Full Throttle

Citing violations of state safety codes at Cochran Motor Speedway following the death of a race fan this past weekend, state officials closed the facility Wednesday until further notice.

The investigation came about after Cynthia Nobles, 43, of Danville, was killed and four others were injured during a race Saturday night when a tire and part of an axle flew from a race car and landed in a section of the pit area where there was no fence between the race cars and spectators.

Nobles died Monday at The Medical Center of Central Georgia from her injuries.

State Insurance and Fire Safety Commissioner John Oxendine said Wednesday the track doesn’t meet safety codes.

“We are taking the position that we believe there were violations of state regulations,” he said. “We’ve ordered (the track) closed until further notice. … There shouldn’t have been anybody in that area. There was no barriers or fencing of any type.”

Oxendine said the track would have to apply to reopen and present a case to his office. He added that the track could face some sort of punitive action, but citing the ongoing investigation, he declined to be specific.

“A disciplinary action is very highly probable,” he said. “I’ve turned it over to my enforcement staff to take the appropriate action.”

Track officials already had issued a statement before the investigation that this weekend’s race would be canceled out of respect for the victims and their families. But after Oxendine’s ruling, other races on the schedule are in doubt.

A few weeks ago, a boy and his mother were injured by flying debris at the track, but nothing was reported to Oxendine’s office, he said.

Winford Johnson, the track’s promoter, said everyone who enters the pit area signs a legal waiver of liability and indemnity agreement. The waiver tells the signer that he or she “assumes full responsibility for risk of bodily injury, death or property damage” while in the pit area.

Johnson said the track’s management is working to address issues raised by Oxendine’s investigative team. He said a fence is in the process of being built in that area and should be complete by next Thursday. The fence costs $15,000, he said.

Phil Hill the only American born Formula One world champion died Thursday in a California hospital due to complications from Parkinson’s disease. He was 81 years old.

Hill will be remembered as one of the greatest race car drivers in American history, having won the 24 Hours of Le Mans on three occasions, 12 hours of Sebring three times and the Italian Grand Prix, among others. He will also be remembered as a great writer, known to many for his years of work writing about cars and automotive history for Road & Track.

Hill’s championship was the result of one of the toughest season-long battles in Grand Prix history. In their new mid-engine Ferraris, Hill and his teammate, German Wolfgang von Trips, swapped the title lead from race to race. There were personal triumphs, like Hill driving the first-ever sub-9 minute lap at the difficult Nürnburgring. But also frustrations, as when Stirling Moss knocked him out of contention during the French Grand Prix when Hill was well in the lead.

It was not until the penultimate race of the year, the Italian GP at Monza, that the title was settled in Hill’s favor. Von Trips was killed in a terrible second-lap accident with Jim Clark that also killed 14 spectators. Hill, by continuing on (to the drivers on the track, the incident looked no worse than other shunts thus far in the season) to finish first, and became the first American Formula One champion.

Hill was frustrated again when Enzo Ferrari decided not to participate in the year’s last GP, ostensibly out of deference to the Monza disaster. Hill and others believed that Ferrari simply didn’t want the expense of sending the team overseas with the manufacturers championship firmly decided in Ferrari’s favor.

Louis Stanley, writing shortly after the season, put it this way, “The absence S.E.F.A.C. Ferrari was regretted. It would have been a timely gesture to send one car for Phil Hill, the first American to become World Champion, but sentiment has little place in the Maranello setup.”

Thus the newly crowned World Driver’s Champion wasn’t able to compete in home Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen.

Phil Hill is survived by his wife Alma, son Derek, daughters Vanessa and Jennifer, and four grandchildren.

Ferrari’s president Luca di Montezemolo sent his condolences: “I, as well as all employees of Ferrari are extremely saddened by the news of the passing of Phil Hill, a man and a champion who gave so much to Ferrari and who has always greatly represented the company’s values inside and outside the racing track. Phil Hill raced and won many competitions both with prototype cars, like the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 12 Hours of Sebring, won three times each, as well as with F1 single seaters.

