|| *Comments on the 2014 TreatMyClot.com 300:* View the most recent comment <#202> | Post a comment <#post> 1. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 2:58 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) In a series dominated by cup drivers, I give props to Sadler for winning the pole. I'd be perfectly fine if Sadler won this race. 2. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Knowing Kyle, he'll probably be in the top ten by lap 12. 3. The Long Shot posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:04 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Major props to J.J. Yeley for qualifying 14th in what will likely be a start-and-park ride. It would be interesting to see what he could do in better equipment. 4. The Long Shot posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:19 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I'm not sure what's been going on with Carl Long lately. First it was announced that Long would run his own 2-car team full-time, then some other owners partnered with him to form JGL Racing, then Derek White buys a stake in the team and becomes the listed owner of the 13 (the only team that Long was the listed owner of), then the 13 withdraws from this week's entry list and Long is entered in a second car for Jimmy Means. Can anyone else make sense out of all this? 5. Dave #38 Fan-Go Gilliland! posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I'm not sure what's been going on with Carl Long lately. First it was announced that Long would run his own 2-car team full-time, then some other owners partnered with him to form JGL Racing, then Derek White buys a stake in the team and becomes the listed owner of the 13 (the only team that Long was the listed owner of), then the 13 withdraws from this week's entry list and Long is entered in a second car for Jimmy Means. Can anyone else make sense out of all this?" Carl Long intended to start his own two-car team this season. He quickly realized that he didn't have enough money to do so, and took an offer he got from a couple investors to become the new owners of the team. The team will occasionally run a 3rd car in a partnership with Long. Derek White was intending to run this weekend, however, he never came through with funding and the #13 withdrew. Since Long was already at the track, Jimmy Means asked him to run a second S&P car for him. 6. The Great Dave posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I think Carl is somewhat involved in the #28 and #93 teams.....I mean he did drive for them at bristol 7. 76 fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:27 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Busch or Logano is doing win this race. 8. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:41 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) "Major props to J.J. Yeley for qualifying 14th in what will likely be a start-and-park ride. It would be interesting to see what he could do in better equipment." He did Vegas properly, not so sure whether he'll park the car with being that fast in qualifying. Mixon is not one of those owners who prefer easy money to doing a proper race. 9. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Knowing Kyle, he'll probably be in the top ten by lap 12." Of course he will, there are only 7 or 8 good teams left in this series. 10. joey2448 posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:52 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "TreatMyClot.com 300"??? Ugh, that name just makes me gag. I'm sure it's a good cause or something to help people with those kinds of problems, but god, this race name belongs up there with some of the worst we've seen over the years. The craziest name I can think of off the top of the head was the "Spongebob Squarepants Movie 300", and the "1-800-Pit-Shop.com 300". 11. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 3:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jeff Foxworthy's Grit Chips 300 is also up there. 12. 23andJoe posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:18 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Take any of the Crown Royal "Your Name Here" titles, especially those at the Brickyard. Please. 13. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) A local short track had a race where most of the field consisted of high school guys, the race was called the "Teenage Girls Dating Shootout" Definitely the dumbest race name I've ever heard 14. numbah10hatah posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Don't forget the 1-866-RBCTerm.com 200. 15. RaceFanX posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:27 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Indy Lights did the AvoidTheStork.com 100 once sponsored by a birth control website. 16. RaceFanX posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:31 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I also always thought the Hummingbird Fishfinder 500K Busch race was fun to say. Don't forget the Batman Begins 400 one year at MIS. 17. luigistarted06 posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Avoidtheclot totally brings out the immature 13 year old in me, replace one letter, and you get....well, yeah 18. luigistarted06 posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) I meant to say treatmyclot hana 19. luigistarted06 posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, I wish I knew why Landon Cassills team didn't even attempt a run in the 2nd session. I'm going to assume it was to save equipment, but still, I'm pretty surprised by it 20. AveryNH posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Don't forget my personal favorite the legendary 2006 Busch Silver Celebration 250 Presented by Shop 'n Save at gateway! 21. RaceFanX posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:38 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) ESPN FINALLY criticizes the Cup guys total domination of the series. 22. AveryNH posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) I don't think Stephen being young was the only thing that ruined your team Rusty. Nice try tho. 23. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:42 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) I have a solution. Have a bunch of non-companion events. 24. Jarrett88fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:43 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Ricky Craven is dynamite as usual. 25. Jarrett88fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) How many times can the same stories on up and coming drivers in the Nationwide Series on companion races be recycled? Kudos to ESPN for acknowledging the judge elephant in the room. 26. Jarrett88fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) *huge 27. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "ESPN FINALLY criticizes the Cup guys total domination of the series." But they didn't (and probably couldn't) talk about the elephant in the room - sponsors. If the cup guys go away the sponsorship money goes with them. 28. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What an idiotic thing Chase Elliott said. Really? You really wish the Cup drivers could run all the NNS races? Do you not realize that you would probably end up with about 1 win total if that happened? I can't believe I actually agree with something Brad Daugherty said. He made a great point about how a huge part of this is because of the Cup drivers driving for their Cup teams. If all the Cup drivers either drove for their very own teams, or drove for NNS only teams, I wouldn't nearly be as fed up with the Cup drivers. I do think they should limit the Cup drivers to 10-15 races though. The NNS drivers should not be the underdogs in their own series. 29. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "But they didn't (and probably couldn't) talk about the elephant in the room - sponsors. If the cup guys go away the sponsorship money goes with them." The sponsors need to realize what the phrase "feeder system" is. 30. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 4:55 pm Rate this comment: (2) (1) "The sponsors need to realize what the phrase "feeder system" is." Why? Sponsors want to sell products and services, not develop drivers. 31. Jarrett88fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ricky Craven dropped the lack of sponsorship as a reason some drivers have "disappeared" in the Nationwide Series. 