Full Throttle

This week has featured massive press and “bloggage” coverage after NASCAR allegedly “ruined” last weeks event at Talladega. Much of the hot air expended concerned NASCAR’s new rules that were implemented to curtail bump drafting.

In light of this I thought I’d post a few select quotes related to bump drafting and ask you, my esteemed readership, to date the quotes.

1. Tony Stewart issued an ominous warning that “someone is going to get killed” on national TV and spurred NASCAR officials into action.

“It was a big enough deal that I felt we needed to say something,” Stewart said.

“I think it’s a good decision,” he added. “We’ll see how it works out. We don’t need to be hitting each other in the corners.”

2. “Look, Tony is 100 percent right - we are going to maim or kill somebody real soon if we don’t do something,” Mark Martin told the Associated Press. “Something has to happen and I applaud NASCAR for taking the first step. But we still have major issues.”

3. “Coming off the corner and pushing the guy before he’s quite straight,” Greg Biffle said. “Maybe bumping a guy right going into the tri-oval or right coming off the tri-oval or getting in the corner, those are areas that we don’t need to be pushing each other. If it’s on the straightaway and everybody is straight and in the line and you come up and you shove the guy a little bit and get a little advantage, that’s OK. But to constantly be jamming a guy’s bumper all the way around is just not safe.”

4. “I hope that NASCAR steps in,” Elliot Sadler said. “They have to do something. Drivers all complain about different stuff all the time, but when we’re all complaining about the same thing, then there must be a problem. We’re always asking for help for the Fords or the Chevy guys are always asking for help for their Chevys. But when we’re all complaining about the same thing for our safety, then I think NASCAR needs to step in and do something.”

So, when were these quotes uttered? I’ll wait………..

Give up huh? Here’s a clue, they weren’t spoken last week.

All the quotes came at Daytona in 2006 after NASCAR watched as the drivers went slamming and banging their way through the Budweiser Shootout.

As a result NASCAR placed extra spotters inside, and outside of Daytona’s four corners to police what most drivers described as “dangerous,” bump drafting. Offenders were black-flagged and penalized.

But lets be honest, they all could have been said this past week.

Also under the category of “honesty,” come on all you NASCAR haters admit it NASCAR did exactly what you’ve long complained about, that being, not listening to fans or drivers, they listened whether you admit it or not.

Confused? Not surprising.

NASCAR didn’t knee-jerk their way into issuing warnings against bump drafting in the pre-race drivers meeting last Sunday.

They listened to drivers, and reacted.

So get over yourselves.