BUSCH TALK
Shortly after Kyle Busch climbed into the stands at Richmond Raceway Saturday to celebrate his third straight and 46th overall Cup victory, the usual NASCAR supporters were buzzing over how much the sport’s resident Bad Boy has changed. How many times have we heard this one before? Busch might have earned a few cheers and emerged from the stands unscathed Saturday, but that doesn’t mean that he’s suddenly become a warm and fuzzy favorite. This is the same guy who has a long history of ripping NASCAR officials, fans and media types along with his competitors, crewmen and team members.
STRANGE DAYS
For the past few years, the short track fireworks at Martinsville and Richmond have been welcome respites from the predictable chess games on intermediate tracks. But the recent shows at Martinsville and Richmond offered little in the way of crashes or unique storylines. Much of the blame can be traced to the durable design of the cars and stability of the tires. Judging from the action-packed Bristol Cup race on April 16, it seems that drivers could at least press the issue a bit more.
NASCAR REALITY SHOW?
For fans that prefer actual competition over fluff, the closing laps of Saturday’s race were painful. Instead of focusing on the various battles for track positions around the track, viewers were forced to endure endless reaction shots of Samantha Busch, the hyper-emotional wife of Kyle Busch. NASCAR officials are desperate to attract a younger and hipper audience, but this kind of daytime soap opera gimmick is just silly.
HAMLIN’S HEROES?
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series star Denny Hamlin deserves credit for bringing attention to the world of late model racing with Thursday’s Denny Hamlin Short Showdown charity race at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia. The 200-lap event raised money for cystic fibrosis research among other noble causes, but there was one big problem. Instead of putting accomplished weekly warriors such as Peyton Sellers, CE Falk and Philip Morris in the spotlight, Hamlin easily won his own race for the second time while three-time race winner Kyle Busch finished second. Of course, Hamlin and Busch are teammates on the Joe Gibbs Racing Cup team. The presence of the millionaire Cup stars helps with attendance, but it’s ludicrous to have Cup millionaires competing with journeymen late model racers who are already overshadowed by the Cup show.
THURSDAY NIGHT NASCAR
Last week’s announcement that the Bristol Motor Speedway NASCAR Whelen Modified tour and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series doubleheader was moving from Wednesday, Aug. 15 to Thursday, Aug. 16 was interesting, but the real intrigue comes in the coverage of the truck race on the main Fox channel. Could this be a test of fan interest for NASCAR races during the week on prime time? The idea of Monday Night NASCAR programming has long been floated about and the Bristol truck race could serve as a trial balloon.