32. The Long Shot posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:00 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I'm not surprised by what Elliott said. This is what Kyle Larson said earlier this week regarding NASCAR potentially limiting the amount of minor league races that Cup drivers can run: "I would be disappointed if they ever did that. I don't see them ever doing it. I think the Nationwide regulars like Cup guys running with them. I know I do. I consider myself still young, I guess, in racing stock cars. Whenever I'm out there with guys like Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, I can see them in front of me, I'm learning a lot from them. I like it. I think it's good for the development side of the young drivers, because it is a development series for those kids. I think it's a good thing for NASCAR to have the Cup guys in there, because it's just going to make their series more competitive when those young guys move up." 33. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Ugh, terrible. Broadcast booth has gone full "Kyle, Kyle, he's our man! If he can't do it, we don't care who does because no one would buy tickets and the series would be awful!!" They're not even pretending anymore. Too bad ARCA didn't get coverage today, sounds like it was a good one 34. RaceFanX posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:04 pm Rate this comment: (5) (0) Lipton, Bayer, Nesquik, Castrol, Timber Wolf chewing tobacco, and many more never had issues sponsoring Busch drivers before the series became Cup Lite. 35. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Why? Sponsors want to sell products and services, not develop drivers." I understand that, but they need to know what they are getting into when they sign up to be a Nationwide Series sponsor. Like it or not, there are a lot of development drivers in NNS, so they should know that before signing up. Nobody is saying to completely ban the Cup drivers. The series DOES need them. But they don't need to be running 25+ races in their Cup equipment. It kills a major part of what this series is supposed to be - a feeder/development series for young drivers. 36. The Long Shot posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:06 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) My take on it is this: if the young drivers like having the Cup guys in their series so that they can gain experience against top-level competition, then I won't have a problem if NASCAR doesn't do anything. Obviously the participation of Cup drivers is going to limit the production of the young guns, but if the sole purpose of the series is development and to help these drivers gain experience, and the Nationwide regulars like having the Cup drivers around, who are we to deny them that opportunity? 37. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I understand that, but they need to know what they are getting into when they sign up to be a Nationwide Series sponsor. Like it or not, there are a lot of development drivers in NNS, so they should know that before signing up." Murb, they don't really care about that. And that doesn't make them bad people. I mean here we are trying to get cup drivers out of Nationwide even though that will inevitably lead to sponsors pulling out and teams laying people off. We don't care about that. And that doesn't make us bad people, either. 38. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:14 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Here's to Landon Cassill staying in the Top 10 in points 39. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:15 pm Rate this comment: (3) (1) "Obviously the participation of Cup drivers is going to limit the production of the young guns, but if the sole purpose of the series is development and to help these drivers gain experience, and the Nationwide regulars like having the Cup drivers around, who are we to deny them that opportunity?" Good point, but about the young drivers gaining experience: what experience are they really gaining? The only experience I see them getting is them learning the Cup race tracks. But look at it this way. Do they learn how to race for wins? No, because the Cup drivers are locks to win every week. Do they learn how to race for championships? Somewhat, but finishing 12th every week isn't gonna cut it once they get to Cup, so it doesn't really matter. The only thing I'm seeing them learn is the Cup race tracks, along with maybe a few small tips and that type of thing that they pick up from the Cup drivers. But when it comes to important things (wins, championships), I don't think they're really learning anything. I think Sean said it on the Cup page last week. The feeder system is broken. You're better off just going straight to Cup and learning there. That will work for some people with amazing talent (Kyle Larson), but for a lot of young guys that is going to cause MAJOR problems. 40. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Good point, but about the young drivers gaining experience: what experience are they really gaining? The only experience I see them getting is them learning the Cup race tracks. But look at it this way. Do they learn how to race for wins? No, because the Cup drivers are locks to win every week. Do they learn how to race for championships? Somewhat, but finishing 12th every week isn't gonna cut it once they get to Cup, so it doesn't really matter. The only thing I'm seeing them learn is the Cup race tracks, along with maybe a few small tips and that type of thing that they pick up from the Cup drivers. But when it comes to important things (wins, championships), I don't think they're really learning anything." Eventually this is going to impact the racing on the Cup side. Hopefully the owners will recognize something's wrong eventually. It may cost some young guys careers, but the Cup owners that want to win will eventually find themselves not being able to when their guys start retiring 41. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Murb, they don't really care about that. And that doesn't make them bad people." Fair enough, I guess. 42. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The race is just now starting and we already have more comments than at the end of last week's race 43. SpeedWorld97 posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Oh boy, let's put a camera on Kyle Busch as he passes cars with a fraction of the funding as his. 44. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 40th to 25th in one lap, commercial after 2. This race is hitting all kinds of new lows 45. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Lipton, Bayer, Nesquik, Castrol, Timber Wolf chewing tobacco, and many more never had issues sponsoring Busch drivers before the series became Cup Lite." You're confusing cause and effect. The series became Cup Lite when those sponsors pulled out; the sponsors didn't pull out when the series became Cup Lite. 46. Aframe43 posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:24 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) I'd add in that before the Nationwide series got so expensive, companies such as Slim Jim, Lipton, etc. could get national exposure for about $1-$2 million (I'm estimating here), tops. Before about 1995, you saw a lot more regional sponsors such as Rose's, Texas Pete, Southern Biscuit Flour, etc. when they concentrated the races in the southeast. As the costs went up, the benefits of sponsorship went down. 47. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #44 Hopefully NBC won't be the same way 48. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:25 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) So a late entry to the worst race names ever: 2002 John Boy & Billy's Hardee's 250 Presented by TextiLease It's rather overcomplicated for my liking. 49. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Onion, that reminds me, why hasn't no one mentioned last year's Eldora race yet? The 1-800-Car-Cash Mudsummer Classic Presented by CNBC Prime's The Profit 50. The Long Shot posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:32 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "Good point, but about the young drivers gaining experience: what experience are they really gaining? The only experience I see them getting is them learning the Cup race tracks." On the contrary: I think they're gaining quite a lot of experience. By racing against drivers that have been in Cup and know what they're doing, they'll be able to pick up things that they couldn't otherwise, no matter how many races they watch. You think it hasn't paid off; you think these guys don't know how to race for wins? Look at Kyle Larson at Bristol the past couple of years, Chase Elliott at Las Vegas, the stand-alone races last year (Iowa in particular). Those guys put on a hell of a show, one that I don't think would have been possible without the indirect tutoring of the Cup guys. And look how well Larson is doing in Cup. Granted, the kid is a natural talent, but he had almost zero experience in stock cars prior to last year. As evidenced by that quote I posted earlier, Larson gives a lot of credit to the Cup drivers for helping him become a better racer. I think we all have to remember that this series is for the drivers, not the fans. We are merely allowed to spectate and watch the young blood being developed. 51. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 76 takes the lead 52. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:41 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) Do you guys think Kyle could win in the Tristar #10? Even with that terrible vibration stuck somewhere in the car 53. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^ Probably 54. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I think we all have to remember that this series is for the drivers, not the fans. We are merely allowed to spectate and watch the young blood being developed." It is a 100% valid point. But, it's only beneficiary for those who have significant backing to them. Those, who are without big money suffer a lot, because, as we all know, they can't showcase their talent by running top 5 in an inferior car, but be fighting for top 20 places with the thought that if they wreck they won't have a drivable car for the next such race. Without this much cup drivers-cup teams, those (Clements, Sieg, M.Carter, Cassill, DiBenedetto...) would be able to show that they are more than decent, but currently can't as their cars can't compete with those gibbs or penske has. 55. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:44 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) "Do you guys think Kyle could win in the Tristar #10? Even with that terrible vibration stuck somewhere in the car" NO. To back my answer, look at how he couldn't even win in KBM equipment. 56. The Great Dave posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:50 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I noticed ESPN actually has a number graphic for the #79....wow 57. The Long Shot posted: 03.22.2014 - 5:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "It is a 100% valid point. But, it's only beneficiary for those who have significant backing to them. Those, who are without big money suffer a lot, because, as we all know, they can't showcase their talent by running top 5 in an inferior car, but be fighting for top 20 places with the thought that if they wreck they won't have a drivable car for the next such race. Without this much cup drivers-cup teams, those (Clements, Sieg, M.Carter, Cassill, DiBenedetto...) would be able to show that they are more than decent, but currently can't as their cars can't compete with those gibbs or penske has." As much as I agree that these drivers should be getting more of a shot than they are, I'm not sure removing the Cup drivers helps at all. Gibbs and Penske are going to still run cars for their own developmental guys, so you're not losing any teams here. At most, the finishing positions of these drivers you mentioned will increase by a couple of spots. Now, if you're talking about removing Cup teams completely, I'd have to disagree. There aren't enough competitive Nationwide-only organizations to sustain the series, and in any case, I think preventing an organization from running a developmental driver under their team name is silly. Why would you ban that from NASCAR, but still let IndyCar and F1 teams field cars in their respective feeder series? 58. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Again, no one is saying to completely ban the Cup drivers. I really don't see any harm at all in limiting them to 15 races. Everyone would still have some type of benefit in that. The sponsors still get to have Cup drivers run occasionally, the Cup drivers still get to "have fun" or whatever on Saturday AND get more time to focus on their Cup teams (which really should be their top priority), and the NNS regulars (as much as they won't admit to wanting it) will get more chances at fighting for wins in THEIR OWN SERIES. I do agree that this series needs Cup drivers, for the sake of ticket sales and for helping the young drivers (even though I personally don't think that part is that big of a deal). But only in SOME races. So just limit them to 15 or so races. I think we would see a good step in the right direction with a move like that. 59. The Great Dave posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Without this much cup drivers-cup teams, those (Clements, Sieg, M.Carter, Cassill, DiBenedetto...) would be able to show that they are more than decent, but currently can't as their cars can't compete with those gibbs or penske has." yeah but a couple driver you mentioned (Cassill and DeBenedetto) already had a chance and failed I think most of the current teams would rather have a fading failed development driver (Landon Cassil), rather then an old washed out ex-cup driver (A la Jeff Green). Event hough Jeff Green has show he's still got some gas int he tank. 60. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:12 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Well, I would definitely say that the guys I mentioned would be competitive to the fullest extent against a development driver in a great car, but against someone who has 5 to 15 years of cup racing behind him no-one with sup-par equipment has any chance. And of course I'm not talking about full banning cup drivers/cup teams, but putting on a limit at how many races can cup guys participate at. Maybe imposing something which factors in the experience of said driver like: 0-2 years of cup -- up to 24 Nationwide races 2-5 years of cup -- up to 12 Nationwide races 5+ years of cup -- up to 6/8 Nationwide races And: "Why would you ban that from NASCAR, but still let IndyCar and F1 teams field cars in their respective feeder series?" I wouldn't ban it as said earlier. But F1 teams NEVER do that. They sponsor small, independent outfits (Marussia and Lotus do), but never own those teams. 61. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:14 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) " I really don't see any harm at all in limiting them to 15 races. " "Bob, we have to let you go. We can only run Kyle for 15 races so Monster is cutting back their sponsorship in proportion. I hate it but that's the way it goes." 62. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) ^ Who's Bob? 63. 23andJoe posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) As I've said before, the solution is simple, and would allow both for Cup drivers to run in the races where the "the Cup drivers sell tickets" actually IS a valid concern, while avoiding the "Buschwhackers, Buschwhackers everywhere" issues: Make it so drivers who are in the top 35 in Cup points, who are entered in a weekend's Cup race, cannot compete any other National Touring Series (Cup/N'wide/Truck) events that take place at the same track as the Cup race, unless it's as an emergency substitute for an injured driver in a feeder series. However, they can run any number of races in the lower series that take place at NON-Cup tracks, and/or that don't take place at a Cup track on a Cup weekend, that they want. (The corrollary would be to once again increase the number of non-companion events. Especially in Trucks...) 64. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:19 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "DiBenedetto already had a chance and failed" Wouldn't call 7 races a proper chance. And failed? In those 3 races he ran without getting into someone else's trouble or blowing an engine he got a 14th and 2 top 10s. With all those coming at the age of 17 and 18. 65. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Little Bill is in the wall 66. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ""Bob, we have to let you go. We can only run Kyle for 15 races so Monster is cutting back their sponsorship in proportion. I hate it but that's the way it goes."" Give me a break. 15 races is only 10 less than what Kyle is currently running. Surely they would be able to find other sponsors to fill out those ten races. If not, then they would work it out somehow. You don't get to be a powerhouse team like JGR or Penske without being able to manage situations like that. 67. The Great Dave posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) True, I think I'm confusing him for the other failed Gibbs drivers, like Brad Coleman, Micheal McDowell, and Drew Herring. 