With our car, Phil won the Formula One Championship title in 1961 as the first American-born to reach this result. Phil and I have always kept in touch throughout the years and I know I will miss his passion and love for Ferrari very much. My deepest sympathies are with his wife Alma and son Derek in this sad moment.”

Other racing community reactions to Hill’s passing and an excellent article originally printed by Automotive Quarterly in 1962.

Full Throttle also sends its respects and condolences to Hill’s family, friends, fans and fellow competitors.

Here’s NASCAR’s official headline on their announcement of a horsepower decrease for all Nationwide Series Toyotas:

“Rule Amendment Brings NASCAR Nationwide Series Engines In Line”.

Specifically they are targeting all engines “with a cylinder bore spacing of 4.470 inches or more”. Those engines will have to compete with a tapered spacer with four 1.100-inch diameter holes.

At the moment the Toys are the only manufacturer with a block that fits those parameters and NASCAR will impose the same restrictions on the other three when, and if they introduce blocks of the same dimensions.

Here’s my reasoning that led to the title of this piece:

The general assumption by some fans is, and specifically by all the Toyota haters among us, the Toys have enjoyed a large HP advantage thus far in the NNS.

Of the ten engines recently tested David Reutimann’s Toyota was the best with an estimated 3 percent horsepower advantage over the competition. JGR’s No. 18 car - which Busch drove to victory at Chicago right before the motors were tested - was second.

Assuming a NNS engine puts out 700hp 3% would equate to a 21 hp advantage Reutimann’s Toy had a Chicago where he won the pole and finished 5th. ChicagoLand was his only pole of the year and he’s not had a single series win, but has been a consistent finisher in the series with 7 top fives and 11 top tens.

Kyle Busch won that event, at less than a 3% advantage by NASCAR’s own numbers, by leading 101 of the 200 laps.

Here’s my problem with this process.

By reacting to this single test, on engines from a single event it’s just a small snapshot. I liken it to taking a single Polaroid of Miss Belle Jangles. You get a single titillation, but not the Full Monte for lack of a better term.

They should be conducting a series of tests covering several events not a single event, then react to whatever the average advantage is.

And then, there’s the elephant that’s rumbling through the room.

It’s not the Toyota’s that have been dominate thus far, it’s the JGR Toyotas, having won 13 of the 21 events held to date. Also note the JGR #20 has chalked up 9 of those wins and as tested was fifth in horsepower behind Reutimann, the #18 and two Roush Fords.

I’m thinkin’ maybe… just maybe, NASCAR should get off their duff and approve GM’s Cup-side R07 engine for Nationwide use rather than tinker with tapered plates. Of course that would lead to Jack Roush to having another temper tantrum.

“If they want to kill that series, go right ahead,” Jack has said of the pending R07 approval. (Psst Jack, they’re doing just fine with that process by “giving” the NNS a CoT in 2009. But thanks anyway)

I’ll give NASCAR credit for one thing.

They just killed the “Toyota-bought-their-way-in-and-NASCAR-has-been-sucking-Toy-Kool-Aid-ever-since” conspiracy theory.

Technorati Tags: NASCAR, NNS, JGR, David Reutimann, Toyota

Formula One Grands Prix generate more revenue per event than any sport in the world?

That’s the claim made by Formula Money and Deloitte Sport Business Group. (The who group?)

Reportedly F1 generates more revenue per event than any other sport in the world. Each of the motor sport’s 17 races produce an average revenue of $229 million per event — nearly ten times that of its closest competitor, the National Football League (NFL), which generates $24 million per game.

Huh?

Something doesn’t smell right because at the bottom of the report is the following: (**Note: The Deloitte studies did not include a full accounting of NASCAR Sprint Cup series data or revenue.)

This is so much horseshit, how can these two outfits claim F1 is #1 in the world at generating cash flow when they fail to consider NASCAR?

There’s 2 possible reasons; 1) they consider NASCAR to be not “of this world,” and 2) these two groups are so closely tied to F1 they don’t want to admit or publicize the fact NASCAR events on average generate over $100 million per event and in more than a few cases surpass their $229 million figure.

