By essentially giving Edwards a slap on the wrist, NASCAR has all but told all its drivers that they can do whatever they want on the track to each other with little fear of punishment or penalty.
Jerry Bonkowski says: I'm shocked. Carl made such a blatant and overt act by taking out Keselowski. Just because Brad wasn't hurt or his car didn't go into the stands, it appears NASCAR feels "no harm, no foul." Edwards should have been sat for at least one race. And given how many fans have come out against Edwards (my own reader poll on JerryBonkowski.com was overwhelmingly and nearly 3-to-1 in favor of Edwards being suspended for between 1 and 4 races), NASCAR again missed the boat on putting meat into a penalty. In so doing, NASCAR at least gave the impression that keeping sponsors happy and keeping a driver in contention for the Chase is more important than punishing him in a way that would match the overt act of retaliation that he displayed Sunday at Atlanta.
What's YOUR take? Was NASCAR far too lenient in its "punishment" of Carl Edwards?
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The penalty was too lenient but NOT for the reasons you cite... They're letting them race and it seems like NASCAR is basically acknowledging that they know that 'flight' is a result of the car design.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing NASCAR did today was tell all the veterans, "That's right guys... if a young guy isn't kissing your feet and letting you back in line, HE'S the bad guy!"
In all these accidents, Brad Keselowski is guilty of one thing... RACING HARD! He's not letting people back in line... his 'white gloves' aren't moving to knock anyone out of the way... he's not lifting because a 'big name' wants to change lanes.
GO BRAD! But watch your back, because the officials are obviously on the side of the 'Big Names' with the Big Sponsors!
'Have At It Boys!'... Poor Brad... if he were a lesser man, he'd be looking over his shoulder at every turn to see who's going to knock him next. He's probably going to go crying next time Denny even comes near him.. "Mr Spotter Mr Spotter... tell his spotter to keep him away from me"
ReplyDeleteYoung guys have to earn their stripes and the veterans deserve space... GET OVER IT!
OK... let's get this right... Carl is down 150 laps, INTENTIONALLY takes out a car destined for a top 5 finish and doesn't even get fined?
ReplyDeleteNASCAR's simply going to play 'marriage counselor' between Brad/Penske and Carl/Roush?
You've gotta be kidding me... this isn't stock car racing anymore, it's a friggin soap opera!
But at least there's gonna be more bumping now! Just get rid of that darn wing quick as possible so they can actually race near each other instead of in a strung out parade line!
No the punishment was exact. Brad K is a nuisance and if anythimg shouldve happened is that he should have been talked to about his driving before Talladega which made his eight incident on the track.Carl did a pay back and a true Nascar /racing fan ,cannot believe he deserved it it was the flip thats got everyone upset if he had just hit the wall and wrecked his car we wouldnt be still talking about it,the car needs to be changed adding the spoiler will help but the sharkfins needs to be changed and more areo needs to be smoothed.But again this is what keeps half ass fans and writers edge complaining about everything as usual
ReplyDeletePaulcd
Paul Denton, brilliant post. I'm getting sick of all the so-called NASCAR fans complaining about every little thing under the sun. Nothing satisfies anyone anymore.
ReplyDeleteNASCAR had gotten sanitized with all the corporate mouthpieces masquerading as drivers. NASCAR decided to inject a little feistiness into the races by telling the boys to have at it. Carl Edwards does just that, and the pansies start crying about the unfairness of him spinning someone out because he was 153 laps down, because the car got airborne, because he was going 190MPH wah wah wah wah wah.
You don't like how NASCAR handled it? Tough. You want to boycott NASCAR? Knock yourself out. You think Keselowski got a raw deal? Aw, poor baby. NASCAR made their decision and I for one am glad they're not a bunch of lily-livered pantywaists like so many "fans" out there and are not having a knee-jerk reaction over this. Thank God they're not going to put muzzles on these guys again. THE CAR is the issue, not the drivers. What Edwards did is no different than what Earnhardt used to do on a regular basis. In fact, Edwards' tap was pretty lame. THE CAR'S DESIGN is what made Keselowski flip over.
There's a reason Keselowski's been in 8 on-track incidents. He dries aggressively. I like it. I wish more guys would drive like him. But the fact of the matter is that the veterans don't like it and they're the ones calling the shots. Not some dude sitting behind a keyboard. And the way they handle it is by spinning out rookies who drive like they own the track. It's a a way of life and some goof saying "oh these crybaby veterans don't like the way he drives" is not going to change that. They don't like it. They're going to spin him out. Period. End of story. Deal with it. Or don't. Stop watching. Problem solved.
"If you ain't rubbing, you ain't racing".
"If you ain't rubbin, you ain't racing is such B.S.! " This is not the WWE, wrecking people on purpose is not racing. At 'Dega and the wreck last week were NOT Keselowski's fault! Carl came down on him both times. At 'Dega Carl was trying to block him while both were going for the win. That is racing. Last week Brad had the line was at the bottom of the track, and Carl came down on him. Carl said so himself when interviewed while they were fixing his car. There is a time and a place for paybacks. I never remember Sr. spinning somebody at a super speedway, or putting anybodies life in danger. I remeber when Mayfield moved him out of the way at Pocono, did he spin him? No he gave him the one finger salute and went about his buisness. I will also bring up the point that Carl has anger issues, He has gone after his own teammate after a race (Kenseth), rammed the side of Juniors car after a race while his arm was outside the car, he has had issues with Stewart, and had issues with Harvick.
