Am I the Only One? Random Thoughts on Racing

Originally Posted on July 4, 2006 on Foxsports.com

Am I the only one who had visions of the 1979 Daytona 500 when it came down to Stewart, Shrub and Busch on the final lap Saturday?  For those who forget, in the 1979 Daytona 500, Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough were scrapping for the lead on the last lap when they bumped and crashed.  Donnie & Cale proceeded to discuss who was wrong and who crashed who.  Bobby Allison finished the race, but stopped by on the cool down lap.  Bobby later remarked that during the discussion, Cale's nose started hitting Bobby's fist and helmet.  As much as I want to cast Stewart as a Yarborough character, I think that he would probably be the one pounding on Shrub, which I don't think Busch would take too well.  Regardless, I guess we'll never know.

Am I the only one who wanted to hear Jeff Gordon's list of drivers he'd like to bad mouth?  Given that the accident he was involved in was mostly a racing deal, I'm not sure who he is thinking.  But, it would be fun to see the short list.

Am I the only one who wonders where the magic went for DEI?  Remember how their cars used to dominate the restrictor plate races?  Now all we see are Hendrick cars, Stewart, Kurt Busch, and an occasional Ford.  DEI has clearly lost its dominance.

Am I the only one who thinks it is ironic that his pit crew had to save Stewart from the fans when he came down out of the flag stand?  First they have to perform a flawless pit stop to get him great track position.  Then they have to endure the shoving and grabbing of a few hundred fans because their driver GOT LOST on the way to Victory Lane.

Am I the only one wonders why the flagman didn't tell Stewart how to get out of the flag stand and back to the track?  And why didn't they have a clue he'd climb the fence again?

Am I the only one who wonders how Boris Said got the pole with a Yates engine and Roush help when NEITHER team could put a car in the front 2 rows or finish in the top 4?  And Said had a lot less experience with restrictor plates.  And he had a chance to win when no other Yates or Roush cars did.  Do you suppose Tony told Boris something in their "monday morning phone call"? 

Am I the only one who wonders if Frank Stoddard is the most underrated crew chief out there?  Followed only by Jimmy Fennig.

Am I the only one who thinks it is wrong to compare Michael Schumacher's five wins at Indy to AJ Foyt's, Rick Mears, & Al Unser's four wins at the 500 and Jeff Gordon's 4 wins at the Brickyard 400?  Is it fair to compare three different types of racing - stock car, indy car, and road courses?  With different race lengths?  Different sanctioning bodies, rules and skills?  All are impressive records in their own right, but does the average non-racing person understand they are different?

Am I the only one wondering if Brian Vickers will get a chance to drive a F1 car - much like Jeff Gordon test drove one a few years ago?  Not that Vickers has as much experience in open wheel cars  as a former open wheel drivers like Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon or Ken Schrader would have, but Vickers has the right future sponsor (Red Bull).  And he was at Indy for the F1 race.