Their effete snobbishness just doesn’t allow them the luxury of facing the reality F1 as currently structured is a monumental cash sucking hole for track owners/operators.

The annual fees demanded by the Formula One group for the right to hold an event are astronomical. This, coupled with the rights that must be signed away, means that in a lot of cases the only source of revenue left to the promoter is the sale of tickets to the general public.

And they’re screwed on that account. The largest track seating wise in the EU is Nurburgring with 150,000 seats. Hockenheim boasts 120,000 and Silverstone, currently under threat to its very existence by Bernie Ecclestone, only seats 60,000.

Jesus H. on a pogo stick, Daytona generated $155.4 million in taxes for the state of Florida in 2007 and billions in wages were paid to in state residents!

Hell Kentucky’s NNS event this weekend will draw 60K and I’d be willing to bet generate well over $60 million for the local economy, and that’s being very conservative.

This “study,” and a five dollar bill will get a a gallon of gas at the going rate.

On second thought, and in light of all the hot air this “study” spews forth, if one had a Stanley Steamer you could in all likelihood have enough steam to circumnavigate the globe once or twice.

So it is worth something, but how many Stanley Steamers are still on the road.

Remind me to call Jay Leno.

Technorati Tags: Auto racing, NASCAR, Sprint Cup Series, Motorsport, Sports, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Kyle Busch, F1, Formula One, F1 Rage!, Full Throttle, FIA, Bernie Ecclestone

Rumors first started swirling around Roush-Fenway Racing a few weeks ago on the status of Greg Biffle. Various permutations of them had the driver of the #16 going in more directions than California’s Santa Ana Freeway has exits.

That issue seems close to a settled deal with Biffle saying he’s on the verge of resigning with Roush this past weekend.

But, as these things go as soon as that story wound down certian media outlets in Charlotte floated rumors claiming Jamie McMurray was headed out the Roush-Fenway garage to parts unknown. I haven’t clue #1 whether the story is any more true than the rumor monger that floated it.

But I will say this, it makes far more sense for Jamie to be cut loose than having Biffle on the open market. For one, Biffle is a proven winner although it’s been a while because of various issues not all of his making.

McMurray at this point has all the makings of a NASCAR journeyman driver, someone good enough to stick with the “bigs” but only good enough to stay on the fringe and not be a consistent winner. Maybe that’s not a fair assessment, but you have to assume he’s had the same equipment his teammates have had the last 18 months and he hasn’t shown much.

The larger issue in my opinion is Roush having to cut down to four teams no later than the end of the 2009 season.

Consider this. Roush has under his developmental wing Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. The kid is leading the ARCA RE/MAX Series points at the moment.

Erik Darnell and Colin Braun are driving trucks in the NCTS and working their way up the ladder to the Cup level. And for good measure you may as well toss in Cup/NCTS driver Travis Kvapil, although running a Yates Ford he as close to being a Roush property as you can get without the birth certificate stating such.

(As a side note: Is Kvapil the best unsponsored driver in Cup, or what?)

That’s nine drivers all at the Cup level or with serious aspirations to race at that level.

So what’s a team owner do? Well, you can start the cut down process early and wave good-by to McMurray and run only 4 Cup teams in 2009.

Or make the same waving motion in Jamie’s direction and slot into the #26 one or more of the development drivers for 2009 to test them under fire. Then in Nov. 2009 lop off the fifth team, decide what drivers other than Biffle, Edwards and Kenseth are keepers and go from there.

Looking at the team size from another angle there’s a larger related issue. We’ve all heard the whining, seen the wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth over NASCAR being dominated by the “evil” multi-car teams.

Think about this for a minute. Roush has 3, and if you stretch it and include Kavpil, 4 development drivers he’s paying out big bucks to support.

Bill Davis, not exactly a so-called mega team has signed Chrissy Wallace to a development contact, and is supporting Michael Annett who has never finished out of the top ten in four ARCA RE/MAX starts and gave Toyota its first ARCA win at Talladega. BDR is also supporting Scott Speed and has been rewarded with two wins one in the ARCA RE/MAX Series event at Kansas and this past weekend when the NCTS visited Dover.

Moving to Joe Gibbs, it goes without saying Joey Logano leads the teams development program, but Marc Davis is just outside the major media’s spotlight running in the Camping World East Series and without Gibbs early support Aric Almirola wouldn’t be sharing a Cup Ride with Mark Martin.

Also in the Camping World East Series is RCR’s support of several drivers including the grandson of Richard Childress Austin Dillon. Ryan Foster in Camping World West Series, Jessica Helberg as part of the Drive for Diversity program and few others also are racing on RCR’s dime

DEI is providing the ride Jeffery Earnhardt competes in. Trevor Bayne, Ricky Carmichael, Jesus Hernandez (Drive for Diversity program) and Matt Martin also get DEI support in various series’.

All of this is a very long-winded way to say the “evil” multi-car teams some fans love to hate are the very life-blood of NASCAR.

The days of an aspiring driver cobbling together enough cash and equipment to enter any of the top three NASCAR series’ are long past.

More to the point, they are expending tons of cash not just for their own benefit but for the benefit of NASCAR as a whole and that support will result in some of the smaller teams picking up the left-overs, so to speak.

The one or two car teams who don’t have the cash or other resources stand to be the ultimate benefactors of the largess of the “evil” multi-car juggernauts.

And that can only be a good thing!

Technorati Tags: Mark Martin, Roush Fenway Racing, Greg Biffle, Jamie McMurray, ARCA RE/MAX Series, NASCAR, Joe Gibbs, RCR, DEI, Full Throttle

Every family seems to have a weird uncle.

Whether he’s “weird” in the strictest sense of the word or just something out of the ordinary to a particular family the statement is true enough to use the generalization.

At this point in the Max Mosley scandal it seems pretty fair to say Mosley is to the FIA what Uncle Fester was to the Addams Family. Charles Addams once said Fester was “incorrigible and except for the good nature of the family and the ignorance of the police, would ordinarily be under lock and key.”

The same can be said of Max “The Littlest Perv” Mosley as he descended from his palatial Monaco estate to “grace” the F1 paddock and hold behind closed door meetings with various F1 personages this week.

It can also be said his long-time confidant and friend Bernie Ecclestone has seen both the spectacle of his appearance and the absurdity of Mosley’s “letter” issued to FIA membership as something unwarranted and well, “weird uncle-like.”

In Ecclestone’s latest statement he seems to imply Mosley has gone completely bonkers, tipped to the side of being a borderline paranoid schizophrenic and if war is in the cards, so be it, bring it on.

“Poor old Max. I feel sorry for him,” Ecclestone said. “Everybody’s wrong except him, Ecclestone mocked in the Monte Carlo paddock on Thursday. Everybody was involved in the orgy except him. He is just lashing out at anything he can. If he wants me to be the enemy he should be very careful because if he makes me an enemy I could make sure that he never whips anybody again.”

Normally Max is more together instead of making silly, outrageous mistakes. [speaking of the Mosley letter] Somebody from one of the more important clubs rang me to speak about the letter. He thought it was outrageous.”

I think Bernie needs to rewind the tape, it was Madam Switch that had whip in hand, but I digress.

With both sides of this motor sport passion play dug in it would seem the battle-lines are well and truly drawn and as “The Littlest Perv’s” June date with destiny approaches sides are being chosen.

Oddly enough Sir Jackie Stewart, who has his own Mosley axe to grind, is placing a few quid on Mosley weathering the storm and remaining in place at a time of his choosing.

Crossing over no-mans-land to the Mosley encampment one finds old Mosley ski resort buddy Gerhard Berger singing the talking points that quite obviously came via a Mosley memo: “I think it’s an entirely private thing. It’s something that has happened with grown-up people, nothing which is against the law and I have to say I’m very surprised how many angels there are around in formula one,” Berger said.

Give it up Gerhard, that genie left the bottle the second the video hit the web. No less than two EU court systems have ruled such and Mosley’s “privacy” can be viewed in dozens of internet corners and will live in infamy until the time when an extra terrestrial’s EMP cloud wipes all digital data off the face of the earth.

Also coming out in Mosley’s favor is Red Bull boss Christian Horner who agreed with Berger that Mosley has “done many, many good things”.

Whatever Horner, you can cue the Ferrari/FIA conspiracy music with that statement.

There’s a large contingent of fans and F1 insiders that firmly believe FIA stands for “Ferrari International Aid” and it’s a pretty hard nut to crack when considering some of the favoritism shown the marquee in the past. (Read Schumi’s first win in 2005 - ed)

Horner damn sure doesn’t go any way to knock down that myth (assuming it is) by quoting verbatim from Mosley’s playbook.

Monte Carlo’s Friday brought more bad news to the Mosley contingent.

Sources in Japan suggest the influential and respected Japan Automobile Federation will withdraw their mobility and sporting memberships from the FIA if Mosley does not stand down – before the vote on 3 June.

Interesting, if true, but I hardly see Max pulling out before the climax (pun intended) on June 3rd. The guy lives for theater, he either rises like the mythical Phoenix or crashes and burns.

Suffice it to say, the next ten days will be interesting regardless of the outcome.

Technorati Tags: Max Mosley, Bernie Ecclestone, F1, FIA, Mosley Scandal, Full Throttle, F1 Rage!

Ok, we get it, NASCAR is double X chromosome challenged. But still…

It’s arguably the biggest race weekend of the year with one of 2-3 premier NASCAR events being held at Lowes this weekend, the Indy 500 and the Monaco GP where the F1 Circus will attempt to avoid Max Mosley while simultaneously negotiating Loews hairpin.

Despite what the racing calender says the racing fans are “treated” to endless stories about the lack of NASCAR drivers of the female persuasion.

What follows is just a small sampling of the latest headlines, I could have pulled at least a dozen more but only at the risk of losing my lunch at the lack of originality.

NASCAR has no Ashley, Danica, et al. to promote.
Females face vicious cycle in NASCAR.
NASCAR still looking for its Patrick or Force.
NASCAR still seeks a female star.
NASCAR still a mans world.
Sprint lacks feminine touch.
NASCAR still a guys club.
Glass ceiling intact for NASCAR’s top series.
Gender equality escape NASCAR.
NASCAR still looking for female racers.

I’d be the first to admit most if not all these ledes head a wire service report by the AP’s Jenna Fryer, but I’m sorry, NASCAR not having a female within it’s top ranks is hardly breaking news.

I could see if Fryer’s headline read, “Kyle Busch has Close Encounter - Early Reports Suggest Abduction by Aliens,” it might warrant all the coverage.

I mean really, if I can publish this post that amounts next to nothing, surely those that get paid for this can come up with something, anything newsworthy.

Hey, I’m easy to please and would accept a story on NASCAR Umbrella Strollers before another avalanche of “females not in NASCAR” page stuffers.

Know what I mean?

Thanks to a tip from Tomaso comes a story of Sarah Fisher’s efforts to field her own team at Indy this month.

Tomaso points to an Indy Star article by Bob Kravitz who thinks Fisher may need to contact a collection agency to get what has been promised to the fledgling team.

One company, Gravity Entertainment is located in Fort Lauderdale, Fla, the second is ResQ, a sports-drink company.

Yeah I know what you’re thinkin’ “not ANOTHER sports drink company!” But what are you gonna do, they don’t make weed killer that works on sports drink outfits.

Both companies have made contractual promises to Sarah Fisher and at this point those contracts haven’t been fulfilled.

In my efforts to trackdown background on the Kravitz piece I discovered Gravity Entertainment announced in January they would field a new NASCAR Sprint Cup team under the banner of Gravity Motorsports. Allegedly the new team will “begin operation immediately” with the intention to test the waters in early 2008 and plans “to debut later in the season.”

At this point I haven’t heard word one about any progress this alleged new team has made, alleged being the operative word.

Via the wonders of the internet and the many search abilities available zero, nadda, ZILCH turns up when looking for a reference to the team.

What it does turn up is a Gravity Motorsports that has been in operation since 2006 and “specializes in the sales and service of motorcycle and ATV parts and accessories.”

Confused?

Not as confused as the operators of Gravity Entertainment who couldn’t be bothered to do a cursory search to ensure a name chosen for their motorsport team wasn’t in use, and by all indications at this point, haven’t lived up to obligations made to Sarah Fisher.

Am I surprised a company that produced such “epic films” as Primal Scream and The Black Belt Club is falling down on the job? Not in the least.

That said, and moving on, is the case of ResQ energy drink’s commitment to Fisher.

Again referencing the Kravitz article he notes the company’s web site “features Fisher extolling its product and its commitment to racing.”

A quick look at it shows another sad case of a brand name owner, if not the entire company, not living up to obligations made.

In fact if you take Kravitz’ word for it the company “features Fisher extolling its product and its commitment to racing.”

He didn’t lie, but the ref is mighty thin gruel to say the least. The single reference is supposedly a link to Fisher’s web site and what appears to be her press release noting she’s “excited” to have ResQ on board as a sponsor..

But it isn’t, its a link to another ResQ website.

It’s also apparent Fisher has taken down both the original press release and any ref to the company on her sponsors page. (Yeah! You go girl!)

Funny how that works, you don’t pay your bills, you get the bums rush out of the paddock door, as it should be.

I’m tempted to flood both these scofflaws with letters asking what the hell, but I suspect they would be ignored and I would also imagine Sarah via some legal recourse, like a breech of contract suit, may have much better luck than I.

Even in the best of times finding multi-million dollar sponsorships is hard and time consuming work, and with current prices in today’s marketplace effecting everyone it’s that much harder.

Making a commitment and not living up to that contractual obligation is an entirely different kettle of fish and Fisher to her credit isn’t waiting with baited breath waiting for any checks “in the mail.”

“They keep saying they’re going to wire it tomorrow, soon, today, tomorrow — it’s a ‘check is in the mail’ kind of thing,” she said, standing in her garage as rain washed out qualifying. “They’re still saying they’re going to pay us, but at this point, it’s hard for me to believe it anymore.”

It’s a pretty sad state of affairs on what Kravitz is calling the other side of the “Danica Divide” of sponsorship. A divide she’s trying to bridge through donations (pdf File) from interested fans of her and the sport.

That effort has paid some, albeit small, success at this point: “Look at this,” Fisher said Sunday, reaching into her jeans pocket to pull out a piece of folded paper.It was a personal check. From a fan. To Fisher for $100.

“I’ve gotten two or three today (Sunday),” she said, smiling.

I’ll say it again. A sad, sad state of affairs, made even more so when you see John Andretti walk into the paddock flush with cash and buy his way into a ride.

Technorati Tags: Auto racing, Sarah Fisher, Sarah Fisher Racing, IRL, IndyCar, Indy 500, Indianapolis 500

In what EuroSport is calling an exclusive they quote former F1 world champion Alan “Servile Flatterer” Jones as backing FIA president Max “The Littlest Perv” Mosley.

Jones, apparently speaking after an overdose of snorted Vegemite, has even jumped on the conspiracy bandwagon: “I think he was set up,” Jones claims.

Jones, speaking to Eurosport at the final A1 grand prix of the season at Brands Hatch, believes “What he does in his private life is his business.

“I care more about what he does in the office than what he’s doing in the bed - I don’t know that even the majority of people would frown upon what he did. The only crime he committed was being caught.”

It all begs the question, what rock has Jones been living under?

Has he moved into some previously unknown cave in Ayers Rock and missed all the online polls and too-numerous-to-mention motorsport associations in all parts of the globe that have denounced Mosley’s actions and asked for his head on a silver platter?

Regardless of how The Littlest Perv’s sexual proclivities have made into public view they aren’t private any longer. To make that argument now is just a bit beyond stupid.

As far as any conspiracy, so what. Personally, I think Max pretty much set himself up when he agreed to be inspected for lice by five nazi-prostitutes. But that’s just me.

If you want to live by the riding crop, you die by the riding crop.

Cross Posted @ F1 Rage!

UPDATE: This is too bizarre to comment on at the moment, so I’ll let you all ponder the possibilities of the FIA hiring Saddams’s former attorney.

Technorati Tags: Brands Hatch, Alan Jones, A1GP, FIA, Max Mosley, Mosley Scandal, Eurosport

I hope Ricky Craven doesn’t mind me taking the liberty of using his words as rebuttal to Norris McDonald.

McDonald is the motorsports reporter for the Toronto Star although his columns are syndicated and widely disseminated to various papers in the Great White North.

McDonald asks, “Will Kyle Busch be punished for driving Dale Earnhardt Jr. into the wall?”

He cites NASCAR parking of Michael Waltrip for aggressive driving at Richmond as precedent Saturday night and claims; “The replays clearly show that the Busch-Earnhardt collision near the end of the Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry (who?) 400 Sprint Cup race was no fender-rubbin’ incident.”

“They went into the third turn side-by-side and Busch just turned right (which is a bit of a trick, considering this was on an oval speedway and you have to turn left all the time just to stay on the track).”

Let it be said I’ve seen the same charge Busch deliberately wrecked Earnhardt Jr levied at various places around the ’sphere in the last couple days, but McDonald’s is the first MSM reporter I’ve seen toss it against the wall looking to make it stick.

Rather than rebutting his nonsense, me being several thousand miles and years away in experience level, I’ll turn to NASCAR veteran driver Ricky Craven whose weekly Waving the Checkers column deals with this issue specifically:

The contact and spin between Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. happened at the most challenging area of the Richmond track.

Entering Turn 3 is more difficult and less forgiving than Turn 1 because it’s a tighter turn. Because of the long-sweeping front stretch of the D-shaped track, Turn 1 allows drivers a more gradual entry, which makes side-by-side racing into the turn relatively easy.

But Turn 3 requires drivers to turn the wheel more aggressively, which is more challenging, especially when racing side-by-side, because the inside car has to drag the brake pedal longer to maintain the bottom of the track.

Where the real trouble begins is when the inside car looses rear grip, typically a result of braking and turning left at the same time. The inside driver, in this case Kyle Busch, instinctively turns right, a move that often has dire results just as it did Saturday night.

(emphasis mine) Mr. McDonald? any rebuttal from you?

Mr. McDonald, anything. Nothing…. crickets?

Sorry Mr. McDonald, “instinctively” doesn’t equate to deliberate. To quote Doc Hudson: I’ll put it simple: if you’re going hard enough left, you’ll find yourself turning right.”

A couple points.

One, I always find it highly suspect of anyone who takes it upon him or herself to insert themselves into the electrical path between a drivers brain and the end result of that thought process as it manifests itself in the drivers right foot and their hands on the steering wheel.

They’ve taken on an impossible task of reading someone’s mind (sorry, charlatan Kreskin aside, it can’t be done) and in nearly all cases it leads me to believe something else is at work. Whether it’s a bias against the driver or thoughts related to NASCAR’s consistent inconsistency in applying various rules in the end it’s never a pretty outcome.

Secondly, anyone coming to the same conclusion as McDonald has completely ignored the comments by the drivers involved in the incident. Both Junior and Kyle Busch have said it was “just racing” and have moved on to concentrating on this weeks event at Darlington.

Why would anyone ignore those words? See point one.

And finally, what would a Canadian writers column be without a whine-fest on how the American broadcast bobbleheads pronounce French-Canadian names?

“Car-pon-chay to us Canadians, Car-pon-tee-eh to Darrell Waltrip.”

Whatever McDonald , spare us the French-Canadian interpretations will ya?

But you can send more Canadian Bacon south.

Technorati Tags: Dale Earnhardt, Kyle Busch, NASCAR, Michael Waltrip, Ricky Craven, Sprint Cup, Hendrick Motorsports, Richmond International Raceway