ReplyDeleteNow to the punishment. What a joke. NASCAR has now sold it's soul to the sponsers. There is no way they were going to do anything to harm Edwards' chances of making the chase. Subway and AFLAC are major sponsers of NASCAR as a whole, and NASCAR did them a favor by assuring Edwards makes the chase. There is a reason people are tuning out. The chase is a joke, it has shown how if a driver is good at the the chase race tracks he can dominate, and win championships as long he qualifies, and NASCAR does everything to make sure it's major sponsers are well represented in the chase. As long as NASCAR allows the drivers to wreck each other at will at any time for anyreason they are playing with fire. One of these times somebody, a fan, a driver a crew member is going to get killed, by somebody looking to take their revenge at 190 mph. What Edwards did was stupid, and a "professional" move would have been to take care of it next week at Bristol. It's a sad day when Carl Edwards loses more points for an oil cover being off, then spinning somebody in a way where somebody could have gotten hurt or killed.
Adam said.... wah wah wah wah wah wah wah....
ReplyDeleteAside from the incredibly stupid and dangerous move that could have killed a driver or fans in the stands Nascar has now lost what little credibility it ever had with me. So if it is ok to be 150 laps down and come back onto the track for the sole purpose of taking out a top running car what is to keep a driver from taking out a front running car during the chase, or perhaps to keep one from making the chase. On second thought, maybe that is the only way we can keep the 48 from stinking up another year of racing. Edwards is a punk.
ReplyDelete"Nascar has now lost what little credibility it ever had with me."
ReplyDeleteMeh, tell it to someone who cares.
"NASCAR's simply going to play 'marriage counselor' between Brad/Penske and Carl/Roush? You've gotta be kidding me... this isn't stock car racing anymore, it's a friggin soap opera!"
ReplyDeleteWell what would have them do? Set up an octagon in the pits and have them go at it MMA-style?
Does it matter that a back marker in this race put his self interest above the race, and the fans did not get to see what they paid for, which is a 500 mile race with a green flag finish? And that NASCAR is apparently OK with this?
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Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteAdam said.... wah wah wah wah wah wah wah....
Please, if you are going to quote Carl Edwards, please give him his due credit.
mmark, you hit the nail right on the head. I wasn't so upset about the spinout and aftermath as apparently some of the more self-righteous people on here. What I *was* upset at was the fact that the ending of the race was shaping up to be one hell of a nailbiter for Busch, because Montoya had run him down and, make no mistake about it, was going to pass him on the final lap. Instead, despite the manufactured drama from the restarts, the luster was off of the ending.
ReplyDeleteIf anything, JPM should be royally pissed at Edwards because he was going to win his first race on an oval and he had it snatched from him by Edwards' actions.
Carl Edwards = good-looking millionaire race-car driver with a hot wife and a slap on the wrist from his boss. Life couldn't be better. WINNER.
ReplyDeleteAdam = Carl Edwards hater whose only recourse is posting on some racing forum in the hopes that someone cares about what he has to say. FAIL.
Thanks George
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I agree that if the intent was there to take out a driver, and it can be backed up with evidence, then there should be more of a punishment.
ReplyDeleteThe idea I came up with on Sunday was that Edwards should have to pay Penske Racing for the car he wrecked, be docked 200 driver points, and have to sit for one race.
But let’s all be serious, nothing will be changed until a driver, or a spectator is killed from an intentional incident.
-Taglia
A second opinion.
ReplyDeleteA coworker, without much NASCAR knowledge, just asked why there isn’t a criminal investigation for assault, or property damage going on. As he put it, if I were to run into him, or his car, in our parking lot, on purpose, I would have broken the law and thus, the incident would have to be investigated.
I had to stop and think about that one for a bit, so I'll let you all think about it as well.
Taglia, I'm guessing that, much like there's no criminal investigation for assault when someone in baseball throws a beanball, or when a basketball player intentionally nails someone with a hard foul, or when a hockey player levels someone with a hard check, getting your car spun out is part of the risk that you (implicitly) agree to take when you become a NASCAR driver. Not that there's not a line. Think Todd Bertuzzi - Steve Moore, in which Bertuzzi was hit with criminal charges for his actions. I'm guessing that tapping someone to spin them out doesn't fall under that.
ReplyDeleteI think a valid point has been made by a lot of people: There needs to be a distinction between what Carl Edwards did and what the end result was. I for one am guessing, and it's just a guess, that NASCAR, and most people, had less of an issue with what Edwards did than with Keselowski's car taking off. Denny Hamlin arguably laid a harder hit on Keselowski in spinning him out yet his Nationwide Car didn't come close to flipping over. And yet there was no outrage directed toward Hamlin's actions. The majority of the outrage is stemming from the fact that a car went airborne. And I think that NASCAR, while not publicly saying so, privately realizes that the design of the COT is faulty because cars tend to go airborne when they get turned around.
I guess the answer to your coworker's inquiry is that NASCAR, team owners, drivers, etc. understand and agree that sometimes tempers are going to flare and that the form of retaliation is going to be one car going into another, much like athletes and managers in other sports understand and implicitly agree to the unwritten rules of the game. Which is different from, say, driving around in a parking lot and having someone ram into your car out of the blue.
Keselowski has a totally elevated sense of his self worth and driving ability.
ReplyDeleteHe needed to be "put in his place" before he killed someone or himself.
Edwards, hopefully, scared the crap out of the little punk.
Enough
Let's race !
If Edwards is such a great driver, why did he miss the first time he tried to get Brad K?
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Who said Edwards is a great driver....?
ReplyDeleteCarl Edwards
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