|| *Comments on the 2014 Sprint All-Star Race:* View the most recent comment <#261> | Post a comment <#post> 1. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 8:56 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Michael Waltrip was talking about the "margarita bar" in the pre race show. Stay safe, everyone in the Charlotte area. Excited for the race though. If the Showdown was a sign of things to come, this might be a good one. 2. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 8:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't know what the exact lap time was, but the FS1 crew said Kyle Busch ran the fastest-ever qualifying lap at a 1.5-mile track! 3. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This really has the makings of a good race. Just hope everyone uses their heads out there. 4. Anonymous posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't know how long driver intros will take, but I'd say within the next hour we'll start the Sprint 135. 5. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Nooooooo margaritas Mikey. There might be a heightened sense of urgency in the early segments in the middle of the pack as being up front will determine the winner. If your not on the front row for the final ten lap segment, you practically have a slim to none chance of winning. 6. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't know how long driver intros will take, but I'd say within the next hour we'll start the Sprint 135. Not until the "3,000 best option" concert is done. 7. epzik8 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Tuned in just in time for driver intros. 8. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This singer guy is a little obnoxious. 9. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:15 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "Just hope everyone uses their heads out there." Joe Nemechek, is that you? Junebug's Superman crew push his car out... 10. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:16 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Don't think I'll be rushing out anytime soon to buy a Jake Owen album! 11. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) If NASCAR was a movie series, it would have jumped the shark. 12. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:17 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "If NASCAR was a movie series, it would have jumped the shark." Just you wait until they get to the finale at Homestead this year... 13. TS1420 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:18 pm Rate this comment: (4) (0) This music is getting really annoying. 14. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:18 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) They could at least change up the song every once in a while instead of just playing the same bars over and over. 15. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:19 pm Rate this comment: (5) (0) I'll be rooting for any driver that doesn't shake this idiot's hand. 16. SpeedWorld97 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:19 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Not to sound like an ignorant country music hater but is Jake Owen even that popular? He comes off as an annoying person. I've actually never heard of him before. 17. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Does anyone else think that some drivers tank this race? 18. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:20 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Since none of us have mentioned it, I feel for the fans in the turns who are in darkness during the team intros. 19. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:22 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Good grief, can they PLEASE play something different during the driver intros? If I have to hear those same few bars over and over again, I'm going to go insane. 20. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not even Allmendinger doing The Worm can save these driver intros. 21. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:23 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Bring back the drum line. 22. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Some teams have B cars that have experimental parts and use this race as a test for the 600 so they tank it. 23. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Dinger kept good on his promise, he did the "Worm" on stage in driver intros. "Y'all give it up for...!" Every. Frickin. Time. 24. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:23 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) I'm not sure which is worse: this, or Madison Rising's, um, "performance" back at the Daytona Nationwide. 25. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:24 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) "Y'all wanna hear a little more from Jake?" NO, NO, NO. Can we just get him off the stage already and start the damn race? 26. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:26 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Y'all give it up for...stfu and get this show on the road! 27. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:30 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) So even though Danica didn't win the Fan Vote, they are still trying to convince every to vote for her. 28. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:31 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) The black wigs scared voters away from the Baroness...no wonder why Wise won the fan vote. 29. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) So even though Danica didn't win the Fan Vote, they are still trying to convince every to vote for her. It's never too early to start campaigning for next year. 30. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Finally we get the command. 31. DB1995 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:37 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) This is the bitchiest i think i have ever heard this board be, this race will suck like always 32. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:37 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) They should say "Gentleman, start your engines" when there isn't a woman in the race. It just sounds better, IMO. 33. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) We just want to see how the race unfolds and comment, make predictions, etc. 34. JG24FanForever posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:44 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) *Go Gordon! 35. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) FINALLY, this race is about to begin. 36. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Harvick and Gordon battling for third. 37. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And Kyle Busch is about to take the lead. 38. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle to the lead. 39. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jaws theme... DW is right about the #24 crew keeping Gordon up front if they have any chance to win. 40. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle Busch leads at the end of Segment 1. 41. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle takes segment 1. 42. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not too many changes in position so far. Hopefully differing pit strategies will change things up. 43. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 9:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Keselowski, Newman, and Kurt Busch take two tires to get themselves to the front. 44. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Brad K, Newman and Kurt Busch all took two tires. Next segment should be interesting. 45. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Four tires is probably the way to go unless you can run the high line wide open in turns one and two. 46. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man the further this season goes along, the more I believe Jeff Gordon to be a true championship threat...He is always fast! 47. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And Hamlin stayed out. 48. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Edwards and Gordon are charging through the cars on two tires. 49. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This is some good racing. 50. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Keselowski and Edwards get together, so let's watch Brad throw a temper tantrum. 51. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle Busch and Joey Logano have a wild crash. 52. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Logano hit Kyle Busch hard. 53. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle Busch into the wall as he collects Joey Logano. 54. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Big wreck with Kyle Busch and Logano. 55. The Long Shot posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle and Joey get together, wreck. 56. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:07 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) Kyle essentially wrecked himself. 57. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:08 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Kyle tried bump drafting Clint and it didn't work for him. 58. Peter posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:09 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) What a surprise Kyle does something dumb and wrecks someone else! 59. SpeedWorld97 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:09 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Spring Kansas 2013 all over again. 60. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) That was close for JJ and Dale Jr. 61. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Deja vu of Kansas last year, right? Busch goes wrecking, slides down the track and is t-boned by Logano. DW went crazy when that crash happened, kinda startled me. 62. DB1995 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cant believe they didnt see Brad hit the wall, which is why he made contact with Edwards 63. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The teams that just pitted can stay out at the end of segment two. 64. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Allmendinger gets turned and hits the wall pretty hard. 65. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kyle has failed to finish half of the All Star Races he's competed in. And Allmendinger gets turned into the inside wall on the backstretch just after the restart. 66. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) AJ gets turned into the inside wall on the backstretch. That looked like a Richmond accident. 67. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) No Allmendinger! 68. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DW goes crazy, "here they go again." 69. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Now Allmendinger spins into the inside wall on the backstretch after the restart... Just wanna add what a great save that was for Bowyer on the Kyle Busch crash. His car was crazy wiggling! 70. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Biffle tried making it three wide, and Vickers came down into Allmendinger. There was heavy smoke from Bowyer's car on that restart. 71. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Biffle forced Vickers into AJ, which caused AJ's crash. 72. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hamlin goes backwards on the restart again, holding up Jeff Gordon once more. 73. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What happened to Jr? It looked like he stopped in the middle of the track. 74. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Denny Hamlin's restarts have been terrible, the next segment break can't come soon enough for him. Kasey Kahne to the lead. 75. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man some great racing already! We can only hope for this in the final shootout. Harvick, Hamlin and Biffle go 3-wide into turn one! Yeehaw! 76. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Flat tire for Hamlin maybe. He got together with Biffle. 77. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Biffle has been really aggressive so far. Twice he's made it three wide already. Denny Hamlin is off the pace. 78. JG24FanForever posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hamlin has thoroughly screwed Gordon in this round. 79. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hamlin's got a problem, and with the pits closed that's bad for him. 80. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne takes segment 2 handily. 81. Sarf52 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) How is Wise running? 82. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yeah, Biffle has been really aggressive. He's already assist-wrecked Allmendinger, and popped Hamlin's right front tire. 83. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:22 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Wise is running 17th. He's not going to finish anywhere near the front (barring a crashfest), but at least he hasn't parked like somebody predicted he would! 84. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray, Kenseth, Keselowski, and Truex stay out. 85. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 4 stayed out, either Stewart or McMurray was the 1st one; they're both running the same Bass Pro scheme. 86. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne has been flying on the outside at every restart tonight. 87. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man there's another 20-lap segment after this? Why don't they make it two 30-lappers and a 10-lap shootout? That way it'll be a total of 70 laps, just like the inaugural Winston! 88. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne's car really likes the high side. 89. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This is the best racing we've seen at Charlotte in quite a few years. 90. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Kurt Busch nearly put Jeff Gordon in the wall. 91. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne past Brad K for 2nd. 92. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And past Jamie Mac for the lead. 93. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne back to the lead as he quickly pulls away from the rest of the field. 94. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray might have a loose wheel. 95. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray may have a loose wheel. 96. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne has hands down the best car. The bumps and differing strategies have made this an interesting All-Star race. 97. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Harvick is coming. 98. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Going by average finishes so far, it seems like it'll be Kahne vs Harvick for the lead going to pit stops. 99. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne takes the third segment. 100. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Nobody stays out this time. 101. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne, Harvick, Johnson, and Gordon are the likely winners based on average finish. 102. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Gordon crashes with Truex and Biffle. 103. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Gordon, Truxe and Biffle hard in the wall. 104. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Gordon in the wall HARD. Truex and Biffle are collected as well. 105. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) With Gordon out and Dos Jotas losing spots immediately from 2 tires, that 3rd-4th place slots are open. 106. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Gordon may have blown a tire. 107. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Tire or suspension issues on the #24 car. 108. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jimmie and Chad are bickering on the radio. 109. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne and Newman both hit the wall off turn four. 110. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Harvick is on the move. Meanwhile, Kasey Kahne and Ryan Newman both slap the wall coming off turn 4. 111. DB1995 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne apparently hit the wall pretty hard 112. TS1420 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:58 pm Rate this comment: (2) (2) "Jimmie and Chad are bickering on the radio." Hopefully it leads to the break-up of the evil super-duo. Go Harvick! 113. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 10:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Harvick to the lead. 114. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Newman in the wall again. 115. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Looks like Newman may be down for the count. 116. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Newman has a flat tire and comes to the pits. 117. Anonymous posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It looks like Harvick is gonna have the best average finish 118. DB1995 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Pleasant seeing JJ and Junior struggling, Newman in the wall 119. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne in the wall again too. 120. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne hits the wall again at the end of the segment. 121. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kahne went into the wall after the segment ended. He may be done too. 122. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I wonder how many positions BK and Jamie Mac moved up with their 2nd half strategy. 123. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) One thing is for certain, Josh Wise will record his best finish in the Cup Series in a non points race. Harvick has this provided they get out of the pits first. 124. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Though break for Kahne after having such a strong car. That's been the story of his season. 125. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I hope McMurray can do something with Harvick once he gets his four tires. He was able to hold off Harvick for a while there, so it's not out of the question. 126. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Pit stops 127. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Edwards wins the race out of the pits. 128. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray wins the race off pit road. Hell yeah. 129. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray wins the race off pit road. Hell yeah. Nope, Carl got to let off the brake to win the race off pit road. 130. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Edwards, McMurray or Harvick will win baring a pileup on the restart. 131. DB1995 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:13 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Go Mcmurray or Edwards, Brads crew choked hard on that stop 132. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) My bad, I thought Edwards came out 2nd. 133. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:15 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Ah, Harvick's bitching about his pit crew is in mid-season form. 134. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) They're going hard for the lead. Go Jamie Mac! 135. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray and Edwards battling fiercely for the lead. 136. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:17 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Jamie is pulling away! 137. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:17 pm Rate this comment: (4) (0) I still think the All-Star race is a waste of a weekend, but this has been the best All-Star race in a LONG time. 138. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:17 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) McMurray winning this race would be awesome. 139. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McMurray's in his own zipcode. 140. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Harvick's only chance to catch McMurray is if a caution comes out. 141. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Big time winner McMurray! Or as BP would say -- "Jamie MACmurray!" 142. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jamie has it if there's no cautions. 143. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) White flag! 144. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) White flag! 145. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:20 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Jamie wins!!! 146. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:20 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) McMurray wins the All-Star Race! 147. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ALRIGHT JAMIE MAC!!!! 148. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:21 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) Congrats Jamie. You shut up the FOX crew for 5 seconds. 149. NoLongerAnonymous posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There are probably only a handful of active drivers whose career I'd take over McMurray's. Amazing the way he shows up for big events every now and then. 150. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:22 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) McMurray has pretty much won every big race there is. 151. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Best All Star race in a really long time. Looks like Charlotte is starting to make a comeback. 152. SpeedWorld97 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Wow! That's awesome to see! 153. epzik8 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jamie did great tonight. 154. joey2448 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Daytona 500, Indianapolis, the Winston....Big race winner! Oh god, Jay and Dan are the last two people I wanna see right now! 155. TS1420 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Way to go McMurray! Good race, but it needs moved from Charlotte badly. 156. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) He just needs to make a Chase now. He's probably the only decent driver at this point whose never made a Chase. 157. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It is the month of May for Ganassi after all. Overall, the most competitive All-Star race in the last few years. Yay Jamie Mac! 158. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:25 pm Rate this comment: (7) (0) Funny tweet... "BREAKING: Jamie Mcmurray has won: Daytona 500, Brickyard 400, & The All-Star Race Kyle Busch has won: A lot of Nationwide races. #NASCAR" 159. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:26 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Jamie has a great shot at the 600 next week too. He's been fast all year, and as it's been said, he always shows up for the big races. 160. Schroeder51 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:26 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) I wasn't that enthusiastic about this year's All-Star Race (especially not after all that BS we had to sit through for a full hour before the start of the race), but it ended up being the best All-Star Race I've seen in quite a while. Actual competitive racing at Charlotte for once! I have hope that the Coke 600 next week will turn out to be a good race... Good to see McMurray win, he's one of the more likable drivers out there today. 161. b4il3y posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jamie MACmurray!!!! (Ol' BP gotta love him). I'll tell ya, something about him I've always liked, and he comes up big again in the big one! 162. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Why is the car parked? Setting up the stage? 163. DB1995 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The only all star race i have ever been happy about afterwards, someone who wasnt suspected to win won 164. murb posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:29 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) Matt Kenseth once again wins the "fastest driver to switch to their street clothes" contest. 165. DH101 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:30 pm Rate this comment: (2) (1) Lil Jamie Baby!! 166. New14 & 88Fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Daytona 500, the Brickyard 400 and now The All-Star Race. The odds are good for McMurray wining the 600 next week. He'll certainly be one of the contenders. 167. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:30 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) YEAH!!!!!!!!!! WHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!! JAIMEMAC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 168. SpeedWorld97 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:30 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "I have hope that the Coke 600 next week will turn out to be a good race..." I sure hope it is. I'll be there for the 600. 169. Chad's Hair Plugs posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:31 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "Why is the car parked? Setting up the stage?" Yeah, the winning car stops at the start/finish line with the stage by the grass. It's 11:30, don't interview Dos Jotas. I'm trying to stay up. 170. Mr X posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Keith Roddin(not sure if that's the correct spelling), is just overflowing with excitement obviously. 171. JasonB72 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:39 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "He just needs to make a Chase now. He's probably the only decent driver at this point whose never made a Chase." I read somewhere once that Jamie is the only driver who has raced Evert year sine 2004 that hasn't made the Chase. Hope he can do it this year! 172. cjs3872 posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:39 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) I'll say this. Jamie McMurray doesn't win very often, but when he does, he wins BIG. The Daytona 500, the Firecracker 400, the Brickyard 400, two 500-mile races at Charlotte, two wins at Talladega, and now the All-Star Race. In a way, he's like Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards in reverse. Kyle and Carl win a lot, especially Kyle, but can never win big events, but McMurray dos not win very often, but when he wins, it always seems to be in a big one. Somehow, when Carl Edwards and Jamie McMurray were having that fierce battle for the lead, you somehow knew how that was going to turn out even before it was decided, because McMurray is a big money driver, and Edwards is not, and it's really that simple. Other than his All-Star race win over Kyle Busch in 2011, Carl Edwards has never won anything of significance, and Kyle is just as bad as Carl is under pressure, if not worse (though he does he wins in the Southern 500 and Firecracker 400, to his credit). But McMurray has always seemed to do his best in the biggest events, something his record shows, and one thing McMurray does is he'll wait out his competition in the big races and let them make the errors he doesn't make and take themselves out of contention, and in the big events, there are drivers that can stand the heat and drivers who can't, and McMurray has proven that he can stand the heat, and Edwards has proven over the years that he can't stand the heat of a big event. Jack Nicklaus once said that, for him, the major championships were the easiest to win because he knew that 75% of the field were beat before the event started, mainly because they would make the errors that took them out of contention that he wouldn't make. The same is true here. McMurray is one of those drivers that do better in the big events because he's not likely to make the errors under pressure that other, more prolific drivers that aren't as cool under fire as he is make. What McMurray did was to let the other drivers make the errors (Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne, most notably) that took them out of contention, and then he had the fortune of racing a driver that is as bad in the big moment (Carl Edwards) as he is good in the big moment, and that all added up to yet another big win for McMurray and another frustrating defeat in a big race for Carl Edwards. There's a reason why certain drivers can win the big races and can come through in championship battles and why other drivers can't and that was on full display in this race on both ends. 173. Seagal posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:41 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) Very happy for Jamie! And a nice comeback for Kenseth, who was around P12 all night. 