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Scorecard: All-Star Race needs to offer more action
Unfortunately, that's not what we witnessed at Lowe's Motor Speedway this season. In clean air, the only sprints were by the driver leading the race. Three laps into the event, polesitter Kyle Busch advanced his lead by 20 car lengths over the field. At the end of the first 25-lap segment, the No. 18 Toyota had increased his advantage by more than two seconds over Greg Biffle.
Around the track
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Analysis:
Certainly, there were bursts of competition. Denny Hamlin and eventual race winner Kasey Kahne offered one of just two multiple battles for the point until the No. 11 car expired on Lap 84. Once Kahne established the lead, Biffle, who won the third segment by more than four seconds over Dale Earnhardt Jr., was able to catch the No. 9 Dodge but developed a tight condition that was exacerbated by the similarity of the cars.
"When you're that close together competition-wise or speed-wise ... you just can't pass," Biffle said. "Earlier I was able to drive through that traffic and just mow 'em down and drive off. My car was three-tenths faster than everybody else, so when it's that much faster, you can pass.
"But, when they are really close to the same speed, it's just so tough to get position on somebody. The old cars were like that a little bit, but this car is a little more like that. But a big race track, you can run up and down the track — up at the top and down at the bottom and try to get some clean air."
With the stakes this high, there should be more drivers in a position to battle. The new car is showing its weaknesses on 1.5-milers and could make for a brutal race over 600 miles at Lowe's Motor Speedway next Sunday. Fortunately, the 100-lap test session Saturday night should help crew chiefs and engineers dial in the cars over the next week.
Now on to the rest of the Sprint All-Star Race.
First, let's start with the good stuff:
1. A true fan favorite: Although the fan vote is gimmicky, it offers those who support NASCAR to have a voice in much the same way that MLB fans have the opportunity to select the All-Star Game rosters. The choice of Kasey Kahne was not a surprise. He's like the Jason Castro of NASCAR. The pretty boy has staying power. Now, if Gillett Evernham could prepare competitive cars on a consistent basis Kahne could prove he's a threat behind the wheel too. Even though it came at a non-points event, the win should do a lot for Kahne's confidence.
2. Old rivals battle again: Although the overall event wasn't thrilling, there certainly were outbursts of action. The battle between Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth for second place during the third segment was scintillating. These veteran drivers grew up through the NASCAR ranks together and have the utmost respect for each other. Following 75 laps, Earnhardt sent an apology to his friend via the airwaves with the disclaimer "but it's a million bucks." That's what the event should be like.
3. Paying attention: Lowe's Motor Speedway did a masterful job of building the suspense for the event in the Charlotte market and the fans in the stands were a direct result of that success. And amazingly enough, despite the crowd, traffic moved smoothly. Maybe some other tracks ("Cough, Las Vegas, cough") should learn.
And back to the drawing board ...
1. Stop passing the buck: Speaking of drawing boards, NASCAR needs to use its with the new car on intermediate tracks. They created this monster and it's time the sanctioning body absorbed the costs. The expense should not continue to be passed on to manufacturers or teams. That charade has persisted for too long.
2. Topsy-turvy world: It would help "The Sprint" if the fourth and final segment returned to inverting the field. With these aerodynamically challenged cars, the final quarter would evolve into survival of the fittest. As Biffle found out, sandbagging would be futile because there's not enough time to bring a mediocre car to the front.
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