THE OLD GUARD
So far, the prevailing theme of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series involves the overall success of veteran drivers and their dominant victories. Following three straight triumphs by Kevin Harvick, defending Cup champion Martin Truex Jr. enjoyed a Sunday afternoon California cruise at Auto Club Speedway. Truex gobbled up the first two stages of the race before building a victory margin of 11 seconds.
AGGRESSIVE DRIVER
Early in his career, Harvick struggled mightily to control his temper and often drew the ire of NASCAR officials and fellow competitors. It appeared the Harvick’s rage resurfaced Sunday when he made contact with Kyle Larson on the Lap 37. While Harvick claimed it was his fault for coming down the track in an attempt to side-draft with Larson, past history indicates that Harvick was trying to teach Larson a lesson for daring to challenge him.
ACTION PLEASE
While Truex delivered a flawless performance Sunday, there were some fascinating clashes throughout the field on the multi-lane 2-mile oval Auto Club oval. To keep current viewers engaged and entice new fans, now is the time for NASCAR’s television partners to look beyond the front and dig deeper in their coverage. The overnight television rating for Sunday’s race was a 2.4, down from a 2.9 mark last year. There were also plenty of empty seats.
DIVERSITY?
NASCAR’S Drive for Diversity efforts took another step backward last Thursday when a segment of “NASCAR RaceHub” on Fox Sports included several crude ethnic jokes from comedian/actress Sarah Tiana directed at Mexican-born Cup driver Daniel Suarez. Shortly after the segment, Fox Sports officials released a written apology to Yahoo Sports for the comments and deleted the video from its Twitter account.
BRISTOL BLAST
As the April 13-15 Food City 500 weekend approaches at Bristol Motor Speedway, the BMS Season Preview will be held Wednesday evening at the Bass Pro Shops in Bristol, Tennessee. The event, which is free and open to the public, begins at 6:30 with a question-and-answer panel followed by a NASCAR/NHRA showdown during “Feuding Families Bristol Edition.” The NASCAR team will include Richard Childress Racing drivers Austin and Ty Dillon as well as their dad and current RCR Vice President of Business Development Mike Dillon and RCR team owner Richard Childress. The NHRA will be represented by Don Schumacher Racing drivers Tony Schumacher, Leah Pritchett and Matt Hagan. Defending NHRA Pro Stock winner Alex Laughlin will also be a guest during the evening for a special announcement. The NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will be held June 15-17 at Bristol Dragway.
