Subject: [NEXTEL-1] 10 things to watch as teams head down back stretch

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2003 01:58:00 -0400

Aug 12, 5:08 PM
10 things to watch as teams head down back stretch

The points race is all but wrapped up, but there are still plenty of other
questions surrounding Winston Cup racing.
To name a few:
1. What the heck is wrong with Jeff Gordon? Good question. It was almost sad to
watch the post-race interviews after the Brickyard 400 and Sunday's show at
Watkins Glen. Gordon was visibly drained after fighting his way to a fourth-place
finish at Indy and frustrated following his 33rd-place showing at the Glen. Gordon
was not shown the respect worthy of a four-time Cup champion, getting punted
heading into the first turn on the first lap at the Glen and again heading into
the final turn on the final lap.

The shot of his car sitting against the guardrail as the field passed by
capsulated his season. While Gordon has a win, he is third in the point standings,
a distant 396 behind leader Matt Kenseth. Many expected he'd be setting the pace
by now.
2. What is NASCAR waiting for on permanent safety crews? Perhaps one more picture
of a wrecked driver angrily gesturing at the late-arriving ambulance crew (as
Gordon did Sunday) or one more driver ripping NASCAR's policy of different crews
at each track (as Ryan Newman did Saturday).

Other than that, I don't know.
3. Can second-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. catch Kenseth? Anything's possible, but 258
points is a huge hill for Earnhardt to climb. It's been said Kenseth's lead could
evaporate on Bristol's high banks, in Richmond's and Martinsville's tight
confines, or in Talladega's 43-car pack, but bad luck also could befall Earnhardt.

4. Has anyone heard from Nextel? The new title sponsor -- it will be the NASCAR
Nextel Cup starting in 2004 -- has kept a low profile since signing on for $750
million over the next 10 years. Perhaps it is watching and learning how R.J.
Reynolds and Winston made it all work, but it sure would be nice to get some idea
of how Nextel plans to do things.
5. Speaking of points, will the system change in 2004? All indications are the
system that for years has been criticized for rewarding consistency instead of
victories will be tweaked next season. NASCAR chairman Bill France has suggested
alterations to NASCAR president Mike Helton and they will be announced in due
time.
6. Who will be the most high-profile driver to move on in 2004? It appears to be
Ward Burton, who went public at Indy with his dissatisfaction with team owner Bill
Davis. Some reports place Burton at Richard Childress Racing in 2004, replacing
Steve Park.

Or it might be Tony Stewart. The sport has been rife with reports of Stewart
either leaving Joe Gibbs at the end of this season for Chip Ganassi -- with
Ganassi buying out the final year of his contract -- or after the 2004 campaign.
Why is beyond me.
7. Would Earnhardt really leave DEI? Junior told The Sporting News he still has
not signed a contract with the company that bears his late father's name, claiming
the terms are weighted to DEI's benefit and not his. Junior loves to drive but
dislikes making public appearances.

He can't have it both ways, especially when a sponsor is laying down upwards of
$15 million a year. Junior has always been complimentary of Childress, and the
thought of Junior in RCR colors would warm the souls of millions. The guess here
is Junior is just negotiating.
8. Does the addition of lights at more tracks herald an eventual move to much more
night racing? Sure looks that way. It's no secret TV favors later starts and now
that six of the 23 tracks NASCAR runs on have lights (Atlanta, Bristol, Charlotte,
Daytona, Richmond and Texas) and two will add them (California and Darlington), it
could be a sign of things to come.

The bet here is the majority of night races will be held on Saturdays to give
NASCAR a one-day cushion against rain and the paying customers a chance to get
home and back to work by Monday.
9. Can the Pettys sink any lower? I hope not. From failing to land a sponsor for
Christian Fittipaldi in the offseason, to the firing of John Andretti, to the
failure of two Petty cars to make the Pepsi 400 at Daytona, to both cars wrecking
at Watkins Glen, the season has been a disaster. The Pettys have got to find a
solution before they become irrelevant.
10. Will the quality of the racing ever improve? I hope so. You know things are
tough when the two road courses supply the majority of the season's drama --
except for the Ricky Craven-Kurt Busch finish at Darlington.  NASCAR has achieved
parity and with it a mind-numbing sameness week in and week out on the ovals.

Some drivers say they want smaller spoilers and softer tires. We say give it to
them. It can't get much worse.

http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/columnstoryA8786A.htm

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