Stewart’s comments on his radio show — combined with him skipping out on a press conference at Phoenix — have landed him in a serious storm with NASCAR. The sanctioning body may have used the missed press conference as an excuse to meet with Stewart, but we all know that’s not the real reason for the meeting.
There’s all kinds of stories you hear if you read enough. Teams cheat and sometimes they get caught; whether officials turn a blind eye in certain situations has its own section in the myth book. Curious cautions have their own section, too. All of it’s circumstantial, of course, but it’s hard to overlook such a mountain of evidence — concrete or no.
No matter what, NASCAR is at a crossroads. There’s the court battle with AT&T (arguments were heard this week) and its most talented driver calling the credibility of the sport into question.
I can’t imagine Brian France is terribly happy at the moment. His fortress is under attack from several directions, and he hasn’t got a lot of recourse. If I were him, I’d demand that the silliness stops. Now.
Certainly he knows the stories, probably better than most. If they’re true — and he would never confirm them — they need to stop. Even if they’re not, they need a PR offensive to show the people that pay the bills (fans and sponsors) that their competition will be above board from here on out.
AP writer Jenna Fryer spent time in NASCAR’s race operations booth a few years ago. Now’s the time for NASCAR to invite more reporters in there. Hire a director of oversight and give him/her the same leeway that Robin Pemberton has (though I’d have to give that a little more thought to figure out some details on that).
This is a wake-up call to NASCAR. Transparency never needed to be a consideration for them; now, more than ever, it must be.
They, after all, were the ones that wanted to be big-time. Now they are, warts and all.
• IN DRAFTING MODE: I’m writing this part on Thursday night for a couple of reasons: to maximize the time I get in the office on Friday and to get my mind right for Saturday’s NFL Draft.
Both of those reasons are tied together, which you’ll be able to tell if you pick up a copy of Saturday’s paper: Those two pages on the NFL Draft and one of the stories was all done by yours truly. (The slots graphic alone took the better part of a day and a half to complete.) There’s still more to do; since I can write from home — but I can’t exactly work on a page from home — well, here we are.
With that in mind, let’s carry on the theme. If NASCAR ever decides to go the parity-at-all-costs route like the NFL (and let’s hope they don’t), perhaps we can envision a NASCAR Draft. Of course this could never happen for a variety of reasons, not in a small part because of the teams’ status as independent contractors. (As opposed to NFL franchises.) By that definition, NASCAR has no right to tell teams who to hire; about the only involvement they have is deciding if a driver is qualified to compete, a la David Ragan last year.
If we were to set up a Nextel Cup draft, here’s my mock draft for the top five picks:
“With the first pick in the 2007 Nextel Cup draft, Michael Waltrip Racing selects Tony Stewart.” A no-brainer, if you can live with Stewart being Stewart — surly, sometimes combative, never lacking an opinion (see above). But especially over the past few seasons, the outbursts have not outweighed the wins. He’s the most talented driver on the circuit, and few would argue with that.
“With the second pick in the 2007 Nextel Cup draft, Team Red Bull selects Dale Earnhardt Jr.” OK, I know some will scream at the mere thought of Earnhardt driving a Toyota (perhaps no one louder than a select group in Detroit). But this is a purely hypothetical exercise, so relax. Junior’s an easy number two; if the entire NFL were to re-draft — rookies, veterans, everyone — Peyton Manning would not last beyond number two. Why? He’s a proven commodity, insanely popular and very talented at what he does. Same with Junior — only with a more rabid fan base.
“With the third pick in the 2007 Nextel Cup draft, Petty Enterprises selects Jeff Gordon.” Another easy pick. If this were 10 years ago, Gordon would be the No. 1 pick without question. With all that he’s accomplished, some believe that he’s got nothing left to prove; and it’s been a while since he won a championship, so that’s why Gordon gets relegated to No. 3. But he’s a guy who can be competitive each week and, come September, will be in the hunt for a spot in the Chase. Plus, Gordon is reunited with former crew chief Robbie Loomis, now Petty’s VP of Race Operations.
“With the fourth pick in the 2007 Nextel Cup draft, Bill Davis Racing selects Matt Kenseth.” Best driver still on the board. Kenseth’s a lock for a top five at places like California and Michigan and is often a factor at short tracks too. Though it’s possible Kenseth might hold out until crew chief Robbie Reiser goes to BDR in a package deal.
“With the fifth pick in the 2007 Nextel Cup draft, Wood Brothers selects Denny Hamlin.” The Wood brothers stay true to the Commonwealth with Chesterfield native Hamlin in the ‘good-for-years-and-years’ draft slot. Hamlin has a promising career in front of him, and has proven himself a steady driver who’s capable of winning as well. It’s actually a tough choice between Hamlin and Kyle Busch, but Hamlin gets the nod for bringing less baggage.
That’s a pretty good top five. But remember, this isn’t necessarily a ranking of the best drivers in the Cup series. I took the approach that if I were starting a Cup team and could have any driver I wanted, who would I take? Talent plays into it, certainly (like Stewart), but there were other factors: how they carry themselves, how competitive they are, etc.
To rank the best drivers in Cup would, by default, also be at least some commentary on the teams as well. This list is not that.
(Photo by Mark Avery/Associated Press)
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Tony Stewart had a meeting with NASCAR officials this morning. Oh, to be invisible in that room…