68. 52 posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The more fans turned off by the series will show lower ratings. Hence the marketing department with the sponsors will scale back sponsorship dollars. The series has to be popular with fans before the sponsors will pour money into it. Therefore limiting cup participation is the most effective means of making it successful 69. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Seriously? A little scrape and it's a caution... BTW, it was totally Kwasniewski's fault. He doesn't quite at the hang of 1.5 mile+ racing. Lost it at Vegas 2x and also would have crashed this time if not for Chase being there. 70. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:25 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "Who's Bob?" He's the guy who ends up taking it in the shorts when people think complex issues have simple solutions. 71. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:28 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Why not ban the Cup owners from fielding cars in lower series? Structure the minor leagues like baseball does. Teams can be affiliated with Cup teams and receive SOME support, but the Toledo Mud Hens don't have Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera playing for them on a weekly basis 72. 52 posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sky warrior wins. 73. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Whoa Brian Scott, where the heck did he come from?!? 74. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:30 pm Rate this comment: (1) (3) Even though Brian Scott is leading, he's in the cup race tomorrow. So this week, he's a cup driver. 75. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Why not ban the Cup owners from fielding cars in lower series?" Because this is not baseball. As The Long Shot already said it: "There aren't enough competitive Nationwide-only organizations to sustain the series." 76. Jim Davis posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:30 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "Give me a break. 15 races is only 10 less than what Kyle is currently running. Surely they would be able to find other sponsors to fill out those ten races. If not, then they would work it out somehow. You don't get to be a powerhouse team like JGR or Penske without being able to manage situations like that." Running Kyle Busch for 25 races *is* how they manage situations like this. 10 fewer races is 40% fewer races which is 40% less money. Sponsors will pay a lot more for Busch than they will for any non cup driver so that money will be very hard to make up. This is not a problem with an easy answer. 77. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) So this week, he's a cup driver. No. He is running for Nationwide points, isn't he? 78. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (3) No. He is running for Nationwide points, isn't he? He's running for Nationwide points, but he's in the cup race tomorrow. Just like last year when Regan Smith won at Talladega, he ran the cup race the next day (and finished in the top 10) so a cup driver won that race. 79. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Part of the problem though is that all the Cup teams crowd out the potential upstarts. After 4 races, look where the Martins Motorsports and Carl Long cars have done? We've seen what can happen when an upstart gets a chance, look at Tommy Baldwin. But when the competitive rides in the series are almost exclusively Cup teams, talented drivers won't take a ride with a new team unless they have to and that team winds up with a guy who can't run well and grow the team 80. Daniel posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:39 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) "True, I think I'm confusing him for the other failed Gibbs drivers, like Brad Coleman, Micheal McDowell, and Drew Herring." McDowell has only ran 12 races for Gibbs. Out of those 12, he has 10 top 10's including 2 2nd place and 2 3rd place finishes. Herring has only ran 11 races over a three year stretch, with half being top-10's. I don't see how you can call those two failures. 81. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Wise is having a solid run. He is inside the top 20, TMG really needs a nice finish with all the troubles they had in the first 4 races. Also Yeley is quite fast, still more or less where he started from, but as his car is Hornish's 2012 ride, it's not that surprising. And Clements is out from the race :( 82. AveryNH posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And how bout Chase sitting just outside a top 5 in 6th with a beat up car. Terrific job thus far. Hope everything is legal though. 83. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle looks like he's trying to wreck the #9 84. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:53 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) Late to the party of awful race names, but I'm entering one. ITT Industries Systems Divisions Goulds Pumps Salute to the Troops 250 presented by Dodge What a mouthful 85. AveryNH posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) On another note is Dokoda Armstrong really this far out to lunch or is it a result of the terrible Roush motors? 86. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The drive for five is alive! Five for five on NNS picks, that is :P 87. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) I really hope Larson finds a way to get this win, but I doubt it. Probably yet another win for the 76. 88. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^ You picked Regan Smith for Daytona? 89. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 6:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @88, yes sirree! 90. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Going back to bad race names. From the department of redundancy. Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola. Cuz it would have been awkward if Pepsi or RC was powering it. 91. DB1995 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hope Logano can win over Larson. 92. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Despite having a full-time Cup ride, I would love to see Kyle Larson win this. He shouldn't be in Cup full time yet anyway 93. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Larson making a run out of this....let's go. 94. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:07 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Aw, maaan. poor Wise. 95. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:07 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) That's another problem with the Cup drivers, or the modern day Cup drivers anyway, every time someone tries to race them for the win they want to throw a hissy fit. 96. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:07 pm Rate this comment: (1) (2) Who needs an authentic race for the win when a caution can make the ending so much fun! 97. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Josh Wise's car had to go to the bathroom. Great battle between Logano and Larson. 98. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great, a caution ruining what was shaping up to be an epic race for the win. 99. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:10 pm Rate this comment: (2) (1) Also, Logano threatening to wreck Larson? For what? Trying to race for the win? Give me a break.... 100. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) There are reasons why Logano has the nickname he does in my home... Loghetto 101. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:11 pm Rate this comment: (2) (3) It's probably not Joey's fault. His daddy wears the firesuit in the family, tells the other drivers around him what to do. So it's probably not his fault 102. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:12 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "Also, Logano threatening to wreck Larson? For what? Trying to race for the win? Give me a break...." Yeah, remember when Hamlin ran into Brad Keselowski under caution at Charlotte the one year because he was "racing him too hard". Seems to be most of the drivers who drive/have driven for Gibbs who act like that. 103. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) I get this feeling the Austin Dillon will get his big-boy pants before Joey does. 104. MarkMartinFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:13 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I don't think it's Gibbs drivers as a whole that do that. Hamlin and Logano are perfect. Just ask them. 105. 