Pocky's Paddock
A NASCAR BLOG BY Bob Pockrass
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The Chase is not on
Aug
16
BROOKLYN, Mich. – The Chase field is set with 10 races remaining.
Oh wait, there’s 10 races remaining in the Nationwide Series, not the Sprint Cup Series. And the Nationwide Series doesn’t have a Chase.
A Nationwide Chase should have the top 10 drivers in it with a maximum of three drivers who are in the top 35 in Sprint Cup points.
If that was the case, these 10 would be in the Chase: Clint Bowyer, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, Mike Bliss, David Retuimann, Mike Wallace, Jason Leffler, Marcos Ambrose, Jason Keller and David Stremme.
If they were seeded by wins, Edwards would have the lead. Ironically, the top two drivers in wins – Kyle Busch (six) and Tony Stewart (five) – aren’t even in the Chase. Is that a problem? Kind of, but those guys didn’t run a complete schedule. There would be seven drivers without a win in the Chase.
Having seven Nationwide “regulars” taking on three Cup guys for the title would be exciting. It would put a guy such as Keselowski, who has improved greatly over the year, into an even better position than the 132 points out of the lead he is now. Stremme, who currently is 12th in the standings, is 880 points out of first and hasn’t led a lap this year. Does he deserve a spot in the Chase? Well, just consider him like a 16th seed that still has a chance to win a big tournament.
This is exciting just to write about, a 12-driver competition to the finish instead of a three-driver fight to the finish. Oh well, maybe next year.
Oh wait, there’s 10 races remaining in the Nationwide Series, not the Sprint Cup Series. And the Nationwide Series doesn’t have a Chase.
A Nationwide Chase should have the top 10 drivers in it with a maximum of three drivers who are in the top 35 in Sprint Cup points.
If that was the case, these 10 would be in the Chase: Clint Bowyer, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, Mike Bliss, David Retuimann, Mike Wallace, Jason Leffler, Marcos Ambrose, Jason Keller and David Stremme.
If they were seeded by wins, Edwards would have the lead. Ironically, the top two drivers in wins – Kyle Busch (six) and Tony Stewart (five) – aren’t even in the Chase. Is that a problem? Kind of, but those guys didn’t run a complete schedule. There would be seven drivers without a win in the Chase.
Having seven Nationwide “regulars” taking on three Cup guys for the title would be exciting. It would put a guy such as Keselowski, who has improved greatly over the year, into an even better position than the 132 points out of the lead he is now. Stremme, who currently is 12th in the standings, is 880 points out of first and hasn’t led a lap this year. Does he deserve a spot in the Chase? Well, just consider him like a 16th seed that still has a chance to win a big tournament.
This is exciting just to write about, a 12-driver competition to the finish instead of a three-driver fight to the finish. Oh well, maybe next year.
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Poll Position
Which NASCAR competitor should be Driver of the Year?
Comments
3 responses to "The Chase is not on"
Shirley Welborn said:
Aug 18, 2008 at 7:49 AMI think the CUP drivers that drive in the Nationwide series should be allowed to drive, but for no points if they are not full time in a Nationwide car. Only owner points. The suggestion of a maximum of 3 Cup drivers & the rest all Nationwide regulars is a very good one. I think that would work for all those that like the Nationwide series, but don't like to see it overrun with the cup drivers all the time. Once in a while is cool.
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» Confirm Abuse Report4da88 said:
Aug 19, 2008 at 7:55 AMInteresting.
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» Confirm Abuse Reportbeth emerson said:
Aug 20, 2008 at 8:07 AMI agree the cup drivers shold be allowed to continue racing in the nationwide series. I do not believe they should be allowed to win the championship. I say they need to change that so that the nationwide drivers only can win the championship. it is not fair to them they run that only for the entire season.
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This feature is intended to allow you to report comments that are abusive in terms of foul/vulgar language, harassment, racial/religious prejudice and any words/phrases of a related nature. This feature should not be used to report users who simply make a comment about your favorite driver, with which you do not agree. Commenting is a forum in which we can all express our opinions. Reporting abuse of others should be done with this in mind.
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