Fan Commentary

Boneheads and Robby Gordon's Blue Dress

by Grandstand Bob

Does anyone else notice that fans seem happiest when drivers are unhappiest? With the exception of New Hampshire, of course. Nobody seemed particularly happy there.

Saturday night’s Bristol race lived up to its billing, and that shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. The track is short and fast, and the atmosphere is incredible. It’s as close to the Roman Coliseum as Winston Cup can get and maintain its legitimacy.

That’s not to say that there weren’t some boneheads in the mix on Saturday. However, the difference between this and most races were that most of the boneheads in Bristol were behind the wheel.

Topping the list, once again, is Robby Gordon. I started out the season believing that Robby would self-destruct by the season’s end, but then I tried really hard to like the guy, because, as his fans point out, he is intensely competitive.

The way I feel about Robby Gordon is almost the same way I felt about Bill Clinton – he wasn’t my choice for president, but he did seem sincere. That is, until he wagged his finger at me and said that he didn’t . . . well, you know the rest. The videotape of Gordon smacking Johnson on the caution lap was the equivalent of Monica’s blue dress. As great of a racer as he is, the guy won’t hesitate to cheat, and then won’t hesitate to lie about it. A sponsor’s dream, right? Come on Robby. Admit when you screw up, and you’ll gain some fans.

Another driver whose bonehead trigger seemed to have been tripped was Kyle Petty. Unlike his very worthy and admirable charity ride, there are no free gifts in racing. As such, Jeff Gordon was under no obligation to allow Kyle to get a lap back. But Kyle seemed to think so, and could have cost Gordon a chance at winning, had that rub taken down a tire.

Speaking of getting laps back, as much as I like to watch someone fight their way back to the front after some misfortune, the tradition of racing back to the yellow might need to be reexamined, particularly at Bristol. There just isn’t enough room and time for drivers to react, especially if there is a wreck on the frontstretch.

Back to the boneheads. Joe Nemechek also deserves the bonehead rap, not necessarily for the Elliott Sadler mishap, but for holding up Rusty Wallace at the end of the race, so his Hendrick teammate could catch up and deliver the death blow to Rusty’s back bumper.

No, I don’t believe that Gordon was a bonehead to bumping Rusty out of the way. I’m sure Rusty was mad, but he also knew that he would have done the same thing if the roles were reversed, as would 95% of the other drivers out there.

Likewise, I believe that most of the anger-inducing incidents were more a consequence of hard racing than ill will. Most of these guys don’t set out to wreck fellow competitors. If they did, they would suffer the ire of their sponsors, fans and NASCAR itself. Most of them would probably like to take back a move or two after a race (e.g. Tony Stewart, Jerry Nadeau, Ward Burton and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.), but they don’t have that luxury, so they simply apologize and move on.

That’s why I think that most of Saturday night's hurt feelings will be healed by Monday phone calls. Drivers can relate to fellow drivers, and most can work out some sort of amicable solution to their differences, even if they don’t become steadfast friends.

As I started out this column by saying, Bristol makes drivers mad and fans happy. Drivers get mad because people make mistakes that their victims have very little chance of avoiding, as they spin around the soup bowl every 15 seconds. And fans are happy, because the racing and emotions are intense.

Hey, has anyone ever mentioned that it would be great to have more Bristol-like tracks on the circuit, and fewer parade-producing cookie cutters? It’s just an idea.

Grandstand Bob Profile and Past Columns

note: This opinions expressed in this column are those of writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or positions of ARS Racing Outlet or its parent company, amI, Inc.