On the Loose Side
A NASCAR BLOG BY Kenny Bruce
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Are off weekends really necessary?
Mar
19
After six consecutive weekends at the race track (including the Budweiser Shootout), the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is heading into its first of three off weeks this season.
Why? Why does a series that features 36 points races and two non-points events need to have a weekend when the engines are quiet? Obviously, some drivers aren’t ready for a weekend away from the race track – at least six Cup drivers will travel to Nashville this weekend to compete in the Nationwide Series event.
Maybe its the crewmen. After all, the majority of teams still have personnel who work in the shop during the week, then head to the track each and every weekend.
If that’s the case, then those folks better enjoy it while they can. Because after a second break next month, the teams will be on the road for 29 of the next 30 weekends.
• With Dale Jarrett easing out of the car and into the TV booth, the old “did he stick around too long” argument has surfaced again. Jarrett hasn’t won since the fall of 2005. Some folks are going to say that’s because he’s no longer able to keep up with the younger drivers, and less willing to take chances.
Others say it’s the fault of the teams – Yates Racing (previously Robert Yates Racing) hasn’t been competitive in several years; and Michael Waltrip Racing – where Jarrett has toiled since 2007 – was too new to be competitive out of the box.
The truth of the matter is, it was probably a little of both. Not every young driver that comes along is going to be better than the veterans, but those that do are impossible to miss. And dominant teams are going to go through periods when they struggle, regardless of how talented a driver might be.
If Jarrett had gone somewhere other than Michael Waltrip Racing to close out his career, would he be getting out of the car after five races? Or would he be contending for wins?
Would the No. 44 team for which Jarrett drives, be better today if a younger driver had been given the opportunity? Or would it be in worse shape?
We’ll never know. But it’s something to ponder as the series takes a brief break.
Why? Why does a series that features 36 points races and two non-points events need to have a weekend when the engines are quiet? Obviously, some drivers aren’t ready for a weekend away from the race track – at least six Cup drivers will travel to Nashville this weekend to compete in the Nationwide Series event.
Maybe its the crewmen. After all, the majority of teams still have personnel who work in the shop during the week, then head to the track each and every weekend.
If that’s the case, then those folks better enjoy it while they can. Because after a second break next month, the teams will be on the road for 29 of the next 30 weekends.
• With Dale Jarrett easing out of the car and into the TV booth, the old “did he stick around too long” argument has surfaced again. Jarrett hasn’t won since the fall of 2005. Some folks are going to say that’s because he’s no longer able to keep up with the younger drivers, and less willing to take chances.
Others say it’s the fault of the teams – Yates Racing (previously Robert Yates Racing) hasn’t been competitive in several years; and Michael Waltrip Racing – where Jarrett has toiled since 2007 – was too new to be competitive out of the box.
The truth of the matter is, it was probably a little of both. Not every young driver that comes along is going to be better than the veterans, but those that do are impossible to miss. And dominant teams are going to go through periods when they struggle, regardless of how talented a driver might be.
If Jarrett had gone somewhere other than Michael Waltrip Racing to close out his career, would he be getting out of the car after five races? Or would he be contending for wins?
Would the No. 44 team for which Jarrett drives, be better today if a younger driver had been given the opportunity? Or would it be in worse shape?
We’ll never know. But it’s something to ponder as the series takes a brief break.
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