23andJoe posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:13 pm Rate this comment: (2) (1) >He's running for Nationwide points, but he's in the cup race tomorrow. Just like last year when Regan Smith won at Talladega, he ran the cup race the next day (and finished in the top 10) so a cup driver won that race. Sorry, that's not how it works. 106. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) NASCAR drivers in general have become so wussified these days. They've taken this whole respectful racing thing so far that they get offended when someone actually tries and races them hard, even if it is for the win. Dale Earnhardt would smack the hell out of Logano. 107. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) >Sorry, that's not how it works. Then how does it work? 108. MarkMartinFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:15 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) On the last lap, if the leaders are side by side and one of them is Logano, the 3rd place car will win. Just like the Cup race last year. 109. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:17 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) If Kyle Busch wins this, I think I'm gonna puke. 110. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:17 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) J.J. Yeley and Mike Wallace have done a great job today in that pair of unsponsored cars 111. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Transitioning to Cup is something that is best done as a slow metamorphosis. A driver should run in the Nationwide Series full-time while running in Cup cars only at a select few, easy tracks (e.g. Talladega, Fontana, Kansas, etc.) to get his feet wet. Thus Nationwide establishes the driving ability, and the few Cup races gets the driver used to the faster machines. 112. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Sorry, but that Donny Lia bucket is MINE! You can't have it! Get your own! 113. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Looks like my winning streak will come to an end. 114. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Larson is not pulling away from the 54 and 5 at all despite the hard side by side racing. 115. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It shows someone has an unfair advantage when two cars can fight tooth and claw like that and GAIN on the leader. 116. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Game over. 117. AveryNH posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:22 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Some great hard racing. Busch and Larson using up all the track! 118. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:23 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Oh this is amazing racing. I can't believe what I'm seeing from Larson 119. Scott. B posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Woah, this is good racing. 120. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In a way, this racing between Larson and Busch makes this the first time ever I am actually glad to see Cup drivers in this race. 121. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I will say this, the racing at Fontana has come a long, long ways. This track is actually exciting now. 122. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I will say this, the racing at Fontana has come a long, long ways. This track is actually exciting now. 123. Peter posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:25 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Congrats to Larson on his first big stock car victory, he gets more impressive every week 124. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:26 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) WAY TO GO KYLE LARSON! 125. NicoRosbergFan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And a rare first-time winner in the NNS... What am I saying? They should be having 3-5 first-time winners each year... 126. Scott. B posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Larson wins! 127. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Awesome race! So happy to see Larson win, in impressive fashion too. Burnouts without the steering wheel! 128. AveryNH posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I think I just found a new favorite driver. Kyle Larson impressed the heck outta me right there. What a win! 129. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great job by Larson excellent battle for the win 130. JRacingFast posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Way to go Larson! Kid showed he can take pressure from the best racers out there and prevail! 131. We need more Onion posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) All Right! Now that was a race. Also, cool burnout or what. 132. Jaws_fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) That...kid...is...a...wheel....man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 133. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) That pit crew has a lot of faith in Kyle. 134. DB1995 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (5) Wish Busch or Harvick would had won, we will never here the end of this win, 135. Rusty posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Even though Larson is a Cup driver, it is nice to see him pull it off finally. The Kyle/Brad/Joey show has gotten so old that about anyone else would be nice. 136. SpeedWorld97 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:29 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Awesome finish! If there's one "Cup regular" that I wanted to see win, it would be Larson by a mile. Auto Club has quickly turned from the most boring track into the most exciting. It's like a big dirt track the way they can dive into a corner and do slide jobs off a corner. 137. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:32 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) DB1995: Busch or Harvick?? Really man? The thought of one of them taking that win made me throw up a bit in my mouth. Just wait until almost any other Nationwide weekend, damn buschwacker fan 138. murb posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Had to miss the finish, but HUGE congrats to Larson. 139. NASCAR Executive posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:32 pm Rate this comment: (7) (3) Well, time to repave this track. 140. Goodyear Executive posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:33 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) ^@139 And we've got to bring a harder tire next year, that's for sure. 141. Peter posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:33 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) @ 136 Yeah, but also the way Kyle is doing it is fine, running the companion races is a really good idea as he still has plenty to learn 142. Brian France posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:35 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) Kyle Busch needs a few more HP for his car too, otherwise we'll never sell another ticket again! 143. ESPN posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (4) Aw man, Kyle Larson won. 144. DB1995 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Slywarrior, Larson is a cup driver 145. David posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It's times like these where I wish I could actually WATCH the races on Saturdays. 146. Brian France posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:38 pm Rate this comment: (1) (2) He's got 8 career Cup starts and 1 full season of Nationwide under his belt. He's hardly even a stock car driver 147. Cornys posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (4) I've decided to basically quit watching NASCAR until the yellow flags are genuine. I decided to watch the last 8 laps. Were there any questionable cautions? Just so i know when i should think about watching races again...what i saw was great racing, but was it real? 148. Schroeder51 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Didn't watch the race (as I said, I'm going to give most of the Nationwide races this year a skip), but congratulations to Larson. I'm not a big fan of his, but I'd be a complete fool to deny the fact that this kid has a ton of talent and a lot of potential. He's one heavily hyped driver I actually feel COULD back up the hype behind him. 149. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Whoops, left that name on. My point still stands though. Larson shouldn't be anywhere near Cup right now, it's just that everyone wants to find the next Jeff Gordon yesterday 150. 