You already know the old adage of, “The more things change, the more things stay the same,” and I’m sure you’ve heard it many times. Well, this week at Bristol Motor Speedway will prove the adage to be just as true as it ever was, if not more. With the new changes made to the track (lengthening the SAFER barrier on the straights) and the tire that Goodyear brought for this weekend, the race this weekend at Thunder Valley could prove to be one of the most exciting short track races in a long time.
All the usual complaints have already surfaced whether it be from the driver’s or the crew chiefs and others. Numbered amongst those complaints would be things like how slippery the track is and how much the tire has changed the feel of the track from previous years. Add to that the continuing saga of Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards and the “probation” that Carl Edwards is on and suddenly the drama is increased in many ways.
It is no secret that drivers have already expressed their intentions toward Carl Edwards and his being on probation. Some have openly said they will probably press him more than they normally would were he not on probation simply because they know that he has to watch how he reacts to whatever they do. Now, I’m of the opinion that NASCAR will be watching them just as closely as they are watching Carl Edwards. Does that mean that it’s no holds barred for all the competitors except Carl Edwards, or, does it mean that NASCAR will be looking also at their intentions in trying to give him to do the wrong thing at the right time? I think those are both good questions.
There are two ways to look at the situation between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski. First, I think they are able to put this situation behind them for now but it seems to be very difficult for the media to put the situation behind them. I do believe Carl Edwards has made his point and will move on. How Brad handles the situation from here on will show whether or not Carl’s actions made an impact or not, no matter what Brad says in public.
It is possible that there could be an obvious difference in how Keselowski runs in the other series as well. It is also possible that he may be even more aggressive which is going to aggravate the competitors in those series even more and I believe, NASCAR will be keeping a keen eye on him also. Secondly, Carl being on probation does put him in a predicament of sorts with his other competitors. It remains to be seen how he handles the extra pressure from them and how he maintains his competitiveness over the next three races. No matter how we look at it, only time will tell what the results will be.
Well, we could sit and talk about the incident from two weeks ago for a long period of time just as it is been discussed since it happened two weekends ago. But in actuality, there are other things to talk about for this weekend.
After observing the practices and the qualifying for Sprint Cup, it is obvious that the competition this weekend is going to be exciting and full of the unexpected. There seems to be plenty of strength being shown from several teams in the garage area. There’s no doubt that Kurt Bush and his crew chief, Steve Addington, are flexing some muscle and carrying momentum in the Dodge camp.
Richard Childress teams are still showing what they’ve learned and accomplished since late in season last year. They are making a strong showing on the track and in the standings so far.
The Hendrick teams are still strong even though they haven’t yet shown they are as dominant as they were last year. It seems to me that it is still the ones that finished 1-2-3 at the end of the season year last year that are carrying the banner for the Hendrick teams. Of course, we’re talking about the teams of Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon. Dale Jr’s performance is still in need of improvement but it appears he is doing slightly better.
So, what will happen this weekend is very much up in the air. Will it be the weekend that the Joe Gibbs Toyota teams begin to shine even as Joey Logano has over the last four race weekends and by his taking the poll position for the Sprint Cup race this weekend? It is true that Logano is leading the Gibbs teams this year instead of the expected Denny Hamlin and Kyle Bush teams.
It is just this fans view, but this is one of those weekends that is going to be easier to watch than to predict what will happen and, in all honesty, I am looking forward to the race this weekend. Not only because of the drama that may show up from previous racing a couple of weeks ago but because I know this is short track racing which means short tempers and highly emotional racing from beginning to end. In the end, it remains to be seen just what kind of thunder will be coming from Thunder Valley when this weekend is over…
See ya next time… Rusty
All views expressed are strictly the opinion of the writer
© March 20, 2010 – all rights reserved
Rusty Norman and NascarFansView.com