2017 NASCAR Discussion threadNASCAR 

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JohnBM01
California is the last leg of this western trip. No- not Sonoma Raceway. Not yet. But... that big oval in Fontana that I've always known as California Superspeedway (nowadays Auto Club Speedway). So we go from intermediate to one-miler to another intermediate. I actually love California Superspeedway. So I'm intrigued to see NASCAR light up SoCal. And for a bit... as much as I like California, I wouldn't mind Cup maybe try Irwindale.

So how am I doing? Well, everything's great! :) How about you?
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Irwindale won't happen for 2-3 reasons: It's not really big enough; It's not owned by anyone with enough pull; Last I heard, it may not even exist anymore as the city was planning to redevelop into a multi-purpose outdoor mall thing...kinda like what's going on with Texas World Speedway down your way and Kennedale/Cowtown up here.
 
I pretty much pass Irwindale on the way to Fontana and it looks pretty sad. Not a huge fan of the Auto Club Speedway but I'm going to go up there Saturday afternoon and coming back Monday afternoon and going to the Auto Club 400. This will mark my 20th Anniversary of going to a NASCAR race as I went to the inaugural race at California Speedway in 1997.
 
I think I've finally lost it... Kyle Petty said something that not only made sense, but makes some sense of what NASCAR did with the races.
 
GTFan24
What did he say?
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I'm paraphrasing, but he pointed out that playoff points and points in general are important again, and he used Denny and the 11 team post-Daytona as the example, bringing up that they admitted they were testing for the rest of the non-chase season, which May have been seen as them not caring about those races. The segments and playoff points are NASCAR's fix for that, and from that viewpoint, I can kinda see it working.

Of course, reverting to pre-chase structure with the current point table would do some of that too, But I agree with Kyle Petty on something so I must have left my brain off.
 
BKGlover
I'm paraphrasing, but he pointed out that playoff points and points in general are important again, and he used Denny and the 11 team post-Daytona as the example, bringing up that they admitted they were testing for the rest of the non-chase season, which May have been seen as them not caring about those races. The segments and playoff points are NASCAR's fix for that, and from that viewpoint, I can kinda see it working.

Of course, reverting to pre-chase structure with the current point table would do some of that too, But I agree with Kyle Petty on something so I must have left my brain off.
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If the champion can only be decided at Homestead and winning a race trumps being consistent all season though, any number of points systems and sub-systems they throw in are still not going to mean much other than giving the commentary guys something to talk about during long green flag stretches. It all still just feels like NASCAR throwing a smoke screen over the fact that they're scared of having another no-win champion.
 
EngieDiesel
If the champion can only be decided at Homestead and winning a race trumps being consistent all season though, any number of points systems and sub-systems they throw in are still not going to mean much other than giving the commentary guys something to talk about during long green flag stretches. It all still just feels like NASCAR throwing a smoke screen over the fact that they're scared of having another no-win champion.
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That's there for sure, but I don't know if wins are the be-all-end-all they were last year. They're weighted heavier at least than the field.
 
EngieDiesel
If the champion can only be decided at Homestead and winning a race trumps being consistent all season though, any number of points systems and sub-systems they throw in are still not going to mean much other than giving the commentary guys something to talk about during long green flag stretches. It all still just feels like NASCAR throwing a smoke screen over the fact that they're scared of having another no-win champion.
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Agreed. This new points system should stretch over the entire season. I don't like the fact that they're leaving Homestead-Miami as a winner take all race. It's ridiculous. Next year, they should cut out the elimination rounds and go back to having the top 12 in points make the 10-race playoffs. And the playoff points that are earned after stage wins (plus each race win) will be the bonuses that gives a driver advantages going into the first playoff race.
 
BKGlover
Irwindale won't happen for 2-3 reasons: It's not really big enough; It's not owned by anyone with enough pull; Last I heard, it may not even exist anymore as the city was planning to redevelop into a multi-purpose outdoor mall thing...kinda like what's going on with Texas World Speedway down your way and Kennedale/Cowtown up here.
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The only reason why Irwindale is still alive is because of Formula Drift, correct?
 