174. The Long Shot posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:42 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Congrats to McMurray. And lol at the NASCAR official guiding McMurray off the top of the car while he was doing his Victory Lane interview. Oh, and watching Fox Sports Live's post-race coverage is akin to receiving the Chinese Water Torture. It is just so awful. 175. Scott. B posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Side note: Fan vote winner Josh Wise was the only first-timer in the main event this year. 176. Jarrett88fan posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Well put as always CJ, excellent analysis. 177. RaceFanX posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsors: #1 Jamie McMurray- Bass Pro Shops / NWTF #34 David Ragan- Taco Bell Live Mas (same for all races so far in 2014 where Taco Bell is listed as his sponsor) I fell asleep during the caution after the first segment and missed the race. This sucks. 178. Wallmendinger posted: 05.17.2014 - 11:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @172 If he makes the chase he could be a real dark horse. If the final 4 includes McMurray he would have a real shot at it. It would definitely be considered a big money race, and like you said he's a big money driver. 179. 23andJoe posted: 05.18.2014 - 12:08 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #4 sponsor: Hunt Brothers Pizza 180. RaceFanX posted: 05.18.2014 - 12:09 am Rate this comment: (4) (0) With a small portion of the money from his victory here McMurray said in victory lane he was going to buy his son a train set. 181. RaceFanX posted: 05.18.2014 - 12:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the first All-Star race where the two drivers who raced in from the last chance qualifier and the fan vote winner didn't have to start at the rear of the field. Since the Open was a day earlier they were allowed to qualify normally with the other all stars. This was also the first All-Star race since 2010 with an all-American driver's lineup, Marcos Ambrose finished fourth in the qualifying race and didn't qualify for the main event. Josh Wise 15th in the Dogecoin's Meme Machine is technically his best Cup finish to date, his was 18th in the qualifier before getting the fan vote to advance in. 182. sk posted: 05.18.2014 - 1:36 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Wise did finish 5th in his Duel this year, so Lucky Doge didn't quite net him that best ever Cup finish. 183. A No Knee Mouse posted: 05.18.2014 - 1:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) That was personally the best All Star race I've ever watched. Even thou my favourite driver, Gordon, crashed out, I still couldn't keep my eyes from being glued to my TV set. Jamie's CC made some risky but great calls on put road, and Jie never stopped driving the wheels off his car. Congrats to Jamie and his team on an all-around superb All Star performance. 184. A No Knee Mouse posted: 05.18.2014 - 1:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) *Jamie, not Jie 185. 23andJoe posted: 05.18.2014 - 4:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #4 sponsor: Hunt Brothers Pizza (not possessive) #98 sponsor: Dogecoin Digital Currency 186. Nascar Lead Lap Points posted: 05.18.2014 - 7:43 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor Update #1 Bass Pro Shops / NWTF 187. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.18.2014 - 7:47 am Rate this comment: (1) (2) Nice to see McMurray won. He deserves it as he a true all-around driver. Few drivers can drive as well as he does on road course, big tracks, plate tracks, and short tracks; he's more multi-capable than say Carl Edwards or Matt Kenseth, but he's no Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart. He's a solid driver and has earned every one of his wins the hard way. 188. startandparkfan posted: 05.18.2014 - 9:13 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The #1 had NWTF on the car. 189. Daniel posted: 05.18.2014 - 11:14 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Go Gordon! 190. DB1995 posted: 05.18.2014 - 11:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mcmurray is a truly nice guy, whens the last time he started something on track?, when has he ever confronted someone after a race? Hell, i think Trevor Bayne has confronted more people post race than Jamie (Austin Dillon Bristol 2012 NNS) . Jamie is my 3rd favorite drive ( Trevor Bayne #1, Brad Keselowski #2). 191. Seagal posted: 05.18.2014 - 12:55 pm Rate this comment: (2) (2) 187. "Nice to see McMurray won. He deserves it as he a true all-around driver. Few drivers can drive as well as he does on road course, big tracks, plate tracks, and short tracks; he's more multi-capable than say Carl Edwards or Matt Kenseth, but he's no Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart. He's a solid driver and has earned every one of his wins the hard way." Of all the drivers, using Matt Kenseth as an example of a non-versatile driver seems odd to me. He's a great plate racer, short tracker, speedway and intermediate racer, and he was holding 5th at Sonoma last year until he ran out of gas, which suggests maybe it was the Roush equipment holding him back at the road courses. I do agree that Jamie is an 'any-track' driver though. 192. Evan W. posted: 05.18.2014 - 1:15 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) * First off congratulations to Josh Wise and the Doge Coin folks for getting the fan votes and getting into the race, if not it would have been Danica Patrick getting in most likely. * Another bitter defeat for Carl Edwards and this is another tough pill to swallow, he was on the top side which left him a "sitting duck" no pun intended. Carl as always handled the defeat like a pro but he's had a lot of narrow defeats losing twice in the Championship fight, once to Jimmie Johnson who had his number in 2008 at the end of the year and then to Tony Stewart who he lost to in tie breaker because he did not have enough wins. * There's a few others but I'm beginning to feel like Carl is getting out-powered by the other makes, Ford makes good power but they seem to be a little behind, and they haven't changed their Ford nameplate since 2006, they still use the Ford Fusion, Chevy and Toyota have gone and made significant changes to their cars. Roush has tried this reshuffling of crews and personnel like he did 10 years ago and it really hasn't paid dividends doing it in this day and time. * Carl Edwards is the total package, likable, athletic, shoots straight from the hip, and those great backflips when he wins a race. His contract situation is really bugging him though. These situations are not where a driver does well. Ever since Edwards was named "the man" for Ford and paid the big bucks, he has not produced as much as I am used to seeing he was awesome in 2005 and 2008. But Jimmy Fennig has at least delivered solid results, I just don't know where Edwards psyche is right now. * Jamie McMurray adds another "Big Money" race to his resume, he has a Talladega win, Daytona 500 win, and a Brickyard 400 win. The only things he has not won yet are the 600 and Darlington. But he has half of the slam completed. 193. Evan W. posted: 05.18.2014 - 1:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) * Getting back to Edwards, you can just chalk it up that he is no good under pressure and usually when he has to step it up he is wrecked, Kyle Busch is the same way under pressure, he just can't win those big moments, but early in his career, Kyle tore up equipment trying to push over the edge, Busch still selfdestructs at times * Interestingly, I don't think a car has ever entered victory lane with a turkey on it. At Pocono in 1991 there was a turkey on the track and this time the Wild Turkey Federation has one on the side of the car and McMurray wins with it. * I'll say this though, Jamie MacMurray has at least found his place and niche with Ganassi(the former Dale Earnhardt Inc. stable). I never felt like being at Roush would ever pay dividends he was stuck behind 3 great drivers and Jamie just never won enough to fit Roush Racing even though it was some of the best equipment he has had, but now everybody has good stuff. Fortunately for Chip, he made a bad decision to let him go and then he brought him back and Reed Sprensen and David Stremme failed to pan out and the decision has paid off big time. * This race is a million dollar test session for a lot of teams, and many teams tank. This race does pay a million, but I'd like to see them move it to some other locations like Eldora, Rockingham, or Bristol. There is much more hype put into this race than actual racing because of it's rough and ready past but it definitely lived up to the billing tonight. The Winston, The Nextel, or the Sprint All Star Race is still a big event. * The worst crash in this race was where Kyle Busch crashed and as he was going down the track got T-boned by Joey Logano, driver's side. Kyle obviously was okay, but he refused to get in the ambulance and decided to walk back to the pits, a la Dale Jarrett in the 2002 Pepsi 400 where he refused to ride in the ambulance. Obviously dejected, but you are required to ride in the ambulance, the medical people will not like that too much, they will insist he goes with them. * Lots of wrecked racecars as usual. There was much more a sense of urgency and I liked the format of moving the open to its own seperate day and giving the transfer drivers an opportunity to qualify with all the other drivers, it's better for the transfer guys now. * I did not think Jake Owen was that bad, he just seems like he's got a regular guy persona, he's just a regular guy who sings country music. His music does leave a lot to be desired. 194. KyleFan posted: 05.18.2014 - 2:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jamie Mac is the 7th driver in NASCAR history to win the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and The Winston/All Star Race. The others are Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt and Bill Elliott. 195. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.18.2014 - 3:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (3) So... I just went back and reviewed "The Great HTML War"... Ah... yeah... good times... 196. 111111 posted: 05.18.2014 - 7:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 191: Matt Kenseth may be a strong intermediate, restrictor plate and short track driver, but there is absolutely no way Matt Kenseth is a contender on road courses. Heck Matt Kenseth would probably be the first to admit. He has 5 top 10s and not a single top 5. Not to mention his 1 career lap led at a road course. 197. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.18.2014 - 7:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) Sad news: the great Sir Jack Brabham has passed away at the age of 88 198. Seagal posted: 05.18.2014 - 8:13 pm Rate this comment: (3) (0) 196. "Matt Kenseth may be a strong intermediate, restrictor plate and short track driver, but there is absolutely no way Matt Kenseth is a contender on road courses." There were a few tracks he wasn't "good" at until last year...Turned out it wasn't him. I would not be surprised if he pulls out good finishes this year at Sonoma and the Glen. That is, if JGR can get their crap together. 