MyBad

Hah!

I knew it. Homer is the steriotypical NASCAR fan.

Triple-H

I can only imagine what your reply would have been if I asked if you were thinking about this Masked Avenger...








Ain't google grand...

drewchie

Ahhh the smug superiority of "real racing" fans...

For the record, I think F1 is the most exciting form of racing. That said, I don't particularly have warm and fuzzy feelings for most of the very talented F1 drivers.

The comparison of NASCAR to the WWF may be a very accurate one, although I don't think that the race outcomes are "fixed" as most of the wrestling matches are.

What NASCAR provides is entertainment on a very grand scale. Fans identify with drivers, teams and manufacturers much like F1 but in NASCAR those fans are embraced rather than just tolerated as in F1.

Can you imagine a debacle like what happened at last year's USGP happening at a NASCAR event? You can bet that the France's would have figured out a way to still put on a good show for the fans, without compromising the integrity of the "sport" too much. Max, Bernie, and the other F1 manufacturers couldn't have cared less about the fans, they were too busy pissing on each other.

Is a bunch of Fords and Chevys going around in a high speed traffic jam the best racing has to offer? Of course not, but it can be a very entertaining package that's enjoyed by a suprisingly wide demographic of men women and children of many races and cultures. (Not just "fat dumb southerners" as NASCAR detractors are so quick to stereotype. )

While I admire the incredible driving skill of Kimi and firmly acknowledge him as probably the best driver in the world; I'd much rather share a steak and a beer with Michael Waltrip or Kyle Petty.

Actually... the best racing is Honda Cup. Any series that features S2000s has to be the best.

Triple-H

x 2

If I did not have to run off to a funeral I would stay and have some fun, but alas, I'll just run out the door saying thanks, these two alone will keep me laughing inside through tonight's non-fun activity...

Thanks Chie

mikegarrison

F1 racing is like America's Cup racing. It's just a way for super-rich team owners to show off the size of their ... um ... wallets.

NASCAR is entertainment that knows it is entertainment. Fans are encouraged to identify with the drivers, and the series concentrates on giving the fans a three-day mini vacation. F1, in contrast, grudgingly allows racetracks to try and do the same thing, but doesn't really care as long as the track owners pony up the cash.

As for the actual racing, both series have their problems. In F1, you hardly ever see passes on track or wheel-to-wheel racing. Maybe they need to ditch qualifying altogether and simply start cars in opposite order of series points. Then all the fast cars and drivers would have to actually race.

NASCAR has the opposite problem. They have so many yellow flags and so few green flag pit stops that the "race" often just turns into an endurance contest. Drivers just try to stay out of wrecks and on the lead lap. They know there will be enough yellow flags that they don't actually have to stay close to the leaders until the last couple of caution periods (which often means the last 10% of the race). So all the side-by-side racing and passing and such is negated by not really being very important to the outcome of the race.

Neither series has the ultimate cutting edge of racing technology. They both use purpose-built racecars built to restrictive formulas. Before you laugh at the NASCAR technology, you might want to consider the proposed F1 rule changes....

MyBad

OK. What the hay are you talking about? Fans are F1's REASON FOR BEING!

This sounds like an uninformed opinion. Those in the know have acknowledged that the FIA was in a loose-loose position at Indy and chose to make a decision based strictly upon the safety of the drivers. And yes, it was at the expense of the fans. Don't blame Bernie and Max for the debacle.


Birds of a feather nest together.

FINALLY we agree.

mikegarrison

I suggest watching your recordings of the 2005 USGP to see again just how much F1 cares for the fans.

MyBad

I was at the '05 USGP. Believe me, I KNOW what a disappointment it was.

I also understand the circumstances. Look, the ONLY thing that incident is indicative of is how crappy Michelin prepared for the event.

There's no question that F1 is totaly dependant upon fans, both those at the venues and in the TV audience and FIA, Bernie and Max will not do anything to jeopardize the fan base. The USGP was a no-win situation and personally, I'm glad they chose not to introduce an untested chicane in turn 13 just to appease me.

And yes, I have no doubt that had it been a NASCAR event, a chicane would have been installed.

Kinda like the fireworks that go off when a wrestler is introduced.

Triple-H

I have to every time I hear someone puke up this antiquated rhetoric. If there is a passing problem in F1 it is not with the cars, it is with the dolt editing the TV coverage feed. Over and over we see race results that prove people are carving their way up through the field, and instead of seeing all the great passes the TV feed is something like countless laps covering someone like Mark Webber while he does absolutely nothing...

Keep complaining about the same thing, many of us true F1 fans know you are wrong... If you want to see no passing watch a Champ car street race.

Triple-H

I suggest you learn more about F1 before you try to substantiate your claim the FIA does not care about the fans. Sure, the FIA may not 'care' for their fans in the same way NASCAR does, but that alone does not substantiate you claim they don't care. The fans are what all sports are about, without the fans there would be no sport. You can't tell me with all the billions and billions of dollars Max and Bernie have made they don't care for the fans.

The '05 Indy debacle was a huge, complex, nasty situation that was very poorly handled, in fact the very definition of the word debacle makes debacle the perfect word to describe the event. Michelin was at fault, the race stewards were at fault, the team principles were at fault and both Max and Bernie not being at the race makes them at fault. Concluding the FIA does not care about their fans based upon what happened at Indy is a grave error in judgment.