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Posted

I am not a NASCAR fan at all, I don't bash the sport, I just don't really pay attention.

 

Did I hear correctly on the radio that a driver has won 2 of the first 3 races and is currently 5th in the overall standings? How is this possible? I assume he wiped out in the 3rd race? Would it be possible for someone to win 15 races and a few in the playoffs and yet not win the title? Is it better to just keep finishing in 6th place every week?

Posted
I am not a NASCAR fan at all, I don't bash the sport, I just don't really pay attention.

 

Did I hear correctly on the radio that a driver has won 2 of the first 3 races and is currently 5th in the overall standings? How is this possible? I assume he wiped out in the 3rd race? Would it be possible for someone to win 15 races and a few in the playoffs and yet not win the title? Is it better to just keep finishing in 6th place every week?

 

Yes, Jimmie Johnson finished 35th in the Daytona 500 and then won 2 races. That's why he isn't #1 in the standing and it is possible to win 15 races and then not many in the playoffs and still not win the title. Just like in any other sport, you could be the best during the regular season and tank in the playoffs. That being said, you get a "head start" in the playoffs for each race you've won during the regular season.

Posted
I am not a NASCAR fan at all, I don't bash the sport, I just don't really pay attention.

 

Did I hear correctly on the radio that a driver has won 2 of the first 3 races and is currently 5th in the overall standings? How is this possible? I assume he wiped out in the 3rd race? Would it be possible for someone to win 15 races and a few in the playoffs and yet not win the title? Is it better to just keep finishing in 6th place every week?

 

Its all about points on consistency. If you finish 6th every week, you'll probably do better than someone who is 2nd one week, then 43rd the next. The point system is nicely broken down here http://nascar.about.com/od/standings/a/nascarpoints.htm

Posted
Yes, Jimmie Johnson finished 35th in the Daytona 500 and then won 2 races. That's why he isn't #1 in the standing and it is possible to win 15 races and then not many in the playoffs and still not win the title. Just like in any other sport, you could be the best during the regular season and tank in the playoffs. That being said, you get a "head start" in the playoffs for each race you've won during the regular season.

 

Got it, thanks. And what's the playoffs, 10 races? So you theorhetically could have 5 wins and 5 crashes, and lose out to the guy who finished 4th in all 10 races?

Posted
Its all about points on consistency. If you finish 6th every week, you'll probably do better than someone who is 2nd one week, then 43rd the next. The point system is nicely broken down here http://nascar.about.com/od/standings/a/nascarpoints.htm

That's basically how Matt Kenseth won the Championship before they changed it. He won one race and finished high enough each week in the points that towards the end of the year, he didn't need to win anything, just finish the races.

Posted

I think they also give points for the number of laps a drive is in the lead. I may be mistaken, though.

Posted

I don't follow NASCAR, but someone recently told me something fairly unbelievable about the rules, so I'll ask the experts here if it's true.

 

I was told that it is routine for race officials to wave a caution flag when there is no track danger, but instead for the purpose of letting everyone catch the leader(s) and bunching all the cars back into one group. Is that true?

Posted

 

 

That scoring system makes my head hurt; however, it is very informative. I truly had no idea as to how points were determined... I just thought it was odd that so and so in 2nd place could have won a race, and only gain about 3 points on the leader, yet if so and so crashes, he drops 149 points or something. Funny that something sooo complex could have come from a bunch of good old boy rum runners.

Posted
I don't follow NASCAR, but someone recently told me something fairly unbelievable about the rules, so I'll ask the experts here if it's true.

 

I was told that it is routine for race officials to wave a caution flag when there is no track danger, but instead for the purpose of letting everyone catch the leader(s) and bunching all the cars back into one group. Is that true?

 

Officially no. But NASCAR has the "debris on the racetrack" caution, which can be used like a holding penalty in football. I've seen a good number of races where someone is running away with the race with 10-15 laps left, and officials mysteriously find "debris" on the racetrack and throw the caution for 1-2 laps, while they "clean it up".

Posted
Got it, thanks. And what's the playoffs, 10 races? So you theorhetically could have 5 wins and 5 crashes, and lose out to the guy who finished 4th in all 10 races?

 

The playoff is 10 races long, and there's almost no room for error. One crash or DNF due to engine problems does major damage to your championship shot, and 2 bad finishes basically kills you. If someone can run in the top 10-15 for all 10 races, there's a good shot they are going to win it all. Most drivers, aren't that lucky to survive all 10 races.

Posted
The playoff is 10 races long, and there's almost no room for error. One crash or DNF due to engine problems does major damage to your championship shot, and 2 bad finishes basically kills you. If someone can run in the top 10-15 for all 10 races, there's a good shot they are going to win it all. Most drivers, aren't that lucky to survive all 10 races.

As a NASCAR fan,do you like this system? I know nothing about NASCAR but it seems overly complex. Does it add anything to the entertainment value?

Posted
As a NASCAR fan,do you like this system? I know nothing about NASCAR but it seems overly complex. Does it add anything to the entertainment value?

 

The playoff system is definitely better than the old way. With the old way, someone could build a huge lead, and coast the last 1/4th of the season and still win. Not to mention that you didn't even need to win races, as was mentioned above. The playoff system has led to a couple of championships being decided in the final race or 2, as opposed to the old way where drivers would lock things up with 3-5 races left.

 

I do have a problem with the overall points system in general. There's simply a lot of luck involved in NASCAR, and i hate how 1 bad wreck or DNF can almost kill the championship hopes. Its not your fault if some scrub cuts a tire along side you, wrecks you, and you finish 35th and drop 150 points in the standings. MY idea would be to still issue points, but after the top 15 or 20, points should be awarded in tiers, not for places. So maybe 21-25 gets the same amount of points, 26-30 get a few less points, and 30 and higher get the fewest points. To me, there's no difference if you crash and finish 40th, or crash a bit later and finish 32nd. I'd like to make it so 1 bad finish in the playoffs due to whatever still leaves you in the hunt.

 

One more issue i have with the playoff system is the track distribution. There are a handful of different tracks they visit. The superspeedways (daytona, talladega), short tracks, road courses, and the staple, 1.5 milers. There are 26 races pre-playoff, with something like 16 1.5 milers and 10 other tracks. However, the playoff is composed largely of 1.5 mile tracks. I think there are only 2 non-1.5 mile tracks. Its a big reason why Jimmie Johnson has won 4 straight. The guy is a hell of a racer, but he's really good at the 1.5 mile tracks. I think there needs to be a wider distribution of track types in the 10 race playoff. The past couple of seasons, he plods along, qualifies for the playoffs, and then kicks ass on the 1.5 milers and wins it all.

Posted

I have another question:

 

I saw this weekend that the guy Edwards intentionally caused a crash at 200mph which sent an opponent's car flipping down the track. NASCAR has issued some sort of three-week penalty, essentially saying that the wreck was intentionally caused by Edwards. Edwards apparently had a history with the guy, and in a tongue-in-cheek manner, he himself insinuated that he intentionally F'd the guy up.

 

It got me to thinking about other sports, and in particular, hockey. Marty McSorley slashed Donald Brashear in the head and knocked him unconscious, and was criminally charged by the local jurisdiction with assault. Same for Todd Bertuzzi, who smashed Steve Moore's head into the ice, ending his career. In both cases, the NHL suspended the players, and the local law enforcement acted on their own to press criminal charges for those intentional acts of violence.

 

Is something similar possible in NASCAR? Specifically, in this case, could local law enforcement charge Edwards with some sort of criminal negligence or assault, or in the most extreme case, assault with a deadly weapon or attempted murder (as death was a realistic possibility while flipping in a car at 200mph)??

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