23andJoe posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) >Then how does it work? If a driver is running for Cup points, they're a Cup driver. Q.E.D. 151. Anonymous posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ESPN is ending their coverage so they can show 20 minutes of Sportscenter. That show has more episodes than any other show in the history of television, can't they spare one episode so we can see post race interviews? 152. Zackary Shawn posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:41 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) "what i saw was great racing, but was it real?" No. It was CGI... 153. Schroeder51 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:41 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) Enough of the "ESPN/Brian France/Goodyear/etc." satire, please. It was funny at first last year, but now it's been beaten to death. It stopped being funny awhile ago and now it just gets on my nerves. 154. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^NO! MORE COLLEGE BASKETBALL ANALYSIS!! BRACKETS IS A HARDCORE SPORT 155. Peter posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:42 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) DB1995, He is also a rookie so you can't be hating on him for gaining more experience, as opposed to Busch and Harvick who have been in cup for over a decade 156. RACE34 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #147 Cornys Some of the yellow flags might not have been real but the racing at the end sure was! What a race for the win! Congrats to Larson!! 157. Cornys posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @152 let's pull teeth on word choice why dont we. Was it unaltered by race control's desire to see only short runs to the finish 158. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The #40 blew an engine Cornys... 159. Cornys posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) Thank you #156. It was great racing :) but i refuse to watch in any large ammount unless the league is 100% genuine. I'm going to try to get into indycar. As long as its genuine i can relly get into it. Nascar was my first loved racing league, but its not able to satisfy my desire for genuine racing. I'll keep checking in to see if nascar is straightening its self out. So long as fans dont feel the way that i do however, it will not get better. Note: see what happens when the cars are at or near terminal velocity? Great racing 160. Cornys posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) @158 Okay, that's a good reason for a yellow, but were there any rub the wall cautions or not shown debris cautions? If not, i'm a happy camper. :) 161. joey2448 posted: 03.22.2014 - 7:55 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Well that busted my bracket... Kidding. I didn't see the finish, but it sounds like quite a good race at the end, and CONGRATS to Kyle Larson for holding on for the victory! I think NASCAR will be able to wait off on repaving this track for a good number of years simply because the mild climate in California doesn't provide a lot of wear on the racing surface. Since there's no extreme temperature differences, the asphalt will stay this way for a while... 162. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not at the end. The 9 got put into the wall at one point and a caution came out, but he may not have been at speed enough for race control. I thought I heard something about a debris caution, or was that before the race? I didn't pay much attention until the end, expecting another snoozefest with Logano or Busch winning 163. RACE34 posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Did anyone else hear about the possible horsepower reduction for next season? 164. DB1995 posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The finish was good, but i apparently didn't see the same race everyone else did, some on twitter said this was the greatest nationwide race of all time, it was just another race until 20 to go 165. Matt posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Pretty good conversation at the start of this thread. I just feel for all the young drivers and Nationwide regulars I grew up watching that are stuck driving garbage or fell off the face of the earth. Cup drivers do help tv promotion, sell tickets, and teach the young drivers how to race. I just wish the series was more affordable so drivers not in a development plan had a legitimate chance to compete for a win rather than 20th on a weekly basis. The economics are just messed up. 166. Sky Warrior posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Probably just a product of the Nationwide series having so few likeable winners or close finishes these days apart from road and plate races 167. New14 & 88Fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Caught the ending on youtube, Congrats to Kyle Larson on his first Nationwide series win. Great racing the last ten laps between Larson, Harvick and Ky Busch. "Also, Logano threatening to wreck Larson? For what? Trying to race for the win? Give me a break...." Not surprising coming from the double douche, considering he's dumped underdog drivers just for sharing the same track with him. 168. Jarrett88fan posted: 03.22.2014 - 8:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I Loved this clean finish due to the cars reaching terminal velocity... hint, hint Cup Series. Hopefully, the fans will be rewarded with an early horsepower reduction before the beginning of the 2015. 169. cjs3872 posted: 03.22.2014 - 9:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @167, I'm not sure Logano said he was going to wreck Kyle Larson in that radio communication that was heard. What Logano said was that Larson was going to get himself wrecked, which seemed to me to imply that Larson was likely to do something to wreck himself, and that Logano might use the air from his car to his advantage, which a more experienced driver certainly would do, but I never heard anything from Logano's radio to indicate that he would wreck Larson. And one of the reasons why Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick were able to keep up and actually gain on Larson while racing hard with each other, in addition to them having better cars at the time, was the draft. As they were passing and repassing each other for that second position, they were actually using the draft from Larson's car to get closer to him, mainly because Larson was giving them something to draft off of. Remember that in qualifying earlier today, a number of the drivers, including Harvick, Larson, and Chase Elliott actually lined up about ten car lengths behind other cars to try to use the draft to give them a higher qualifying speed, so they were testing those waters in qualifying. And by the way, I'm not sure that Chase Elliott isn't the favorite for the championship right now, although Ty Dillon's also right there. Regan Smith had handling problems all day, and Trevor Bayne's Ford just wouldn't run on the straightaway, though it seemed to handle pretty well in the corners, which tells me that part of Roush's speed problems, in addition to possibly being a little more conservative on the engine setting, may be that the cars simply have too much drag, which will slow them down in a straight line. Watching the qualifying coverage earlier today, both Bayne and Chris Buescher seemed to be relatively even with Kevin Harvick through the turns, but lost 15-hundredths of a second down the back straightaway, which tells me that their cars had so much drag that it was slowing them down, but had enough downforce to be virtually even with Harvick's Chevrolet in the corners. So unless Roush gets his cars faster in a straight line on the bigger tracks, Bayne probably won't last as a serious title contender either, because he can't finish every single race, and when he does run into trouble, it will hurt him more than the other contenders for the title. And I don't give Elliott Sadler much of a chance, because I don't think JGR cares about what he does, though his pole and fifth place finish certainly have to lift his spirits. 170. Eric posted: 03.22.2014 - 10:11 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I am happy that Kyle Larson won. Kyle Larson does have stock car experience of a Kevin Harvick, Joe Logano, and Kyle Busch despite Kyle Larson is a cup rookie. 171. joey2448 posted: 03.22.2014 - 10:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Haha I just saw the video of the finish, and it's funny that Larson was doing burnouts in victory lane, because on NASCAR 2011, whenever I win and they let you do burnouts, I always go for the checkered victory lane spot on the frontstretch on some of the tracks... 172. cjs3872 posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle Larson has next-to-no experience in stock cars, Eric. Certainly not compared to those he was racing against at the end of the race. Larson is one of those drivers that I have in mind when I say that drivers of fewer than three years of Cup experience should be exempt from any limit regarding the number of starts he can make in a lower series, because for him, seat time is everything. Brad Keselowski in 2010 is another case in point. He ran both the NNS and the Cup Series full time, but it was good for him because he needed the experience. Frankly, I don't think Brad wins the Cup title in 2012 if he doesn't get all that experience. When you have a really young driver that needs to get experience and seat time, I have no problem with him running as often as he can, because experience never hurt anyone. But I think when you get to either three years or 100 Cup starts, if you're a full-time Cup driver, then a limit should be imposed on the number of starts he can make in a lower series (I think I should be no more than one-third of schedule), but a driver like Kyle Larson would be exempt from that because of his lack of experience, because he can use all the experience he can get, and that experience will help become better sooner than if he just raced the Cup Series this year and didn't run the Nationwide Series. And I also think running both helped Kevin Harvick in 2001, though he became a full-time Cup driver under the toughest circumstances imaginable. It lessened their learning curve, and I think Larson could be a contender sooner because of all the experience he's getting, depending on how good his team gets. 173. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Damn it!! I on purpose missed this race because I figured with Kyle Busch running and Joey Logano being in the #22, it was going to be another battle for the win between them. Congrats to Kyle Larson for beating them and getting his first win throughout NASCAR's top three Series. For this year I support him running a full Nationwide schedule since in my opinion, he was put into Cup before he was ready. If he continues to run a lot of races in that car after this year like KyBusch, Logano and Keselowski, I'll root against him in this Series as well. Also, I knew not to give in to my questioning that Logano had matured. If he was actually complaining about Larson RACING him FOR POSITION, he's got a long way to go still. 174. RACE34 posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) A few people on here are still complaining that a Cup regular won this race. Kyle Larson is maybe a full time Cup driver now but he's a rookie who has made very few starts and it's not like he is a constant front runner in Cup like Harvick and Busch are. 175. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @173, Larson won in the Trucks last year at Rockingham. 176. Eric posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) cjs3872, I actually thought I typed "Kyle Larson doesn't have the Kevin Harvick, Joe Logano, and Kyle Busch" before I pressed the publish button. 177. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "@173, Larson won in the Trucks last year at Rockingham." Oops, forgot about that win. But Larson did get his first stock-CAR win in this race. 178. Scott B posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'd rank the last 10 laps of this race as the best I've seen since Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch put on a show at Darlington in 2003. 179. cjs3872 posted: 03.22.2014 - 11:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) No problem, Eric. I've done that same thing before due to a occasionally faulty keyboard that occasionally won't record all the strokes I type. And I have every belief that you intended to say that Larson didn't have very much experience. But there may be others on this board that don't. And by the way, this race proved what I've been saying about how the ability to use the draft at this kind of track is what's needed to make the racing better on the 1.5, 2, and 2.5 mile tracks, and the last 15 laps is evidence that if drafting became a factor on this style of track, that the racing would be more competitive. It also proves why slowing the cars down, as is now intended for the Cup Series next year, is a great idea. Only because of the lower amount of horsepower was the racing as good as it was because the drivers simply didn't have the power to break away at the end, and had the race lasted about three more laps, there would have been four cars battling for the win, instead of three, and each of the three makes would have been represented. But tomorrow, we'll likely see one car break away from the pack and dominate because of the greater horsepower of the Cup cars. Who that will be, I don't know. 180. Mark N. posted: 03.23.2014 - 2:58 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) BREAKING: Due to today's events at Auto Club Speedway, seeing as how neither the 54 or 22 won, NASCAR has banned Kyle Larson from running Nationwide Series races for the remainder of 2014. Kidding of course, but that would totally be a NASCAR move. So happy to see Larson win, and what a finish! And as someone else pointed out, what a run by J.J. Yeley. One lap down in 19th place with blank panels. Way to go. 181. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 03.23.2014 - 3:10 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Congratulations Kyle Larson. If the kid can keep his head and the cars together, he'll probably steal the ROTY honors in Cup. 182. b4il3y posted: 03.23.2014 - 4:21 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) By the way, through all the whining and griping, Chase E finished 6th. 183. Sarf52 posted: 03.23.2014 - 7:19 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) May be a little late here, but in my opinion one way to fix the whole "cup drivers in nationwide" debacle is to put a race 'cap' on the amount of races a driver declaring for the Sprint Cup Series championship can run. So say you can only run 45 races total, a year. So if you're serious about winning the Cup championship, you're gonna run a full schedule, plus 9-10 additional races in other series. I could see this being problematic for young drivers like Larson, who are trying to get as much experience as possible, so a clause would need to be made to allow drivers with under 3 years of cup experience to have a 60 race 'cap'. I mean, this concept would obviously need some tinkering, but it is a good starting point to help NASCAR's second teir be turned back over to the young guns. As for cup teams operating in Nationwide, there's no way we can really stop that. But limiting the amount of races their cup drivers can run will force them to offer more oppurtunities to other drivers. 184. startandparkfan posted: 03.23.2014 - 8:23 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) "For this year I support him running a full Nationwide schedule since in my opinion, he was put into Cup before he was ready. If he continues to run a lot of races in that car after this year like KyBusch, Logano and Keselowski, I'll root against him in this Series as well." Exactly my thoughts. I agree with the Race Cap system, I think it is the best solution I've heard. 185. Watto posted: 03.23.2014 - 9:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I Loved this clean finish due to the cars reaching terminal velocity... hint, hint Cup Series. Hopefully, the fans will be rewarded with an early horsepower reduction before the beginning of the 2015." Have you been watching Cup races at California in recent years? You can point to terminal velocity all you like, but the race for the win in the Cup race last year was phenomenal (disregarding the final corner wreck) despite having a gigantic spoiler and too much downforce. In recent years, California has ALWAYS put on great races. The answer isn't horsepower, it's having a track that isn't a grip-monster. Some fans want every track to be Talladega, but I am just NOT one of those fans. If they do cut the horsepower for the Cup cars, hopefully they don't cut more than 60-80 horsepower, and they absolutely MUST take away downforce to lighten aero-dependency. Sorry, I like seeing wheelmen wheel. 186. MarkMartinFan posted: 03.23.2014 - 10:56 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Honestly, going into the final few races, I think that the top 7 in points right now will all be within striking distance of the championship leader. 