199. Sean posted: 05.19.2014 - 12:12 am Rate this comment: (2) (2) "Somehow, when Carl Edwards and Jamie McMurray were having that fierce battle for the lead, you somehow knew how that was going to turn out even before it was decided, because McMurray is a big money driver, and Edwards is not, and it's really that simple." I knew when I saw McMurray win that you would write something like this, and I knew I'd feel the urge to critique it. Races are not predestined. I'm sorry. I just don't buy that people care about winning certain races so much that they will crack under pressure in those races and not crack under pressure in other races, especially more important races. All the regular points races have equal weight (well, theoretically, ignoring the Chase for a moment). Why should a driver care about a non-points event more than any other event? Solely due to the money? I think pretty much every driver takes each race as seriously as every other race, and to argue otherwise seems ridiculous... A mistake-prone driver will make mistakes EVERYWHERE. Looking at the big two drivers who throw dominant runs away more than anybody else at the moment (Kyle Busch and Will Power), they don't just throw away the BIG races. They'll make lots of stupid errors at non-marquee races too (Kyle spinning himself out in that duel with Brad at the end of the 2012 Pocono race; Power spinning out by himself with a massive lead at Barber...) Would I say overall that they are "cracking under pressure"? Nah. They just drive stupidly and they are capable of showing that anywhere. Yes, Power now has the reputation for choking three straight titles. He did choke 2010 and 2012, but definitely didn't choke 2011. He got wrecked in the pits by Ana Beatriz when he was leading the points and the race. But Power seems to make like 5 or 6 big mistakes every single season, so I'm not sure crashing out of two finales can be seen as a trend... Similarly, Busch doesn't just screw up in the chase. He screws up all the time! But both of them win way too often for me to actually say they "choke under pressure", or that they're prone to choke marquee races away. They're just maddeningly inconsistent. They can dominate - or screw up - pretty much everywhere, much like their past predecessors like Rusty Wallace and Paul Tracy... You'll comment that none of these drivers won the biggest races in their series, and I'll counter. How is that necessarily anything more than bad luck? Some people think PT DID win Indy in 2002, and had he showed up during the split years, he'd have almost certainly won one (Michael Andretti, Alex Zanardi, and Greg Moore too; Jimmy Vasser for some reason I'm thinking no). Rusty had the 1999 Daytona 500 well at hand until Penske made a massive pit error by leaving the #2 and the #12 out of the pits on worn tires when everyone else pitted. Kyle Busch won at Talladega, won at Darlington, and did not seriously choke his Daytona 500 shots away IMO. In 2008, he picked the wrong lane at the end. Is that choking or is that bad luck? How many drivers can automatically know the right lane in advance? Maybe Earnhardt could. Not many can. In 2009, he was running away with the race and certainly would have won if Junior hadn't decided to have a hissy fit and take out Vickers in front of the entire field. Power's Indy record you may have more of a point, but his oval record IN GENERAL has been pretty bad except for the intermediates, until last year when he had more speed than he ever had before. He didn't choke at Long Beach when Simon Pagenaud was breathing down his neck in 2012, even though Power is the most mistake-prone among the current IndyCar stars and Pagenaud is the LEAST. Bottom line: I can't understand you making the argument that any driver who wins very often "cracks under pressure". A driver who cracks under pressure is somebody like Bryan Herta or Martin Truex, Jr. Those are examples of drivers who have raw speed but contend to win very rarely and seem to find a way to lose any time they actually have to battle another driver on the track. Those drivers let other drivers get into their head (to hilarious effect when you consider the way Alex Zanardi consistently intimidated Bryan Herta). I think in order to win as often as drivers like Kyle, Edwards, etc... do you HAVE to have the ability to not crack under pressure. Kyle dominates on the short tracks! And I'd say there's a lot more pressure THERE than on the marquee races that you hold so dear. Sure, there's less MONEY involved, but I'd say racing at Bristol is a lot more stressful than racing on most superspeedways. A driver who is more likely to crack is more likely to crack THERE I'd say than say, Indy or Charlotte or other 500 mile races (and what is the big deal about 500 mile races? They used to mean something as a test of EQUIPMENT, but I'm not sure they ever meant anything as a test of driving ability, and now that equipment can virtually always last 500 miles, the distance in and of itself is pretty meaningless now...) I think you try to make too much of trends that may just be due to luck or equipment or certain skill sets a driver has. Rusty Wallace tended to choke on plate tracks because he just struggled at plate racing. It was a skill he never really mastered or "got". It's not like he was dominating the non-marquee plate races and struggling in the major ones (this, along with his lack of Southern 500/Indy 500/24 Hours of Daytona wins could actually be a good argument for Tony Stewart cracking under pressure though...I just say he's been unlucky though and he never got Darlington...) Does Sterling Marlin happen to know how to handle pressure even though he was kind of a one-trick pony (great on restrictor plates, pretty good but often mediocre everywhere else)? Does Arie Luyendyk handle pressure well because he won at Indy, while Michael Andretti didn't because he didn't? No, Luyendyk just happened to have a skill set that meshed well with Indy and Andretti had bad luck. Usually it's about luck. Sometimes it's about somebody who has a knack for certain tracks... So, on to Saturday night. Jamie McMurray has a knack for plate racing, side-by-side battling, and racing at Charlotte. He always has had. Admittedly, he HAS been a good driver pretty much everywhere, and is probably unlucky to not have a short track or road course win yet. He seems to be the MOST skilled at the tracks that happen to host marquee races, but I don't think it has much to do with them being big-money events. Perhaps it has more to do with his teams focusing on such events (bear in mind this IS the former DEI #1 car, and DEI specialized in plate racing at the expense of the rest of the schedule...) Perhaps it's just that he's happened to be lucky in the marquee races and unlucky elsewhere (that's what I think...I think he'd actually have a steady, diverse collection of wins if he had luck and a good team behind him). But do I think it's about other drivers cracking under pressure? No. As I said, a driver who is prone to crack under pressure is prone to crack under pressure EVERYWHERE, like Herta and Truex. I think any of the guys with 20+ wins has proven the ability to handle pressure again and again. In an era where most of the so-called marquee races are solely about the strength of equipment and luck (thanks to the crapshoot factor in modern NASCAR), I think those are the deciding factors, and I'm WAY more impressed by somebody who can do well over the entire schedule than a one-trick pony. NOT that I am calling Jamie a one-trick pony...somebody like Luyendyk or Sam Hornish when he was in the IRL would be closer. So there is no way I would take McMurray over Kyle or Edwards solely because he wins marquee races... He's just been lucky in them and they haven't. Or he happens to have a skill set suited towards them and they don't (like Rusty, who just wasn't suited for the plate tracks but CERTAINLY could handle pressure...) I did foresee McMurray winning at the start of the last segment, but it was because his car had a better setup. His car seemed to be running really smoothly even when he was at a deficit of fresh tires. Edwards on the other hand had a more jittery car that seemed to be harder to handle. Did Edwards "crack under pressure"? Nah. McMurray just had a better-handling car, while the #99 team slightly missed the setup. THOSE are the things that matter. If Edwards REALLY cracked under pressure to that degree, he'd be like a Truex... 200. Sean posted: 05.19.2014 - 12:36 am Rate this comment: (1) (1) Did I get a downvote solely because people saw me as attacking McMurray's win, much like NRF criticizing Tony Kanaan's win at the Indy 500 last year? I was ROOTING for McMurray and against Edwards. I just critique arguments I consider to be bad independently of which drivers I like... I hardly meant to be pissing on McMurray's win. I was extremely pleased. He's one of the only Cup drivers I like left... 201. 111111 posted: 05.19.2014 - 7:09 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 198: So Carl Edwards shouldn't be on the list either because he drives for Roush? 202. Daniel posted: 05.19.2014 - 3:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 45 entered for the 600: -Trevor Bayne in the #21 -Brian Scott in the #33 -Michael McDowell in the #95 203. cjs3872 posted: 05.19.2014 - 5:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sean, there are athletes in every sport that, despite their overall playing record, can handle the big moments, and others who have great playing records that can't handle the big moments. To me, the biggest examples of this are Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez in baseball, although Ty Cobb was also terrible when he got the spotlight in the 1907-1909 World Series. The NFL has Peyton Manning, who despite his overwhelming passing records, has always had trouble getting over the top in the biggest moments. And while I'll give him somewhat of a pass in the last Super Bowl (nobody was beating that Seahawks defense on that night), his performances against the Patriots, Steelers, and Chargers in earlier years, as well as handing Super Bowl XLIV to the Saints with a terrible second half are classic examples of this. There are fewer examples of this in the NBA, but there have been great golfers that simply couldn't close out big events. On the other hand, there have been others with above-average careers that came up big in the big moments, almost too many to count, and in NASCAR, Jamie McMurray is surely on that list, as was Nelson Stacy a half century ago (he won only four times, but there was a World 600 and a Southern 500 among those wins). Others on that list include Andy North, a player that won only three times on the PGA Tour, but two of those three wins were U.S. Opens (in 1978 and '85). That's a classic case of someone having the ability to come through in the big moment, despite a mediocre career, at best. And while you mentioned the 1999 Daytona 500 and the fact that the Penske cars not pitting costing Rusty a shot at the win, I disagree with that, because if they had pitted, Rusty would have been back in the field due to the strategy of others, and likely would never have gotten back to the front because he was never that much of a risk-taker on those kind of tracks, and Jeremy Mayfield would still have had his flat tire, which came from running over debris. And if you make a pit stop, who knows if the jack drops, or you have trouble getting a tire off, and if that were to happen, he would have taken the restart from the back of the field. In retrospect, Rusty's only chance of winning that race was for him to do exactly what he did, which was to stay out. If he had gotten behind, he would have never gotten back to the front, which was evidenced in the final stretch when he did get behind. And Rusty was never very good in the big moment. Not only did he never win on a plate track, but he never won at Darlington, Indy, and finished second in the Coca-Cola 600 four times (1988, '94, '97-'98), at least two of which he should have won, and he should have also won that race in 1987, but like so many others on that day, blew up while leading. He was one of those elite performers that always came up small when it truly counted. Tony Stewart's also in that category, because other than the Brickyard 400, which he has won twice, he's never come up big in the big races, either. Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, and Denny Hamlin are three of the premier drivers in the sport today, but when the noose tightens in the big moments, they've always come up small. After all, does Tony Stewart win that 2011 championship if someone other than Edwards was the one he was chasing? I don't think so. Stewart even knows how Edwards has come up small, which was why he was trying to get into his head. He knew he could in such a big moment. But had it been someone like Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon, Stewart would never have been able to get into their heads like he could with Edwards. And the same is true regarding Jimmie Johnson and his winning of the championship in 2010. Johnson and Chad Knaus knew they could get in Hamlin's head, because he's never been comfortable in the spotlight, as he was that year. Those are classic cases of knowing who your competition is, and Jimmie Johnson in 2010 and Tony Stewart in 2011 took full advantage of who their competition was. The difference between guys that come up big in the big moment and those that can't, is frequently something that can't be seen, and that is the comfort level he has in that situation. Some guys are comfortable in that environment, and other guys simply aren't comfortable in that environment, and McMurray, for whatever reason, has always been comfortable in that environment, while Edwards, Hamlin, and Kyle Busch have never been comfortable being in the spotlight, and that's something nobody can see from the outside. 