by Tom Weppel
random thoughts from a cluttered mind...
This weekend the boys will once again crank it up down in Daytona for the 500 to start off the Sprint Series, known last year as the Nextel Series. For a sport whose fans absolutely abhor change, NASCAR has done exactly the opposite. So many changes have been made within this sport, it’s hard to compare the way things are to the way they were just ten or fifteen years ago.
Instead of driving car frames that might even slightly resemble a manufacturer, all drivers and teams will be running the Car of Tomorrow. While some have felt disinterested in this move, it has certainly been quite a change to the sport. A uniform body is intended to make all drivers competitive, even though it didn’t seem to me that was the case before the COT came into play. There are aspects of the frame that make it more aerodynamically sound and safer for all drivers. It should certainly make things more interesting for the race.
For this 50th running, we will see 2007 NASCAR Champion Jimmie Johnson on the pole, leading the pack. Johnson has had good times so far all week and certainly will be a favorite to win on Sunday.
But the one driver so many people will be focused on is Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Dale has earned the spotlight because of the total changeover he took since the end of last season. He left DEI to join Rick Hendrick as the team owner. This was a big deal, mainly because the Hendrick driver group includes Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, two drivers who have been considered rivals of Earnhardt. Now they are teammates and it is a quirky situation to say the least. In fact, the whole idea of teammates on the race track is a flat out bad deal. As nothing more than a novice racing fan, I think it should be every man for himself each and every race.
And so Earnhardt is part of the Hendrick stable. Dale, Jr. also is in car #88, as opposed to his well-known #8 car, and he no longer has Budweiser as his sponsor. The National Guard and Mountain Dew/AMP are his sponsors. (By the way, the #8 is now being driven by Mark Martin and Budweiser is sponsoring the #9 car driven by Kasey Kahne.) Last week we saw Dale, Jr. win the Bud Shootout. His enthusiasm was strong, and it seemed to help his confidence level tremendously. He should be a factor in the outcome of this race, for sure.
Other changes include other drivers switching teams, and different sponsors on cars. The changes are enough that people will need a program to keep up with who’s who, driving what car, what number, for which owner! So, there you go. It will be an interesting to say the least. The Daytona race kicks off what will be an intriguing season.
Following the House Committee Hearings on Wednesday, wherein we heard from Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Chuck Knoblauch, Brian McNamee and Kirk Radomski, the fallout should open even more discussion and controversy in oh-so many ways.
Obviously, the main character in this incredible fiasco has been one Roger Clemens. It has become obvious that Rusty Hardin, the attorney with the Southern accent who is representing Clemens, is doing everything he can to convince the general public that Clemens did not have steroids or HGH injected into his butt by McNamee, his former personal trainer.
In fact, this whole issue has garnered so much media attention we are almost forgetting that Spring Training actually STARTED this week!
I don’t know how many people care whether Clemens did steroids or HGH, but it’s obviously enough of a problem that the government wants to get into the matter. More because they want to find out who might be lying about the facts as they have been presented. There is no question that this feud is not over and I would not be surprised if we saw a few lawsuits come out of this whole mess in the long run.
In the meantime, it is my firm belief that fans will continue to stay passionately interested in Major League Baseball, go to the games, and cheer on their favorite teams and players, whether Roger Clemens had drugs injected into his system or not.
Tom Weppel talks trash with Greg Larson, Lonnie Marts, Eugene Chung, Artis Gilmore, and Ron Duguay on SportsAvengers.com 24/7.
Article Published in the 2-14-08 Issue of EU Jacksonville
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