BKGlover
Doesn't appear so. They have a full slate for 2017, and it doesn't look like there's a rush for another outlet mall ATM.
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Still, from what I have heard with people going to the FD round in Irwindale, the facility is essentially maxed out and that's on the practice days. But I doubt FD wants the gravy train to stop, or go to a bigger facility like Sonoma, because they lose a track that is essentially right at the doorstep of Downtown LA.
 
I mean, this is how close Irwindale is to downtown LA proper:

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What is that, like 30 minutes to an hour in LA traffic? No matter how antiquated or crowded the facility is, Formula D ain't giving that up.

But that's completely off topic to the actual thread at hand.
 
JohnBM01
California is the last leg of this western trip. No- not Sonoma Raceway. Not yet. But... that big oval in Fontana that I've always known as California Superspeedway (nowadays Auto Club Speedway). So we go from intermediate to one-miler to another intermediate. I actually love California Superspeedway. So I'm intrigued to see NASCAR light up SoCal. And for a bit... as much as I like California, I wouldn't mind Cup maybe try Irwindale.

So how am I doing? Well, everything's great! :) How about you?
Click to expand...
Wouldn't really call Fontana an intermediate. Definite Super Speedway.
 
So Jimmie Johnson crashed in First practice and went to a back up car. He also opted out of qualifying with the new car so he'll start near to the back on Sunday.
Also a couple of cars didn't get thru inspection in time for qualifying. Most notably being Matt DiBenedetto, Trevor Bayne, and Joey Logano!
 
That one lap of green flag racing to end stage one in the Xfinity race was so stupid. It's like, 5 caution laps for a spin, 1 green flag lap, 6 caution laps at the stage end. They need to get rid of the stage ending cautions.
 
Hard hit by Custer.

LATER EDIT: I'm liking the racing going on, and I'm liking how it's throughout the field, and I like that FOX is actually showing a good portion of the field finally.
 
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Caution with 10 to go. 🤬
Was such a good race for the lead with Larson and Logano.
 
Dylan
That one lap of green flag racing to end stage one in the Xfinity race was so stupid. It's like, 5 caution laps for a spin, 1 green flag lap, 6 caution laps at the stage end. They need to get rid of the stage ending cautions.
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If the stages didn't require a caution at the end of every one of them, it would honestly eliminate my biggest pet peeve about the new race rules. In fact it might make race strategy more interesting if a stage ended in the middle of long green run, forcing the teams to choose between getting a good finish in the stage potentially at the cost of hindering themselves in the long run.
 
I too disliked the COT, but I'm thankful we had it since Sadler, McDowell, and Gordon probably wouldn't have walked away from their horrible accidents with no or minor injuries.
 
ukfan758
I too disliked the COT, but I'm thankful we had it since Sadler, McDowell, and Gordon probably wouldn't have walked away from their horrible accidents with no or minor injuries.
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Safety wise it was certainly the right move, but looks wise it was not. They should have come up with the final version of it sooner as that was at least tolerable.

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Northstar
I just realized that today is the 10th anniversary of this race:



The very first race using the Car of Tomorrow. It was a dark day.
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I watched NASCAR as a kid, but quit after I joined the army. I started watching NASCAR again at the beginning of this season.

Kyle Busch was already my favorite driver when he won this race. He had Tony the Tiger on his hood, and the best pit sign.

2007NNCSCarBuschKyle_zps1fecab7b.jpg

48908988CalSpeed_5_zps6ea876f3.jpg


In 2006 my best friend and roommate died, so to help cheer myself up I bought a 61" DLP television.

One Sunday I am flipping through the channels and came across a NASCAR race. At first I didn't even realize it was the 2007 Daytona 500. But the HD racing was wonderful. The in-car cameras, and crash replays were nothing like I had remembered.

At the end of the race, one car finished upside down and on fire - I was hooked, and have been watching NASCAR ever since.

 
Howdy people. Currently at the Auto Club Speedway. Got here around 9 am PST. Race starts in about an hour. I took some pics and vid but I don't really want to deal with a 3rd party hosting site right now. Will post pics at a later date. Enjoy the race.
 
Dale jr. starting at the back today. There's was a cut in one of the tires he qualified in.
 
Other than the chain of events that resulted in Kes spinning, and I could hear some of y'all cheering, it's been a relatively tame race.
 

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