204. murb posted: 05.19.2014 - 7:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In regards to Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, and Denny Hamlin being considered Nascar's chokers, I mostly disagree with that. I think Kyle Busch is the only one of those three who can be considered for it just because of his multiple meltdowns in The Chase. But I absolutely think Edwards and Hamlin's "chokes" should be completely blamed on their teams. Edwards has had Jack Roush (known for using short tracks and other "different" races as throwaways) as his owner for his whole career, so to me it's really no wonder that Carl still doesn't have a championship despite being an absolutely legit contender twice. Had Jack put more emphasis on the short/flat tracks in 2008 (Martinsville and Phoenix, specifically), I think Carl very well could have won that championship. You could say the same thing for 2011 as well (even though I personally believe that no one was beating Tony that year - his run in those last ten races was just freakish). And Hamlin's 2010 "choke" was caused by Mike Ford's idiotic fuel blunder at Phoenix. Denny was doing exactly what he needed to do (he dominated that race) until the fuel deal happened. You might say that the 11 team failed to show up at Homestead the next week, but I disagree. There was no way they were gonna completely repair their team morale in just one week, so that's why it completely went off the rails at Homestead. But I don't see how any of it was Denny's fault (other than spinning out at Homestead, but whatever). Mike Ford killed that team at Phoenix (and Ford's trash talk towards the 48 after Texas certainly didn't help matters either). So yeah, I kind of understand the argument for Kyle being a choker because a lot of his meltdowns (flipping off the official at Texas, the Hornaday incident, etc) have been self inflicted, but I definitely disagree with Edwards and Hamlin being chokers. 205. TS1420 posted: 05.19.2014 - 8:07 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "But had it been someone like Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon, Stewart would never have been able to get into their heads like he could with Edwards." But Stewart has gotten into Johnson's (& Knaus') head before in a championship battle and came out on top. And before you say "Well Johnson was still young then and never won a championship", Johnson can still be beaten mentally. Keselowski proved that in 2012. I can't believe we are having a discussion that Jamie McMurray is a better driver than Ky. Busch, Edwards & Hamlin. If McMurray is better because he preforms well in big events, then why does he do mediocre the rest of the time? And Michael Waltrip must be a better driver than those three too, since he's won 2 Daytona 500's (and 3 overall at Daytona), the true successor of the Winston 500 (more on that in a moment) & The Winston. And I don't get why the spring event at Talladega is still considered to be the crown jewel event when the Winston 500 was moved to the fall in 1998 and the Winston No Bull 5 race was still held at the fall event even after Winston dropped their sponsorship of the race. Plus the fall race has been a 500 mile race and the spring race is a "499" mile race (though they are both 500 mile races and the 499 is a marketing ploy by Aaron's) It makes more sense to consider the fall race a crown jewel event than spring race. 206. 111111 posted: 05.19.2014 - 8:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Carl Edwards 2008 chase was a choke, but no way was his 2011 chase performance choking. He failed to finish inside the top 10 just once. There's just no beating someone who wins half the races in the chase... 207. cjs3872 posted: 05.19.2014 - 8:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Actually murb, Edwards has been a legitimate championship contender at least three times that I know of, 2005, '08, and '11. And of those three (Edwards, Ky. Busch, and Hamlin), Edwards has done slightly better in the bigger moments than Kyle Busch or Denny Hamlin, but his record is nothing to ride home about, either. But here's something to mull over. Edwards' one big victory, the one in the 2011 All-Star Race, came with Kyle Busch, another noted choker, finishing second, while Busch's wins in both the Southern 500 and Firecracker 400 in 2008 came with Edwards as the runner-up. Again, that's not exactly beating the likes of Stewart, Gordon, Johnson, or even Kevin Harvick in a marquee event. And I disagree with your assessment of Hamlin not choking in 2010. Certainly his crew chief didn't do him any favors at Phoenix, but even after that, he was the points leader entering the finale at Homestead, and gagged in every way, shape, and form with a bad qualifying run and an early race spin from which he never recovered. That was on Hamlin. But also, he never seemed comfortable in that position, something Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus easily took advantage of. He also didn't do himself any favors with his handling of the whole RCR cheating situation at the beginning of the Chase (when he had some choice comments for the #33 team of Clint Bowyer after that whole mess at Loudon), which, along with Kevin Harvick's reaction to it, got him off his game then, and it took him a few weeks to get back on his game. But I also think that someone like Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, or even Kevin Harvick, who all seem to savor the big moments, would have beaten Stewart for the title in 2011 because Stewart's trash talking would not have gotten to any of them, and I think it did get to Edwards, who's not comfortable in the big moment, and never has been. Let's also not forget what happened at Phoenix that set up that winner-take-all scenario at Homestead. Late in that race, Jeff Burton layed over for Tony Stewart and gave him a position in the closing laps of that race. If not for that one point Burton handed Stewart, Edwards' second place finish at Homestead would have been good enough for the title by that one point, so there was an obvious multi-team effort going on for Stewart and Chevrolet that was non-existent for Roush and Ford. 208. 111111 posted: 05.19.2014 - 8:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Matt Kenseth is a clutch driver???? 209. DB1995 posted: 05.19.2014 - 9:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) anyone searching for a good laugh go on Roush's Facebook page and look at this idiot trying to say we don't need safer barriers and argue with him 210. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.19.2014 - 9:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "If McMurray is better because he preforms well in big events, then why does he do mediocre the rest of the time?" Ever think of blaming the car owner? Chip is called "Cheap" for a reason, Chip treats NASCAR as 2nd tier too Indycar. When was the last time Chips Cup teams produced championship worthy results? 211. murb posted: 05.20.2014 - 12:11 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Actually murb, Edwards has been a legitimate championship contender at least three times that I know of, 2005, '08, and '11." Yeah, I forgot 2005, but I really don't think he was THAT much of a contender that year anyway (Stewart, Biffle, and Johnson were the clear frontrunners). The only times he's really gone into the finale with a good chance of winning it were 2008 and 2011. "He also didn't do himself any favors with his handling of the whole RCR cheating situation at the beginning of the Chase (when he had some choice comments for the #33 team of Clint Bowyer after that whole mess at Loudon), which, along with Kevin Harvick's reaction to it, got him off his game then, and it took him a few weeks to get back on his game." I do agree with this. He shouldn't have called out RCR like that, and he should have known that Harvick would cause a big fight like he did (and I'm not knocking Harvick - I thought it was admiral how he stood up for his team). But I still firmly believe that Mike Ford's fuel blunder at Phoenix was the main downfall of that team's shot at the championship (and ultimately, the relationship between Denny and Mike Ford). Had Ford not screwed that up, I think they would have won Phoenix (or at least gotten a top three finish - they were by far the best car all day), and subsequently won the championship the next week at Homestead. So I will never place the sole blame of that title loss on Denny, nor do I think he's a choker as a driver because of it (even though he did spin out unassisted while working his way through traffic at Homestead - also, about his bad qualifying run at Homestead - the year before they started like 38th and won the race, so it's very possible that they just didn't have the Homestead qualifying setup down or something). The term I would use for Denny Hamlin instead of "choker" would be "distracted". He's shown to get distracted quite a bit in his career (the Logano feud that he should have blown off is another big example), but I still don't think he's a choker as a driver because of his TEAM choking. Same goes for Carl Edwards too. 212. cjs3872 posted: 05.20.2014 - 12:15 am Rate this comment: (2) (0) Well, let's see, @208. He has Roush's only two Daytona 500 wins (in 2009 and 2012), won the Coca-Cola 600 as a rookie in a race fellow 2000 rookie Dale Earnhardt, Jr. dominated, won Roush's first NASCAR title in 2003 by not making the mistakes his competitors repeatedly made, took the 2004 All-Star Race, a victory he nearly repeated five years later, and most recently won several head-to-head duels last year against faster cars last year (most notably Kasey Kahne's #5 car three times), again by not making mistakes. And he also won last year's Southern 500 by being steady and letting those that usually beat themselves do just that. And I think his best season was actually in 2006, when he pushed Jimmie Johnson to the wire in cars that were not nearly as good, yet he nearly took the title from Jimmie that season. Part of the thing when you get into high-pressure situations, or in big events is not how well you do, but rather not making the mistakes that high-pressure situations often induce. The recent All-Star race is a perfect example of this. Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne likely had the two best cars, but took themselves out because of the errors they made (and Kahne's usually not one of those that make such errors under pressure). Kevin Harvick had the best car left, but had a bad pit stop that dropped him back, but had he been chasing one of those drivers that can be mistake-prone in a big situation, he might have still won, but McMurray rarely makes such errors with the big money on the line. There are a very few races on the NASCAR circuit that, despite how good some of the top drivers are circuit-wide, you can scratch from the list of potential winners, because you know they will make a costly error at an inopportune time. To me, Kenseth has never been one of those drivers, so he is always a short-odds favorite in a big race because he'll wait out the race, allow the drivers that make errors under pressure do just that, and strike when it counts. There's a reason why the bigger races are won repeatedly by a select few drivers. (Kevin Harvick recently completed the cycle of winning every important race on the circuit with his Southern 500 win earlier this year, for example.) It's because the big races will test those under the highest pressure with the big prestige on the line, and some of the top drivers, for some reason, just can't stand the heat, while others thrive for such an occasion. And it's that way in all sports, not just NASCAR racing. 213. murb posted: 05.20.2014 - 12:32 am Rate this comment: (2) (0) But I do agree with CJS about McMurray always showing up for the big races. It could just be a coincidence, or it could be that he actually does amp himself up more for those races (though I highly doubt that - I think it's more that all of his best tracks are "Crown Jewel" type tracks). But whatever it is, he'll be remembered as being one of those guys who always ran well in those races. My honest opinion of Jamie is that I think he's actually a REALLY good driver. He's just always been really unlucky, and he's also been stuck on the wrong teams for his entire career. Think about it. When he joined Ganassi, it was right after the 2001-2002 Sterling Marlin years that were really good. And then when he joined Roush, it was right after their 2002-2005 string that was really good. And even with those mediocre teams, he STILL had some great runs (including scoring more top tens in 2004 than the Cup champion did). So I think he's honestly a really good driver. He's good at really intermediates, plate tracks, and road courses (short tracks might be his weak link, but even at those he's still pretty decent). And he's also got his head on straight and never does anything stupid. To me, he's got almost everything you would want in a driver. So yeah. I think the biggest thing is that Jamie is easily one of the most underrated drivers of this generation (talent wise). 214. Scott B posted: 05.20.2014 - 11:15 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Edwards has been a legitimate championship contender at least three times that I know of, 2005, '08, and '11." Hmmm, contends every third year? I could see him making a run at it this season, too. Between the new chase format and being in the contract-negotiating mode he should be highly motivated. 215. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.20.2014 - 11:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) Lowest TV ratings for an All-Star race since measurement began in 2001. 216. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.20.2014 - 11:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Lowest TV ratings for an All-Star race since measurement began in 2001." "the racing" shouldn't be an excuse this year. I think most of us would agree racing this year has been better then last year. I think most people are tired of the FOX crew, how long have they been together? 13-14 years now? I think anyone would get sick and tired of hearing them flap their gums. Can't be worse then Indycar, have not pulled 1 million viewers all season (that will change next race) and have not pulled a 1.0 TV rating (again will change next race.) F1s TV ratings have gone up .4 this year on NBC. So i expect NASCARs too go up atleast half that (.2) next year. 217. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.20.2014 - 1:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) "Can't be worse then Indycar, have not pulled 1 million viewers all season (that will change next race) and have not pulled a 1.0 TV rating (again will change next race.)" Not true. The Indianapolis Grand Prix pulled at least a 1.0... maybe a 1.2, but still way worse than NASCAR. 218. SpeedWorld97 posted: 05.20.2014 - 3:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "'the racing' shouldn't be an excuse this year. I think most of us would agree racing this year has been better then last year. I think most people are tired of the FOX crew, how long have they been together? 13-14 years now? I think anyone would get sick and tired of hearing them flap their gums." I don't know if the longevity of the FOX crew has to do with it as much as the fact that the network has some of the most annoying people on television. Look at the original NASCAR on ESPN crew. ESPN's first run at NASCAR lasted 19 years with mainly the same crew (Jenkins, Jarrett, and Parsons) for over half of the 19 years, yet they were loved among viewers because they weren't a bunch of self-promoting goofballs. They were PROFESSIONAL. I feel that the modern day FOX crew is not professional at all (except Mike Joy at times), and that is a huge reason why they are getting such low ratings this year. The fans have grown tired of their antics, but they keep on pushing it onto the viewer. Hence, their ratings are only dropping. 219. 111111 posted: 05.20.2014 - 4:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) 212: Meh I guess but it just seems like he loses a lot of races he dominates... Let alone choking the championship last year... 220. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.20.2014 - 5:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Not true. The Indianapolis Grand Prix pulled at least a 1.0... maybe a 1.2, but still way worse than NASCAR." Nope. It drew a 0.9. 221. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.20.2014 - 6:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) Robin Miller gets his numbers direct from Nielsen and the IndyCar officiating... I trust him on this one. 222. Dave #38 Fan-Go Gilliland! posted: 05.20.2014 - 8:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Robin Miller gets his numbers direct from Nielsen and the IndyCar officiating... I trust him on this one." Robin Miller is credible, but I wouldn't trust IndyCar officiating on anything. 223. cjs3872 posted: 05.21.2014 - 12:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) @219, I don't think he (Kenseth) was going to win the championship last year, even if he had not stumbled badly at Phoenix. I think the experience of the #48 team was already beginning to take it's toll on the #20 team. Granted he picked a bad time to throw in a bad race, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome of the championship, because I think Johnson would still have won because of his team's experience. And as for Kenseth not winning races he dominates, that's happening across the board in NASCAR's top series over the last two or three years, at least. It seems that the best way to win a race today is not to be a dominant factor in it. For instance, only Kevin Harvick has closed out a dominant performance this year, and even he has thrown a couple away this season, most recently at Kansas. And most of Kenseth's wins last year came in races where he was not the dominant driver, but rather took advantage of other dominant drivers not being able to seal the deal. Kenseth's always been a great closer, and last year he had the muscle to back that up at more places than he ever had the opportunity to show it previously. What's happened to Kenseth this year is the "second place jinx". Every driver that's finished second in points since 2007 has followed that up with a bad year, and it's now Kenseth's turn to fall victim to the second place jinx. Aside from Richmond, he really hasn't even come close to winning a race this season, which may be one reason he was a little more aggressive than usual as it concerns protecting the lead. Even so, he's second in points because he hasn't had very many bad races, either. He's just not running that well. What's happened with Kenseth may be one of the most puzzling things that have happened during the course of this season, so far, even more than Jimmie Johnson's not winning a race and having more than his share of bad luck. I had a feeling that Johnson might have an unlucky year, based on where his championships and race wins landed after last season. The combination of six championships and 66 wins (or "6-66") was something I thought might be a bad omen for him entering this season, and to this point, I've been proven right, because when he's had wins in his grasp, they've gotten away with downright terrible luck (a flat tire at California and a late caution at Darlington with those races practically his). And in other races, he's not looked like himself, but Kesneth's an even more puzzling situation than Johnson is because he's rarely run well at all, which makes his current position in the points (second) startling. 224. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.21.2014 - 5:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Congrats to the new Hall of Famers: Bill Elliott, Wendell Scott, Rex White, Joe Weatherly, and Fred Lorenzen! 225. 111111 posted: 05.21.2014 - 5:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 223: Well if Matt Kenseth didn't choke the 2013 championship then Carl Edwards DID NOT choke in 2005. 226. Eric posted: 05.21.2014 - 5:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I happily shocked Terry Labonte isn't in the 2015 class. I am saying that there is a lot of people before the television era not inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame before today like Rex White, Fred Lorenzen, Joe Weatherly as examples besides the fact Rex White isn't getting any younger and Fred Lorenzen is suffering from dementia. The theme I am shocked about is all 5 people being cup drivers. I would be shocked if continues to the 2018 class. I already have Bobby Isaac and Benny Parsons as the favorites to be voted in the 2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame class based on what is left on the current ballot right now. 227. cjs3872 posted: 05.21.2014 - 6:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @225, I never said that Carl Edwards choked in 2005. All I said there was that he was a legitimate championship contender in 2005. He was not Roush's top candidate for the championship (Greg Biffle was), but he had a legitimate shot at winning the championship, but couldn't get it done. However, what Greg Biffle and his team did could very easily constitute a choke job. And I'm a little disappointed in the Hall of Fame voting for two very significant reasons. First, by putting Wendell Scott in, they lowered the benchmark unimaginably. Sure, he had to put up with a lot of stuff that was grossly unfair, both on and off the track, but one win in nearly 500 starts? As courageous as Scott undoubtedly was, he's nowhere near Hall of Fame caliber. Secondly, how can a guy that gets only 30% of the votes, as Fred Lorenzen did, get into the Hall of Fame? (And Rex White only got 43% himself, which is also appalling for someone to get elected.) Now unlike Scott, I do think that Lorenzen is Hall of Fame worthy, but a guy getting less than one-third of the votes gets in the Hall of Fame? C'mon. That's why there needs to be a minimum vote percentage threshold for Hall of Fane enshrinement. I would make 50% the floor. If anyone doesn't get at least half the votes, then he/she doesn't get in. It's that simple. People criticize the other sports Halls of Fame for having a high vote threshold (75% for MLB, for example), but that also means that those voting must think the person they're voting for is of Hall of Fame caliber, or he wouldn't get that many votes. I think the same thing needs to be done, but it may already be to late. With Scott's election, they may have just watered down the Hall of Fame immeasurably as it is. Election and enshrinement into the Hall of Fame is the highest honor a sport and those who vote for enshrinement can give an individual, so the benchmark for enshrinement, both in terms of accomplishments and voting totals, should be of such a high esteem, and yet it clearly is not when it comes to the NASCAR Hall of Fame, and today proved it yet again. when guys are getting elected getting less than half the vote, it puts down what the measure for the Hall of Fame should be, regardless of the sport. 228. Jim Davis posted: 05.21.2014 - 6:43 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "What's happened to Kenseth this year is the "second place jinx"." "The combination of six championships and 66 wins (or "6-66") was something I thought might be a bad omen for him entering this season..." The conventional wisdom is that Kenseth's and Johnson's teams were too focused on last year's championship battle to the detriment of their efforts to keep pace with this year's rule changes. I'm sure you're a nice guy and everything, cjs, but I just can't wrap my head around why you think jinxes and omens are better explanations. 229. murb posted: 05.21.2014 - 8:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't understand why they need to have "modern era" drivers be inducted every year now. I was okay with Rusty getting in the first year he was eligible just because he truly is one of the greatest ever (55 wins is a LOT of wins). But now it seems like every year they're gonna be putting in first year nominees just because they are more recent and appeal to the current fan base, and I don't think that's very ethical. I love Bill Elliott (and Dale Jarrett, who was the "modern" inductee last year), but I think that guys like Benny Parsons, Bobby Isaac, and Raymond Parks (who have all been fringe contenders for induction in recent years) should get in before these more recent drivers. Elliott, Jarrett, Terry Labonte, and Mark Martin (who will also most likely get in on his first nomination, which will probably be next year) are all obviously Hall Of Famers, but I just think some of these other guys who have waited a while now deserve to be enshrined first. The analogy I would use is that it's like sitting down at a restaurant, waiting for your food, and seeing people that came in after you getting their food before you. I'm shocked (and pretty mad) that BP didn't get in this year. He didn't have an absolutely legendary career as a driver, but what he did for the sport after his driving career should absolutely lock him in. He was THE VOICE of Nascar during arguably it's greatest era ever (80s and 90s). I thought he should have been in last year, and I REALLY thought he should have been in this year. So I really hope they put him in next year and don't just keep snubbing him (and others) for recent retirees just because they appeal more to the current fanbase. 230. Eric posted: 05.21.2014 - 9:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) cjs3872, I agree with you on Wendell Scott. I didn't have him on my five for that reason. I can tell you part of the problem with the voting percentage with Rex White and Fred Lorezen was really caused by the fact Rex and Fred came before the television era in NASCAR. I am saying that based on a statement a NASCAR Hall of Fame voter said last year. The voter mentioned around the late 1990's was when the voter first got into NASCAR and voted for Dale Jarrett as a result. Another example with the voting happened this year based on what Jimmie Johnson straight out said during his interview on NASCAR programs after the voting was announced. Jimmie Johnson basically said during his off-road racing days, there wasn't a lot of NASCAR coverage and didn't fellow NASCAR. 231. cjs3872 posted: 05.21.2014 - 9:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) That may be so about Rex White and Fred Lorenzen in regards to the lack of coverage the sport got back when they raced, Eric, but they have no business being enshrined when they can't even get half the votes (Lorenzen couldn't even get one-third of the votes this year). And I think they're both Hall of Fame drivers, as their records show. Personally, I think it's time NASCAR revamps the whole process and sets a minimum voting percentage requirement (I think it could be half the votes at this time), and also have a veteran's committee for those drivers, mechanics, and team owners who spent most, if not all their careers prior to the modern era and have one from that group voted in, assuming he gets the required percentage of the votes, and if more than one get 50% or more, then however many get to and past that threshold would get in. But having guys enshrined when they get less than half the votes is ridiculous. Actually, I think the minimum threshold should eventually be at least 60%, but I'll accept half the voters for now. I like the way the Baseball Hall of Fame does it. Put everyone eligible on the ballot, have the voters vote for ten guys, and then count the votes, and anyone who gets the minimum number of votes required gets in. MLB's rules stipulate 75%, which still means that 70 or 80 voters can leave a player off their ballot and the player can still be elected and enshrined because of the sheer numbers of writers that vote. I say open it up for more guys to get on the ballot, have these in the voting process vote, and anyone that gets 50% of the votes enshrined. (I say 50% because there are only slightly over 50 who vote, instead of around 400 for the Baseball Hall of Fame, for instance). The Pro Football Hall of Fame actually has a similar structure to what NASCAR's Hall of fame process does, in that the rules for the Pro Football Hall of fame stipulate that at least four must be elected, but no more than seven can be (assuming 5, 6, and/or 7 get enough votes to get in). I actually think that's the model NASCAR chose when they set up the process for enshrinement into their Hall of Fame. But there needs to be a minimum voting requirement for enshrinement. 