Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

And Atlanta.

As of a few years ago when they lowered the HP to around 725, now every track is restrictor plate.   The plate used isn't as radical as the ones they use at Daytona and Talladega, but it's still essentially the same thing.    Now for 2019 they may be doing something totally different so I can't be totally sure on this year.   

Are you nuts?

Heard on a podcast today they are moving to a tapered spacer. They got technical but essentially it is a restrictor plate. It takes the horsepower away from the engine and they are taking away downforce. Still going to get the same result if you allow bump drafting & and blocking. Rules can change but the laws of physics stay the same.

I am.... basketball nut. Equally as pointless as racing, but i grew up playing & watching it, one of my favorite things. Some people did that with racing. Everybody's different. I liked NASCAR back in the 60s, Fireball Roberts era, back when they raced cars very similar to ones you could buy: STOCK cars!

The only way to save NASCAR, IMHO, is to go back to racing actual cars that people can buy (not that anyone wants to watch front wheel drive 4 cylinder cars...)

I watched about half of the race yesterday and have to say I was equally disapointed as the rest of you.  I don't get it 20 years ago Daytona and Talladega always had good races.  However people did complain about the pack racing and the "big one" that always wiped out half of the field.  Some people didn't like it back then but I always enjoyed it.  It was defenitely a different type of racing but Gordon, Earnheardt, Jarret, Martin or any of the other top guys always seemed to finish up front as long as they weren't in an accident.  It seemed like a chess match but the better drivers showed their skills and finished up front.  Nowadays it's a total crap shoot, nobody can pass on their own.  So literally anyone can win.

Two things really bug me about NASCAR restrictor plate racing today.  First, it's now OK to wreck a guy on the last lap, everyone expects it and even when the leader gets wrecked they don't seem mad about it.  Second of all, Joey Logano being mad at whoever it was that he didn't just blindly push him at the end of the race, someone btw who's not his teammate but he also drove a Ford so he should just give up on his own race and just blindly push Joey Logano?  I'm all for the teammate BS during the race as far as pitting together, working together through most of the race, but in my opinion in the last 5 laps it's every man for himself, no matter who your teammate is and no matter what brand of car is in front of you.  If you're driving a Chevy and a Toyota can take you to the front.  So be it.

Some other points I wanted to respond to.

As for the Larson Stenhouse wreck, I know they said it was Stenhouse's fault on TV but what I saw in multiple replays was Larson turning down into Stenhouse after he was already there.  I guess for me if a guy blocks and gets wrecked, I don't feel too bad for him.

As for stock cars or stock bodies, it will never happen.  If you read about the history of most racing series.  They started off with "stock" cars but certain parts of the cars weren't safe so they started allowing little changes, which evolved into bigger changes.  Then really smart people began getting creative on how you read the rules and in the ultimate goal of safety, a series that has the name "Stock Car" in the name now longer has one stock part on the entire car.  It won't happen again either, road cars are designed to go 80 mph well everything NASCAR brags about is 200 mph.

The one thing I completely agree with is raising the nose up so there's more air under the car.  A youtube video I watched said it would also get rid of the "aero tight" where once cars get some dirty air they drive terrible.  But I'm not an engineer so I have no idea but it made sense in the video.

But in my opinion I don't think NASCAR will ever get fixed or enjoyable at least for me to watch, at least not like it was back in the 90s and early 2000s.

It was Michael McDowell who didn't elect to push Logano.   His response was awesome IMO, something along the lines of "my team pays me to win races not win races for Logano".   

Wait until Toyota gets that supra on track. Next year there saying. Your going to see a huge change in nascrap. They said these new motor packages are going to make around 500HP and with all the aero changes guys are actually going to have to drive them. Right direction but is it to late ? I watched Daytona, as I usually do. But I was also getting a lot of other thinks done around the house and would only stop in front of the TV on occassion.  The last 25 laps is when I park it in front of the tv. Only because that's when guys actually start racing. Remember last year when they tested this new package there going to at Charlotte a lot of drivers made the comment the cars where undriveable. Take that air away and you're going to see who can actually drive and who can't.  For me, I'll be golfing. Nascrap lost me until my golf course is cart path only. Four.

Went to the local bar for a meat raffle.  It was on the back TV with no sound.  Looked at the TV about 10 times for a grand total of 90 seconds.  Got home, turned it on to see where it was at.  Still had over 100 laps to go so I shut it off.  I turned it on very late to see if Larson could somehow pull it off.

Many of us don't sit and watch the race.  I never sat in the parking lot of a sprint car race until there were 10 to go and then filed into the stands.  The same cannot be said about this.  It's hard for me NOT to watch the last 10-20 laps of ANY race I find on TV.  So, I can easily sit down and watch the end of this on a Sunday when nothing else is on.  That said, there are a lot of flaws keeping fans like us from watching the entire broadcast. 

So, many of us "watching" are not really watching.  Just observing until the very end.  

Nascar has been and continues to go down hill in a big hurry and gaining speed towards rock bottom (what ever that may be). Contining to change the cars, format of race, hype men announcers, points/chase, the groundhog camera lol, a track last year and none of these grasping at straws attempts are working. 

In this slowly dying form of racing, Nascar has failed to grab the attention of younger viewers and is losing those that do or did follow the sport. Especially in the society in which we live which is immediate results/reactions/interaction which everything is now based.  Watching X amnt. of hours of glorified follow the leader does not attract viewers.  What's the answer, this is the multi-million dollar question. 

Nascar is a snoozefest.  Bring Dirt Racing to PRIME TIME Television! 

I’m not suree why this one race is being called out. Plate racing haz been the same/very similar for a couple years now. They need more shorter tracks, odd tracks, See Nazarath and Rockingham, and another roadcourse or two. The 1.5-2 mile oval with a random slight curve is getting old.

     Did the new rule package seem to make any (positive) difference? I read a little blurb about the race that mad it sound pretty boring, but blamed new asphalt or something. I didn't watch the race. Are those things still shown on TV?

that comment itself says it all for many of us on this board; "to see if Larson could pull it off". the ONLY reason i watch any nascar races. hated seeing him make that mistake in Atlanta yesterday, cost him the win most likely. back to his roots in Vegas this Wed. & Thurs. w/ the Outlaws. get em' 57!!!

I'm sure I'll catch flack for this comment.  I mean no disrespect to him and I think he's a hell of a driver.  But he reminds me of Kyle Busch in his younger days, not by his attitude but that he's trying to do too much.  Once he learns to take only what the car will give him, I think he's going to win a bunch of races and a few championships.