NASCAR @ Phoenix

Cynon wrote:

f1fan12 wrote:I am so happy for Newman... Just because the Captain Whinesalot got bumped!

Yup. This chase is a joke, Gordon should be champion but he won't be.

Agreed. I think Gordon's still got some time to chase another title at the rate which he's been producing wins this year. But if nothing else, I want to see him notch 100 wins.

Nevertheless, I don't mind any of these final four drivers going on to win the title. My better judgement says Harvick's got it made if he doesn't have a problem at Homestead.

-Ignore-

Well, needless to say, I'm not particularly interested in who becomes the champion, because the four that are in it I don't particularly like. Newman's okay, I guess, but if he becomes champion and doesn't win a single race, it'll prove without a shadow of a doubt how much of a joke this format truly is.

Why, you ask?

Well, this format is supposed to put emphasis on winning, and yet Newman hasn't won a single race this season. He's been pretty damn consistent, despite being anonymous as all hell, I'll give him that, and you know what? If he does win the championship, good for him. I can't blame him for winning the title given the system he has to work under. It's just that if he does become champion, he would be the most anonymous champion in the history of NASCAR, and he would become the first winless Cup champion in history. IMO, those two distinctions have stigmas that aren't exactly positive, and I don't know how positive NASCAR would react to a driver becoming a winless champion under a system that's supposed to emphasize winning.

And yes, he did drive like a banshee into that last corner, but it was a similar move we saw Kez make last week, and it got him into the championship, so I can't blame Newman for that either. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Overall, though, the race itself was kind of bland. Harvick dominated, which was to be expected given his track record at Phoenix, and considering his actions last week, I'm not exactly pleased he's contending for the championship. Whatever.

I also find it kind of amazing that despite the fact that Joe Gibbs Racing has had an off year (only two wins this season), they could still walk away with a championship with Denny Hamlin. Of course, will Whamlin make up for not stopping Jimmie from getting 5 in a row, or will he choke like he did that day? My money's on the latter.

Well, well, ol' Moldy Bread has really turned himself back into Sliced Bread since he joined Penske. It's taken him a while, but he's finally showing the potential that Mark Martin saw all the way back in his Pro Series days. And as much as a lot of us might not like to admit it, given our general dislike for Lolgano, if he does win the title, he does have five wins to back him up, and he's been incredibly consistent this season as well. My money's on Logano to take it all at Homestead.

The 2014 Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 gets a 4.5/10. Like I said, it was pretty bland, although it did get spiced up near the end, but the winner was never really in doubt, and that killed it for me a little bit. Thankfully, we didn't have a post-race brawl like we did last week, so that's a positive.

Next week is the final event in a very interesting season. On the one hand, the racing we've seen this season has been some of the best we've seen in a long time, but the downside has been this stupid format and all the controversy it has created, not to mention a lot of unneeded attention. Nevertheless, we've seen more positive things this season than we have the last three or four seasons combined, and if NASCAR would just get rid of the damn Chase, then 2015 would have the most promise that we've had in a long time.

kensethfan wrote:

Cynon wrote:

f1fan12 wrote:I am so happy for Newman... Just because the Captain Whinesalot got bumped!

Yup. This chase is a joke, Gordon should be champion but he won't be.

Agreed. I think Gordon's still got some time to chase another title at the rate which he's been producing wins this year. But if nothing else, I want to see him notch 100 wins.

Nevertheless, I don't mind any of these final four drivers going on to win the title. My better judgement says Harvick's got it made if he doesn't have a problem at Homestead.

Gordon deserves it yes, but I just don't like him!

PackerMan71 wrote:Well, needless to say, I'm not particularly interested in who becomes the champion, because the four that are in it I don't particularly like.

With the exception of Harvick, I'm pretty much in the same boat. Newman doesn't deserve it and I hate Hamlin and Logano (although Logano would deserve it).

Gordon this, Gordon that. He got beat, plain and simple. Both Logano and Harvick deserve the title just as much, if not more, than Gordon.

I'd be really happy with whoever wins the Championship, as long as it's not Hamlin.

I think everyone forgot that Hamlin didn't even race at Auto Club.

So our final 4 consists of the One who has turned it around this year, Harvick (can't really think of anything for him) , someone who has no wins this season, and someone who wasn't in every race this season.

If i can be honest with you, I'm glad Newman made it in as i have someone to cheer for at Miami.

But putting my personal feeling aside i still don't fault Newman for making that move, It was that move or game over fir his title hopes and with what this system has shown us since we started it is that you gotta go for it or go home in the closing stages...even if it's making a dirty as all hell move.

Harvick spanked them today and made a statement that he's the favorite going into Homestead.

Cynon wrote:

f1fan12 wrote:I am so happy for Newman... Just because the Captain Whinesalot got bumped!

Yup. This chase is a joke, Gordon should be champion but he won't be.

This season is Karma kicking NASCAR in the balls for creating the chase in the first place.

Jeff Gordon: "You don't have to wreck people to win the championship."

I don't necessarily have a problem with how Ryan raced Kyle because anyone in that situation would've done exactly the same thing. However, I would've liked to see someone else besides Newman move on...

I seriously hope Newman wins the title without winning a race, because that would force all the NASCAR "journalists" who kiss Brian France's ass, instead of calling him a crazy person for all the stupid-ass changes he's made this past decade, to try and come up with a way to glorify a winless champion who walked his way through this stupid system; also, it would make all the people who treated Kenseth's one-win title like it was a crime worthy of a death sentence look like complete dips for doing that. Otherwise, I hope it's Harvick.

https://twitter.com/Josh_Wise/status/531615975977017344


Ooooh burn!

Ok, so looking at the standings.

1 driver does not have a win at all.. hell, only has FOUR TOP FIVES!!!
1 driver MISSED a race
4 drivers have FOUR OR MORE wins, yet cannot win the championship at all

Im DEFINITELY rooting against Logano and Harvick this weekend, because if they are the best finishers, Brian France will puff his chest out and say "MY SYSTEM WORKS!!!".  I want Hamlin... OR EVEN MORE SO, Newman, to be the best finisher, especially so if Newman doesn't win.

Also to add, I don't know what positions in the points get invited to the end of season banquet, but if it's top 10, and Jr has a bad day, AJ Allmendinger, with all of his 5 top 5's, could be invited over Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, and a few others who have had obviously better seasons

I think I read somewhere that all the Chasers go to Vegas.

crl wrote:I think I read somewhere that all the Chasers go to Vegas.

All the Chasers go to Vegas, but only the top 10 make it on stage for the banquet.

Just my two cents on the Newman incident.

It's not like he dumped Larson, he just divebombed and put him in the wall and Larson only lost what, two positions? As much as I love Larson, shit happens. Besides, if I was a position behind the spot I needed to clinch myself into the final round and it's the final lap, I'm not going to admit defeat, I would of done the same damn thing.

Despite all of this, I'm STILL on the Newman train.

This format is still a joke though.

in todays edition of tire murdering theater

Would like to see Jeff Gordon win next week, just to prove he can, and inch him closer to the century mark in wins. Also want to see Newman take the cup, because f**k Nascar and their points system.

Based on the last couple races, I 100% expect Ricky Stenhouse levels of shenanigans next week (obscure 2008 arca reference is obscure)

Mystrsyko wrote:
Based on the last couple races, I 100% expect Ricky Stenhouse levels of shenanigans next week (obscure 2008 arca reference is obscure)

Was that the one with Scott Speed?

I think the worst that will happen is team games next week, not sure with how severe or not though.

All aboard the Newman hype train ill be your conductor

I really wouldn't mind if any of the other three won though

SweetErin wrote:

Mystrsyko wrote:
Based on the last couple races, I 100% expect Ricky Stenhouse levels of shenanigans next week (obscure 2008 arca reference is obscure)

Was that the one with Scott Speed?

Yep. The one that ended up in Justin Allgaier's hands after Stenhouse decided to be a prick.

Well even if Newman wins the title as a huge "fu" to NASCAR, we've already had 2 fights and several controversial moments, and since the new Chase was made to increase excitement, it's a little too late to prove them wrong imo.

BooyakaDragon wrote:Well even if Newman wins the title as a huge "fu" to NASCAR, we've already had 2 fights and several controversial moments, and since the new Chase was made to increase excitement, it's a little too late to prove them wrong imo.

Fights doesn't make racing exciting.

Sure, it overshadows that the racing, in Texas' case, was completely terrible, but it's completely irrelevant as far as the racing goes.

Dan Mackay wrote:

in todays edition of tire murdering theater

A tire would get shredded just looking at that thing

Is that flaring something new? I don't recall every seeing it like that until late in this season.

conrail1990 wrote:Is that flaring something new? I don't recall every seeing it like that until late in this season.

I believe that was damage from an earlier wreck

I thought the Damage was on the left side of the car.

PYLrulz wrote:

conrail1990 wrote:Is that flaring something new? I don't recall every seeing it like that until late in this season.

I believe that was damage from an earlier wreck

Nah they've done the skirt flares for at least a couple weeks now and they're absolutely intentional.

Alta wrote:

PYLrulz wrote:

conrail1990 wrote:Is that flaring something new? I don't recall every seeing it like that until late in this season.

I believe that was damage from an earlier wreck

Nah they've done the skirt flares for at least a couple weeks now and they're absolutely intentional.

I knew it! I though doing that would be banned, considering it could be used against another driver. aka cutting a tire down.

Ben Atkins wrote:

BooyakaDragon wrote:Well even if Newman wins the title as a huge "fu" to NASCAR, we've already had 2 fights and several controversial moments, and since the new Chase was made to increase excitement, it's a little too late to prove them wrong imo.

Fights doesn't make racing exciting.

Sure, it overshadows that the racing, in Texas' case, was completely terrible, but it's completely irrelevant as far as the racing goes.

NASCAR doesn't see that though, at least from my view.

conrail1990 wrote:

Alta wrote:

PYLrulz wrote:

conrail1990 wrote:Is that flaring something new? I don't recall every seeing it like that until late in this season.

I believe that was damage from an earlier wreck

Nah they've done the skirt flares for at least a couple weeks now and they're absolutely intentional.

I knew it! I though doing that would be banned, considering it could be used against another driver. aka cutting a tire down.

ESPN showed at Texas the jackmen pulling at the fender. NASCAR hasn't said anything about it, hopefully they put in a rule where pit crews have to fix the fenders under green if they pulled them.

I think NASCAR out a press release out around the time of Charlotte saying they didn't care.