232. Eric posted: 05.21.2014 - 10:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Murb, I agree that Benny Parsons not being inducted in the 2015 class is a big issue. I actually had BP on my top 5 for the NASCAR Hall of Fame class. The problem with voters that includes Jimmie Johnson is easy. Some of the voters started watching NASCAR in some point in the television era and that is what causing the older drivers Bobby Isaac problems to get in. 233. joey2448 posted: 05.21.2014 - 11:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man, you guys need to go on Jayski and check out the car Junior will be driving in this Sunday's 600...It is fantastic as f**k! God it looks good! 234. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.22.2014 - 2:36 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cup drivers who have made at least one 2014 start who I think will make it into the hall one day... Definitely: Jimmie Johnson-6 Cup championships, 66 Cup wins, 2 Daytona 500s, 1 Nationwide win Jeff Gordon-4 Cup championships, 89 Cup wins, 3 Daytona 500s, 5 Nationwide wins Tony Stewart-3 Cup championships, 48 Cup wins, 11 Nationwide wins, 2 Truck wins Probably: Terry Labonte-2 Cups championships, 22 Cup wins, 11 Nationwide wins, 1 Truck win Bobby Labonte-2000 Cup Champion, 1993 Nationwide Champion, 21 Cup wins, 10 Nationwide Wins, 1 Truck win Matt Kenseth-2003 Cup Champion, 2 Daytona 500s, 31 Cup wins, 28 Nationwide wins Kurt Busch-2004 Cup Champion, 25 Cup wins, 5 Nationwide wins, 4 Truck wins Brad Keselowski-2012 Cup Champion, 2010 Nationwide Champion, 11 Cup wins, 28 Nationwide wins Dale Earnhardt Jr.-2 Nationwide Championships, 2 Daytona 500s, 20 Cup wins, 23 Nationwide wins Kevin Harvick-2 Nationwide Championships, 2007 Daytona 500, 25 Cup wins, 41 Nationwide wins, 14 Truck wins Kyle Busch-2009 Nationwide Championship, 29 Cups wins, 65 Nationwide wins, 38 Truck wins 235. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.22.2014 - 2:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) "Secondly, how can a guy that gets only 30% of the votes, as Fred Lorenzen did, get into the Hall of Fame? (And Rex White only got 43% himself, which is also appalling for someone to get elected.) Now unlike Scott, I do think that Lorenzen is Hall of Fame worthy, but a guy getting less than one-third of the votes gets in the Hall of Fame? C'mon. That's why there needs to be a minimum vote percentage threshold for Hall of Fane enshrinement. I would make 50% the floor. If anyone doesn't get at least half the votes, then he/she doesn't get in. It's that simple. People criticize the other sports Halls of Fame for having a high vote threshold (75% for MLB, for example), but that also means that those voting must think the person they're voting for is of Hall of Fame caliber, or he wouldn't get that many votes. I think the same thing needs to be done, but it may already be to late." Can't really compare that's been around since 1936 and already has hundreds of members with one that just opened in 2010 and is only on it's 6th class. The NASCAR Hall is still trying to build up a reputation and it would be outrageous for something that new to have a high vote threshold. What if nobody got in, which occasionally happens in baseball? Whether we like it or not, MONEY makes the world turn and The Hall already has financial problems and having a small class or no class at all won't help that at all, so it makes sense to me. 236. Zackary Shawn posted: 05.22.2014 - 2:51 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I'm sure you're a nice guy and everything, cjs, but I just can't wrap my head around why you think jinxes and omens are better explanations." Gotta agree with Jim on this. I believe in Jesus Christ and Satan and I do believe evil can manifest itself, but... 1) 666 is an innocuous number number unless someone intentionally ties it to something evil. I don't think winning 6 championships and 66 races does this in anyway. They are merely numbers that fall in a counting sequence. 2) I don't believe God or Satan concern themselves directly with the results of NASCAR races. There may be ways in which God or Satan can use situations that arise NASCAR to further their will, but to think that one or the other put a jinx or hex on Jimmie Johnson is ludicrous. That's enough about that, though. 237. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.22.2014 - 7:54 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Gotta agree with Jim on this. I believe in Jesus Christ and Satan and I do believe evil can manifest itself, but... 1) 666 is an innocuous number number unless someone intentionally ties it to something evil. I don't think winning 6 championships and 66 races does this in anyway. They are merely numbers that fall in a counting sequence. 2) I don't believe God or Satan concern themselves directly with the results of NASCAR races. There may be ways in which God or Satan can use situations that arise NASCAR to further their will, but to think that one or the other put a jinx or hex on Jimmie Johnson is ludicrous. That's enough about that, though." I got to agree with you on every count here, but... Who was telling Mayfield "Wreck Earnhardt; WRECK EARNHARDT!!!!" at Pocono in 2000? :P 238. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.22.2014 - 8:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hey guys, while throwing together my last two NASCAR videos, I stumbled across a clip that I think came from 1990. I'm not sure who the driver is (I keep thinking it's Jimmy Spencer), but I'm very sure it is at Talladega. Search '1990 Jimmy Spencer flip at Talladega????' and you should find it. Any help would be appreciated. 239. cjs3872 posted: 05.22.2014 - 1:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Zack, the problem I have is the real low voting percentages for two of the enshrines in this class. And as for your point about not having anyone being enshrined, that's why NASCAR adopted the NFL's formula of guaranteeing a certain number of enshrines. The rules for the Pro Football Hall of Fame stipulate that no fewer than four new member would be inducted in any one year, though a maximum of seven can be inducted. But also, what I was saying in regards to how the Baseball Hall of fame does it is that anyone who would be eligible is put on the ballot, and from there, give any member of the voting panel up to ten selections, add up the votes, and anyone that gets the required number of votes gets put in. But the way NASCAR does it, there had been only 25 nominees, which I believe is now just 20, all but five of which are holdovers, and the voting panel only gets five selections, which is the reasoning behind the ridiculously low vote totals for some of the enshrinees. Put more guys on the ballot, allow the voters to vote for more candidates, and let the top vote getters get in. And another thing NASCAR should do in the future is to come of with a veteran's committee for those who spent most, if not all their careers prior to the sport's modern era and guarantee at least one from that group gets in, which would make certain that at least one of the real old-timers gets in every time. Now this year, all but one of the five were in this particular group, but it may not be this way in future Hall of fame elections. But another thing I worry about is that by putting five in every year, that the field of worthy candidates is going to get thinner and thinner each year, and we may have seen the byproduct of that with Wendell Scott's election this year. As courageous as he undoubtedly was, considering what he had to face, there's no way that he meets the criteria for Hall of Fame status. and by putting in five each year, we're going to see more guys get in that don't deserve to get in, just based on their record. The Hall of Fame is the highest honor a sport can give an individual, but we may be beginning to see the watering down of that honor right before our eyes. 240. Sean posted: 05.22.2014 - 1:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Scott's induction doesn't bother me in general. He managed to break through and win in an era of intense racism and he never had good cars (in that general era, James Hylton and Elmo Langley were the only other totally independent drivers who managed to win, so that makes Scott more impressive than he looks by stats). I realize his stats are lacking for an HoF induction, but there is more to evaluating talent than stats, and being a true pioneer for a minority group to that degree I'd be okay with... I think there should be one woman inductee and I'd go for Janet Guthrie over Sara Christian or Louise Smith. Although I very much disagree with cjs's "success on the big stage" argument, here's one of the rare kind of instances where it truly matters... Smith and Christian were respected in NASCAR circles but didn't make the world take notice. Guthrie did by making Daytona 500 and Indy 500 starts, which was probably much more influential in racing history. When you're making an unconventional pick like that for reasons other than stats, I think influence matters and Guthrie had much more influence by competing in nationally televised races... When evaluating TALENT, however, the marquee races mean nothing to me. If they chose Smith or Christian instead of Guthrie, I wouldn't be all that bothered though... I still think it's too early to induct Scott and Guthrie when so many dominant drivers are out, but I approve of their inductions in general. Despite Guthrie's lack of objective stats (again, she didn't have the cars to be competitive, unlike Danica Patrick) I was okay with her getting inducted to the International Motorsports Hall of Fame. The choice I didn't get *at all* was Junie Donlavey, who was inducted into the IMHoF before his much more successful (and more successful in multiple areas of racing) contemporary Bud Moore. Donlavey is the worst HoF racing pick I've ever seen, and so far NASCAR's HoF hasn't made a pick that bad... While I didn't think Rusty Wallace was too early given his dominance and diversity across numerous track types, I think Dale Jarrett and Bill Elliott were selected way too early. Not that I'm against their induction in general but I think their stats overrate them, and it's kind of ludicrous to see Jarrett going in before Weatherly, Lorenzen, Isaac, Turner, etc., and even Elliott to go in before Isaac, Turner, and Benny Parsons. Yes, I'll take Elliott's overall career over Parsons's, but it's closer than people think since Parsons drove worse cars, was probably more consistent in them, and was a more diverse driver. Add in Parsons's broadcasting career and he seems obvious (I think Ned Jarrett got an early push and got in one year earlier than I would have inducted him (no case for Ned over Yarborough) largely because of his broadcasting career, so why not BP? I'm more annoyed to see Terry Labonte on the ballot this soon considering I saw him as worse than a lot of his contemporaries without titles/with fewer titles (Allison, Bonnett, Gant, Irvan, Kulwicki, Richmond, Rudd), but T. Labonte is also better than Jarrett, who has already been inducted, so... I just hope they don't go SO overboard based on number of championships that they rush Terry in over drivers who didn't win championships just because Terry got lucky a couple times and those drivers didn't (it's not like Terry deserved either of his championships all that much...he was basically a Rudd-level talent who had a couple really lucky seasons and that's it). Having said that, it seems to have little to do with championships if Ned Jarrett can beat Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip in, Dale Jarrett can beat Joe Weatherly in (and be inducted with Tim Flock and Fireball Roberts, who should have been inducted WAY before Jarrett was), etc... As for minimum vote thresholds, let's not do that until all the main legends are in. I don't want to give the voters incentives to keep snubbing Bobby Isaac just because they're unaware of his accomplishments... If the best drivers available are drivers like Gant, Irvan, Richmond, Davey, T. Labonte, etc... (which will probably be about 3 or 4 years from now) THAT might be a good time to start with minimum vote thresholds, but not when there are STILL all-time legends sitting outside. Honestly, I'm surprised Dale Jarrett beat Buddy Baker in since they were exactly the same kind of driver. 2nd generation drivers who were great on superspeedways and not so great elsewhere, long-running drivers considered likable by most (even though they both always left me cold), mediocre announcers, etc... Considering Baker came first, I guess Jarrett got rushed in so early because of his title? I'll grant that Jarrett was a better short track driver too, so maybe that's enough for me to take him over Baker... Or maybe it's just that they want to have a modern "headliner" who '90s fans will know every year. Rusty in '13, Jarrett in '14, Elliott in '15. That would be bad, bad reasoning though... I guess that means Terry's a lock for '16, even though he and Jarrett should have been like 5-7 years later... 