187. Anonymous posted: 03.23.2014 - 11:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Seems Regan Smith's team is a bit off pace compared to his JRM teammates. Even so, his win at Daytona is still the only win for a Nationwide regular through 5 races and last year he was the only Nationwide driver with multiple victories. I think his team will pick up pace in the middle of the season but has to avoid the collapse in the final part of the year. I think Trevor Bayne will remain a title contender as well. And don't count out Chase or Ty, they may be rookies, but they are already within striking distance after a few races. 188. Nascar Lead Lap Points posted: 03.23.2014 - 11:54 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor Update 79 Donate Life 189. Evan posted: 03.23.2014 - 12:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Good job for the kid Kyle Larson, that was a fun race at the end there and I certainly wanted him to win this one, Harvick and Kyle Busch were gunning for his heels in those few laps but they could not make the pass on Kyle Larson. THIS is racing, this is what I want to see, a young guy beating two of the best in the business today to win this race. There's nothing like your first Nationwide win, I know he got one in Trucks a year ago, 190. ch posted: 03.23.2014 - 12:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor Changes: 14 - Hefty Ultimate With Arm & Hammer (Should be this for all 2014 races) 16 - Lilly Diabetes /ADA Drive to Stop Diabetes (Should be this for all 2014 races) 17 - bwp Bats 31 - Rockstar Energy 42 - Cartwheel by Target 60 - Roush Performance Parts 74 - Mike Harmon Racing 79 - Donate Life Nevada 91 - Hefty Ultimate With Arm & Hammer I couldn't tell the sponsor on the 70, but I'm pretty sure it's not Charlie's Soap. 191. cjs3872 posted: 03.23.2014 - 1:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Anonymous (#187), I think Regan will be in the title fight longer than Trevor Bayne will be, because I think that #6 team has to be almost perfect because of the way their cars are set up. The Roush cars have no speed at all in a straight line because of the higher drag their cars have, not to mention more conservative engine setups, so their cars have to handle much better than their competition at the high-speed tracks, or they have no chance to even remain competitive, which almost eliminates their margin of error. But Smith, Elliott, Ty Dillon, and even Brian Scott have more speed than Bayne does, particularly Smith and Elliott, so they can afford a couple of bad races and be in the hunt for the title because thy have a better chance at winning races than Bayne ever does. In fact, Bayne even dropped a hint on what his team's strategy would be in the pre-race show when he said that they were going for top 10s, which tells me that they may not even try to go for wins, but rather try to do exactly what Austin Dillon did last year, which is finish 5th-8th enough to win them the title, which is their only shot at it with heir lack of speed. However, I do think that there will be separation later on because of the stand-alone events during the summer, two restrictor plate races, and three road course races, including two in a row. The stand-alone events give the NNS drivers shots at wins (though Ryan Blaney could upset the apple carton there, as he did at Kentucky last year), and then there is the sheer unpredictability of the combined five races still to come at the plate tracks and road courses, where literally anything can happen. But there already seems to be some separation developing between the top five and everyone else, and I don't think Elliott Sadler, who is fifth, will be a serious contender, because JGR doesn't really care about how he fares, since he's not one of their Cup drivers. That leaves the top four, and I actually think the two rookies in that group may end up having the best shot at the title, because they both seem to have speed. And Bayne is the longest shot of the group, because he really has only one path to the title, and that is through finishing 5th-8th every race, something he basically admitted to before this race even began. 192. Daniel posted: 03.23.2014 - 3:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #70 sponsor-Youtheory 193. 02Justin10 posted: 03.23.2014 - 9:37 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I just think there needs to be more non-companion races...I mean, the NNS used to have Lucas Oil Raceway, Milwaukee, Gateway, Memphis, and Nashville...now with like 80-85% of the schedule being with the Cup stars, of course the Cup people will always come out and play...I think this years schedule is the most dull in NNS history (and of course its the exact same as last year.) 194. Anonymous posted: 03.24.2014 - 11:33 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) cjs, I agree with that, and I wouldn't mind a title fight between Smith, Dillon, and Elliott. I don't think top ten-ing the field to death will work this year for Bayne because the speed is there for wins among those other three. 195. cjs3872 posted: 03.24.2014 - 6:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Unless there are numerous bad races among those three, Anonymous (#194). If they each have numerous bad races, such as the run Smith ran into during the summer last year, then "top-10ing" the field to death, as you put it, certainly may be good enough. I think the strategy is to get top tens in the races the Cup drivers participate in, and then try for top fives in the races they don't run in, and stay on track in the plate and road course events. As I said last year, we don't really know who the real contenders will be until after the sixth Wild Card race (the race at Mid-Ohio) is done. I think when that time comes, we can predict who the real contenders will be, but not until then. Smith, Elliott, and Ty Dillon have more speed, but with two of them being rookies, they could also run into more trouble, and without a Chase format to reset the points, the key is finishing among the top ten as much as possible, because a bad race will cost you more than a win or two can gain you, in terms of points, and I think that's what Trevor Bayne was talking about in the pre-race show. He saw what Austin Dillon did last year. He knows that racing conservatively and taking 5th-8th place runs, rather than taking chances within the top five and having them not pay off, is what will count in the long run, and I think Roush's team, like that of Richard Childress, is playing that game, and with a driver like Bayne, who doesn't take many risks, it could pay off for them. 196. luigistarted06 posted: 03.30.2014 - 11:23 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Appearantly Derek White will be in the #28 at Texas. Poor Mike Wallace 197. Daniel posted: 03.31.2014 - 8:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 41 entered at Texas: -Matt Carter in the #13 -Ryan Blaney in the #22 -Robert Richardson Jr. in the #23 -Jason White in the #24 -Derek White in the #28 -Mike Harmon in the #74 -Tommy Joe Martins in the #76 -Chad Boat in the #84 -Joe Nemechek in the #87 -Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the #88 -#79 & #98 not entered 198. Joe Fan #87#66 posted: 04.01.2014 - 6:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Joe isn't gonna be in the #87, unless it's a last minute replacement. Another JD entry. Jayski has Kevin LePage listed as of now. NEMCO's next race isn't til Dega. 199. Anonymous posted: 04.06.2014 - 12:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #4 Jeffrey Earnhardt crew chief--Ricky Viers #87-Daryl Harr crew cheif--Carl Harr 200. RWR posted: 04.07.2015 - 3:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The #00 SR2 Motorsports withdrawn, the driver was Jason White (who will drive the #24 instead of Ryan Ellis). 201. Windows Millennium Edition posted: 03.14.2016 - 4:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor update: #00 SR2 Motorsports 202. Z posted: 03.22.2020 - 10:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) x6 Years To The Day, Kyle Larson Wins His 1st Xfinity Race In His 2nd Season; More Incredibly, Larson Would Finish 2nd The Next Day During The Cup Race & Almost Pull Off A Double Debutant Victory Lane. 1st Race: Joey Logano ('14), David Starr/#44 (A Ride Carried Into 2016) Last Race: Mike Wallace/#28, Daryl Harr, Jason White Only Race: Carl Long/Jimmy Means x20 Xfinity Winners 33/40 Ran In Cup (x11 Winners) 31/40* Ran In Trucks (x13 Winners) * & Eric McClure w/ x2 DNQs ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: