed what people want to read...because NASCAR is spoonfeeding people what they want to see on Sunday anyway.
 
Originally posted by HardScrabble@Apr 29 2003, 05:09 PM


FONTANA, Calif. — Once again, NASCAR’s Winston Cup Series put on a good race. It’s a recurring theme.
Oddly enough, only the Daytona 500 was a stinker among the 10 races run to this point in the season.

Since Daytona, though, the races have been compelling and entertaining.
Click to expand...
I beg to differ. The racing has been 100% horrid.

Their storylines and the current soap opera may be "compelling", but the racing has been boring.

Surely Monte can see the difference?
 
NASCAR is of course only selectively enforcing the rules as to whom they wish to possibly win...watch who they say "no" to.
1. Penske...he has way too much power in open wheel and with Tony George.
2. Gordon...His time as the poster boy is up
3. From a pubplicity (sp) stand point the Dale jr. plays best in the press
4. If a sports writer tells more than NASCAR wants told their credentials are pulled!
5. Look how no one wants to talk about a series that has killed more drivers in the past 5 years than NHRA, CART, IRL and F-1 all combined!!!

NASCAR operates for entertainment purposes first!
 
Redrock:your point regarding Penske is one that I considered mentioning in the opening of this post.

Occasionally,Nascar will release a little 'most influential people in Nascar'list.Not surprising that the usual suspects are at the top of the list.....Names like Teresa,Ty,Richard Childress,Earnhardt,etc.That isnt that surprising.What is,is the names that are either MINOR or ABSENT from the list.Names like Roush,Petty,Penske,Yates,Gibbs....guys that should be at least as influential as a racing widow or a p.r.man!Again this may mean nothing......but the very definition of 'most influential' would imply that it does.

Less regard for pop culture and more regard for true competition should be what fans are screaming for.Sadly,I dont think the fan base is ever going to call the Big Boys to the carpet on this though.So what if I quit going to 'Dega twice a year....I can be replaced by someone that will buy more T-shirts from DEI/Norris.Just discouraging. :(
 
How do you figure the racing has been boring Paul? I can't see that statement even being remotely accurate, outside of the usual plat race BS., the racing has been pretty damn good IMO. Rockingham was good, Vegas was good, Fontana even was a lot better with more of an upper grove. Are you paying attention or are you so stuck on all the DEI crap that you can't see the racing on the track? :lol: :cheers:
 
What did i say something bad....lol? Come on the racing hasn't been what a lot of you are making it out to be. The people that have attended races, who post on this board can attest to this. Well at least i can, I saw some of the best racing at the Cup level in Vegas this year.
 
The races have been boring. Though they always seem to pull together a decent final lap, the first 499 laps are parades.
 
Well i would agree that the plate races have been like that , but the other ones have been good IMO.
 
Originally posted by paul@Apr 30 2003, 10:40 PM
The races have been boring. Though they always seem to pull together a decent final lap, the first 499 laps are parades.
Click to expand...
And the TV coverage to date has been truly awful. :angry:
 
You guys pay way too much attention to the commercials and the talk, watch what is going on and listen to MRN. Do you really think the second half of the season is going to be any better with NBC......come on they are horrid!!
 
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