241. Sean posted: 05.22.2014 - 1:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "there's no way that he meets the criteria for Hall of Fame status. and by putting in five each year" What would you say the criteria are then? I'm not sure NASCAR has made that public. I think it's about having significant influence on the sport. Most drivers did that through stats. A few drivers did that by being pioneering in other ways. Not that I'd induct many of those kind of drivers, but I think Scott has a place even though his stats objectively aren't there. I'd hate for this to be coldly done through stats considering I think objectively all those non-champions I mentioned (plus Geoff Bodine) are better than many of the worst champions/drivers with more wins than them. Not that I'm against people like Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch being inducted either (even if they don't win titles), but I just fear that drivers in that era (the most competitive ever?) will be snubbed if they didn't hit 25 wins or win a title, even if they were better than many drivers who set those marks in stronger rides. Dale Jarrett got in already and what is the real difference between him and Sterling Marlin except that Jarrett had a championship-caliber ride and Marlin probably didn't (but still almost managed to win a title in one)? Yet Marlin will never be inducted (I'd probably say yes to Jarrett and no to Marlin too, Jarrett was a better short track driver). But people are blinded by win totals without acknowledging the context behind those win totals. 22 wins and 1 title is not better than 18 wins and 0 titles always, especially when the former is Bobby Labonte who came close to underachieving most seasons in great equipment and the latter is Harry Gant who did great stuff for some awful teams... 242. Eric posted: 05.22.2014 - 1:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Zackary Shawn, Greg Biffle needs to be on your probably list for the NASCAR Hall of Fame based on his Truck, Nationwide, and Cup series resume combined since he has 2 NASCAR Championships. Greg Biffle has 19 cup wins, 1 Trucks series championship with 16 career truck wins, 1 Nationwide Championship with 20 career wins. The only cup driver who has a Truck Series and Nationwide series championship outside of Biffle is Austin Dillon, but Biffle is the way better driver of the two. I know Greg has a lot of things not going for him in terms of cup career based on not having any plate wins, road course wins, and short track wins. The thing is his Nationwide and Truck Series Career gives him a stronger argument since his 19 cup wins are borderline with his only cup major wins are his 2 Darlington wins. 243. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.22.2014 - 5:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Jimmie Johnson-6 Cup championships, 66 Cup wins, 2 Daytona 500s, 1 Nationwide win Jeff Gordon-4 Cup championships, 89 Cup wins, 3 Daytona 500s, 5 Nationwide wins Tony Stewart-3 Cup championships, 48 Cup wins, 11 Nationwide wins, 2 Truck wins" These 3 right here i agree locks too get in when they reach the min. number of years before they are allowed too be voted for. I just hope all 3 would go in at the same time. I think THAT would be cool. "Scott's induction doesn't bother me in general. He managed to break through and win in an era of intense racism and he never had good cars (in that general era, James Hylton and Elmo Langley were the only other totally independent drivers who managed to win, so that makes Scott more impressive than he looks by stats). I realize his stats are lacking for an HoF induction, but there is more to evaluating talent than stats, and being a true pioneer for a minority group to that degree I'd be okay with..." I agree with this. When a driver goes into the HOF, it should NEVER BE SOLELY based on stats. He was a pioneer in his time. 244. Eric posted: 05.22.2014 - 6:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 1995 Subaru WRX STi, I don't see Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, and Jeff Gordon getting inducted at the same time. I think it is possible for Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon getting inducted in the same Hall of Fame Class. The problem with Jimmie is he's 4 younger than Jeff and Tony are. While Jeff wants to race in cup for another 10 year, It is a question mark to based on Jeff's window of winning another cup championship. It is very rare for cup driver in his late 40's or early 50's to contend for a cup championship. 245. Eric posted: 05.22.2014 - 6:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I am going to correct myself on Greg Biffle. He does have a plate win that I forgot about with it being fuel millage win in 2003 at Daytona. That race is easy to forgot that Biffle won based on how it was won and Biffle isn't a person you think for winning plate race based on his recent past on them in terms of giving up wins on them including a Daytona 500. 246. cjs3872 posted: 05.22.2014 - 8:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sean, the criteria I'm referring to is that any person that gets into the Hall of Fame has to be someone of the highest caliber in his chosen sport, and in no way does Wendell Scott fit that. Again, his courage has to be nothing but admired, but he wasn't even the best of his caliber of drivers, the independents. For instance, James Hylton was better than Scott was (he finished second in points four times), and he was a championship crew chief for Rex White before he became a driver, and there were other independents that were superior to Scott. If any of those old independents should have bee first to enter the Hall of Fame, Hylton would have been my first choice, not just because he was probably the best of the independent drivers, but was also a championship crew chief. But even Hylton doesn't fit my high standards for Hall of Fame status. But there should never be a fixed statistical criteria for Hall of Fame status for any sport. And also, Dale Jarrett got into the Hall of Fame before Buddy Baker because he won nearly twice as many races (32-19), and on a wider variety of tracks. I don't count Baker's not winning a championship against him, since he only ran for it a handful of times. Both are competitors of the highest quality, and Buddy should one day join his father in the Hall of Fame. Also, Buddy has run his father's driving school, which certainly works in his favor, as it did Buck Baker. (I think Buck got in before Herb Thomas and Tim Flock because of the impact his driving school made for the sport.) But I disagree with you regarding Terry Labonte. Labonte was only in serious contention to win the championship twice (1984 and '96), and he won it both times, and it wasn't a fluke either time. Now, I will say that Labonte was not even the top performer on his own team in 1996, but he won that championship the same way Darrell Waltrip did in 1985, and that was to stay close enough to that season's big winner in the races he won, while taking full advantage of that driver's bad races. The key race of Labonte's second title season was the fall race at Charlotte, when he won and turned a 111-point deficit to a virtual tie. And from there, Labonte's experience pulled him through. And remember that Labonte not only won the Southern 500 twice, but he also won the All-Star Race twice (1988, '99) and could have won it as many as three other times (1985, '87, and '96). And while Labonte was never a dominant driver, the one thing he had was longevity, as 23 years spanned his first and last wins, ironically in the same event, and there were an astounding 28 years spanning his first and last top five finish. Labonte is, no doubt, a worthy Hall of famer when he eventually gets in. He just didn't have the numbers Bill Elliott had, and his hanging around too long has definitely hurt his candidacy. 247. Eric posted: 05.22.2014 - 8:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 1995 Subaru WRX STi, I am bit shocked you didn't put Denny Hamlin in your Probably category. While Denny doesn't the amount of major you want in a cup driver, he is only 1 cup win away from Harvick. Denny is one of the top 5 short drivers in his era in cup although Denny hasn't been the same since his back injury. The only knocks against him is no cup championship, not a lot of majors, and no road course wins. 248. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.23.2014 - 12:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "1995 Subaru WRX STi, I am bit shocked you didn't put Denny Hamlin in your Probably category. While Denny doesn't the amount of major you want in a cup driver, he is only 1 cup win away from Harvick. Denny is one of the top 5 short drivers in his era in cup although Denny hasn't been the same since his back injury. The only knocks against him is no cup championship, not a lot of majors, and no road course wins." I wouldn't put Hamlin in anything because he isn't done yet. He is FAR from done. One thing he has on his side is time. 249. David posted: 05.23.2014 - 12:38 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "I don't want to give the voters incentives to keep snubbing Bobby Isaac just because they're unaware of his accomplishments..." Funny you should mention Bobby Isaac, as his omission from the HoF yet again is the only other mistake by the voting committee that I am incensed about (besides BP not being voted in). Isaac has more wins than Fireball Roberts, Dale Jarrett, Rex White, Fred Lorenzen, and Joe Weatherly, all of whom are already in the HoF or will be inducted next year. Plus, he has a championship to his name, which Roberts and Lorenzen don't; and I would easily consider the latter two to be among the legends of NASCAR. He finished in the top five in nearly half of his starts, with a better percentage in that regard (43.5%) than Jeff Gordon (42.3%), Dale Earnhardt (41.6%), and Jimmie Johnson (41.5%). He won his lone championship in between David Pearson and Richard Petty, both nearing their primes. But putting aside numbers for a moment, he had one the hardest upbringings of any driver. Dale Earnhardt himself said that Bobby Isaac was one of his favorites. Simply put, he NEEDS to be voted in next year. Period. 250. b4il3y posted: 05.24.2014 - 3:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) cjs3872 He was a groundbreaker... sorry if it offends you. 251. Windows Millennium Edition posted: 04.30.2016 - 9:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor updates: #55 Aaron's Own It #31 Catepillar/Quicken Loans #98 Dogecoin Digital Currency #99 Lenox Industrial Tools/Fastenal 252. Danish_Pie posted: 03.11.2019 - 1:59 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Though not a points paying event, final NASCAR win for Jamie McMurray. 253. Wil posted: 05.27.2019 - 6:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Best piece of driving I've ever seen from McMurray in this race on the final restart. How did he do it? He revealed to the media after that he drove so well because "I just just didn't care if we wrecked we're fighting for a million." Jamie Mac always drove timidly in points races, but let it all hang out in this race and won. Makes you wonder what more he could have accomplished with a different mindset. 254. Rich posted: 09.25.2020 - 3:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds and Darrell Waltrip were the commentators. Steve Byrnes, Matt Yocum and Krista Voda were the pit road reporters. Jeff Hammond was the roving reporter. 255. Mile501 posted: 12.20.2020 - 9:20 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Is Jamie McMurray the only driver whose final career win was the All-Star Race? I know Jimmie Johnson (and maybe others) would join him, though, as drivers whose final career win was a non-points event. 256. JSPorts posted: 12.20.2020 - 10:30 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Drivers whose last (or most recent) win has come in a non-points event: Busch Clash: Jimmie Johnson (2019) Erik Jones (2020) Bluegreen Vacations Duel: Coo Coo Marlin (1973)* Bobby Isaac (1974) A.J. Foyt (1978) Donnie Allison (1980) Blackie Wangerin (1983)* - consolation race Connie Saylor (1984)* - consolation race Randy LaJoie (1985)* - consolation race Benny Parsons (1987) Mike Skinner (2001)* Michael Waltrip (2005) Elliott Sadler (2006) Jeff Burton (2011) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (2016) NASCAR Open: Buddy Baker (1987) Dick Trickle (1990)* Todd Bodine (1995)* Jimmy Spencer (1996) Sterling Marlin (2004) Scott Riggs (2006)* Sam Hornish, Jr. (2009)* Daniel Suarez (2017)* A.J. Allmendinger (2018) Matt DiBenedetto (2020)* NASCAR All-Star Race: Jamie McMurray (2014) * denotes that the driver never won a points-paying Cup race There are more drivers who probably won exhibition races, but these are the drivers whose final (or most recent) win has come in one of the 5 current NASCAR exhibition races. 257. Zach posted: 12.20.2020 - 11:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) To me this was the last overall good All-Star race. 2016 was pretty good too but pretty much every All-Star race since this one ranged has ranged from bad to average. 258. JSPorts posted: 12.20.2020 - 11:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The 2020 All-Star Race was pretty good. Only 140 laps, but there were 6 lead changes among 4 drivers, along with 5 cautions. The final lead change occurred inside the 40-to-go mark. 259. Tigerman posted: 12.20.2020 - 11:47 am Rate this comment: (0) (2) @256 Earl Balmer and Johnny Rutherford should be added here. Fred Lorenzen as well. 260. JSPorts posted: 12.20.2020 - 11:51 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) The Duel races were points-paying races when they won them, so no they shouldn't. 261. Rich posted: 04.20.2021 - 1:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Joining the race coverage in the Hollywood hotel were Chris Myers and Michael Waltrip. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: