5 things NASCAR fans can be thankful for on Thanksgiving
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I bring you five things the NASCAR Nation should be universally thankful for this Turkey Day.
1. Brad Keselowski is moving to the Sprint Cup Series full time next season. Love him or loathe him, the 25-year-old’s aggressive, brash style certainly spiced up the Nationwide Series in 2009. Just wait till next year when he’s in a Cup car with Penske Racing full time. Keselowski may be just what NASCAR needs to help offset the vanilla Jimmie Johnson-types who now dominate the series.
2. Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s miserable season is over. Take heart, Junior fans: Next year can’t be any worse, so it will probably be better for driver No. 88. What Earnhardt Jr. needs more than anything else right now is just to forget 2009 ever happened and start over afresh in February.
3. Kyle Busch won’t run a full Nationwide schedule in 2010. With all due respect to the reigning series champ, his presence won’t be missed very much in the races he skips next season. It’s about time for Busch, an already successful Sprint Cup driver, to move over and let someone with fewer trophies have a shot at some Nationwide glory.
4. NASCAR won’t alter the Chase For The Sprint Cup. Despite suggestions that the 10-race playoff should be overhauled because of Johnson’s dominance, it doesn’t appear that’s going to happen any time soon. Kudos to NASCAR for standing its ground on this one. You shouldn’t change a perfectly good system just because one driver has mastered it.
5. Mark Martin is returning to Hendrick Motorsports for full seasons in 2010 and 2011 after initially planning to cut back to a partial slate next season. Martin made a believer in 2009 out of everyone who has ever questioned whether a 50-year-old man was up to the task of making a serious run at a Sprint Cup championship. His decision to go full steam ahead the next two years is good for the sport and its traditional fans.
