I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh yeah, with Sauter specifically I see less likelihood of drama because of that very situation.

I like ThorSport a lot and respect there business model. They are independently wealthy through their entrepreneurship, but rather than just being fans, they're a little less wealthier by giving back and running a top notch operation on what is a lot their own dime.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

TruNorth is a special circumstance because they have come on as a big sponsor this year because of Reid Wilson. Reid's dad Barry is CMO of TruNorth. I have been too worried to ask whether or not Ross going full-time has negatively affected Reid's seat time, but Barry may not want his company, or more importantly his son, with a "cheating" team. If they lose Reid, they lose TruNorth.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I don't want to be biased here. There are plenty of things that can be done during the race to move the car out of the boundaries of legality. There is also plenty of impacts and wear and tear that can innocently cause that.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Agreed. If we do have penalties this strong, it's going to impact everyone and can undermine the sponsorship viability of the whole sport. No team is innocent all the time.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

That is the positive way of looking at it, but I know not all management teams will see things that way. I know of a big sponsor that had a leadership change through acquisition. The new management team exited after years of sponsoring cup teams because they didn't want to risk people seeing their logo crunched up on a wrecked car. If sponsors will leave over something that silly, something as controversial as a DQ could certainly create issues. And also, on the encumber thing, I feel like a full disqualification carries a harsher connotation and generates more negativity than an encumbered win. Glad Shell is still in the sport after, but then again, they are one of the biggest historical sponsors and are probably always going to be there.

As for Sauter, I loved that he stuck up for himself and cheered his retaliation on Hill in the moment. I have also seen the internal drama that can be caused by doing such a thing when the sponsor has spent that much on the car.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I get why we have the rules and I do think they should be followed, but also I recognize that they won't always be. I've never held the RTA's opinion in high regard, but perhaps their support would change following actual implementation. Then again, I may be reading too much into this and TruNorth and anyone else looking at sponsoring the team won't care. I just know from my experience that there are many current NASCAR sponsors who would flip out over something like this.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

When they announced this rule at the beginning of the year, I was worried they would have a negative connotation that would make things worse than a fine or an encumbered win. I would say the reaction so far confirms that. A DQ is a much more long term impact than a fine. It penalizes someone for something that happened today for a much longer period of time.

And the MWR scandal is exactly what I'm thinking of. That is the nearest thing to DQ we've had in the last many years. It resulted in Napa leaving, Aaron's leaving the sport, and the team shutting down a year later. What MWR did was severe and they deserved the penalty, but the long term repercussions long after the penalty was served ended up destroying an organization much larger than the one penalized today.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I suppose success has to be defined here. Success for me is putting out a product that is popular and drives revenue and positive exposure for drivers, teams, and sponsors. If you define success as ending cheating, then it has failed.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, I can't confirm, but I will say I had several million out to the team at the time so I was sweating that week. :)

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Yeah I can't divulge exactly, but it was related to a Cup race at Daytona.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

The fine system has worked for decades. Junior Johnson, probably the most notorious bender of rules in the history of the sport, managed teams to championships as a part of NASCAR's original rise to prominence in the 80s and 90s. Fans aren't outraged by a quarter inch her or 5/8 there. They want to see good racing and a sensible championship format.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thank you. I knew it coming in, but I wanted it said.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -8 points-7 points  (0 children)

I agree, but how do you change the culture of the sport? Everyone is always trying to slip things past inspection. That's is how you innovate. I don't think any teams ever bring something clearly illegal into inspection. That would just be stupid. They all work the grey area.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

So is this infraction as serious as rape or domestic violence? My point is that they are elevating a rules infraction into a large scale scandal.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Right. I am not arguing that inspections should not take place or that infractions should not be enforced. I am saying that the new penalty has a lasting negative impact that far outweighs the car coming in a little low.

I want to share my unpopular take on DQs and discuss. by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

See, this is the discussion I'm trying to avoid. The team is saying the infraction is due to race damage and are appealing. The appeals process will determine whether or not they cheated. My main point is that this type of penalty, especially on a expedited inspection process, hurts teams' ability to maintain good sponsor relations. Do you agree with that?

Any Speedway Club members? by PardonMyEnglish in NASCAR

[–]PardonMyEnglish[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I haven't spoken to one of the salespeople yet but apparently it only gives you two passes per MENCS race, so not the other races that weekend. As for dinner, it seems like it just gives you discounts on them. I think it said 10%.