Demons Be Gone!
Wednesday, February 13th, 2008 10:34am CST
By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Published on Thunder Lounge.
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So penalties were handed out yesterday for Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart in regards to their little disagreement last Friday during (and after) final practice for the Bud Shootout.
The penalties themselves were surprising on two fronts.
First, it was honestly surprising that there really was a penalty at all. No, I’m not off my rocker. I’ve looked at the replays on the net a hundred times, maybe more, and I stick to my original thoughts that the bumps coming down the access road before they hit the pits was nothing more severe than a congratulatory doughnut. I’ve seen worse “congratulations” after a race. The difference here though is the intentions and premises those bumps were made under. However it still somewhat baffles me that they didn’t call it all square after the “rumors” of an altercation in the Oval Office after practice where Busch apparently took a little too close of a look at Stewart’s fist.
Second surprise in this announcement was the severity, or lack of, in the penalties. NASCAR handed down a 6 race probationary period for both Busch and Stewart. What the heck did Tony do? Ahhh, could those rumors be getting warm? More on that in a second, but I’ll leave the reasoning for penalties at coming down to the intent and not the actual severity of the contact.
Last night, On Pit Row had none other than Jim Hunter, NASCAR Vice President for Corporate Communications, on to kick off the show.
In regards to the “discussion” in the Oval Office last Friday night, Jim still towed the “Vegas” line with, “What happens in the trailer, stays in the trailer”, but he did say the following:
“It was a kind of meeting our fans would relate to. Really emotional. Something our fans fell in love with. It was a really emotional, no-holds-barred discussion.” — Jim Hunter
So we somewhat have an admission without having an admission. Whether that means a punch was actually thrown, you be the judge. Any Mary Kay or Avon reps in the area get an interesting ordr last Friday night or Saturday morning?
Moving along, I’m constantly reminded of Brian Frances new, improved, back to the roots, NASCAR. Previously, Brian would have been the Judge, jury and executioner as he ruled his NASCAR Kingdom with an iron fist.
This is what surprised me, honestly. I took the statements from NASCAR on Saturday to mean it was done and over with, and not just between Stewart and Busch. I had it in the back of my mind that if penalties were assessed that they would include a stiff hit to the wallet and a decent portion of the season under the watchful eyes of NASCAR. With the penalties only coming out with a mere 6 weeks of probation and nothing more is what surprised me here.
As I mulled over the penalties yesterday, it was tough to just not throw up a post about it and carry on about my day. I’m glad I took the time to reflect, something which isn’t always afforded to the mainstream media folks who need to get it out the door as soon as possible to get into the mix.
This being the case, in my reflections I keep coming back to something I mentioned on Charlie’s blog.
NASCAR needs to take a lesson from Texas (the state, not the speedway) and get a little more creative with their penalties, just as many Judges not only in Texas but across the Nation have done. Penalties are at NASCAR’s discretion, and therefore they have the leeway to think outside the box.
Before I lose you, here’s where I’m headed with this. Alternative penalties to get the message across, that not only fit the situation but the person or persons involved.
In this case you not only have Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch involved, but because of the torn up sheet metal you also have the unsung hero’s of both teams with an extra load on their schedule to fix it all.
He is my opinion of a more creative penalty that not only would get the message across but maybe, just maybe, make these guys think a little bit.
I would have forced Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart to pick a date within two weeks of the penalty being announced and take their crews to dinner. Not some fast-food type deal, I’m talking something really nice like Ruth’s Chris, where the attire is business casual, and the plate-per-person is at least $50, easily reaching $100 per-person with a few drinks and appetizers. Besides, I love that place.
The deal would be they all go together, no NASCAR chaperon, but it would be confirmed that they not only entered together, but also dined and left together. Kurt would foot the bill for Tony and his crew, and vice-versa.
This is not about money, although something along the lines of $1500 coming out of each pocket wouldn’t be out of the question. We’re talking about everyone involved here that has to fix that car.
What does this do? It forces them together, somewhere they can’t outright brawl, with the intentions of just maybe providing a little bit of comradery and insight into each others worlds. I’m not suggesting everyone would come out the best of friends, however the intention is to get both these drivers to think. Maybe next time they will remember the faces at the table, and who actually has to fix the results of their actions.
On top of this, a little probation (such as served this week) would also be imposed.
Oh, if you screw it up, you’re parked for a race. Not the driver, but the car. So there will be no substitutions. That puts the pressure on them to act accordingly and professional.
If NASCAR is serious about their getting back to their roots, they can’t balk every time someone gets upset. While I don’t feel they did here, they could have easily flirted with it a little bit. They didn’t, so that’s a step in the right direction.
I do not approve of a car being used as a weapon, like Cousin Carl’s little shenanigan, or last summer’s conflict with Stewart and Busch. This wasn’t near the scale of that, in terms of severity, but the intentions were the same and that’s what kicked Busch in the butt. Something obviously kicked Stewart in the butt, although what we don’t exactly know. Had to come from the trailer, as anything on the track which caused the accident wasn’t really justifiable. If the buzz is wrong, and there was no altercation in the hauler, than it may simply be a case to keep both in check at the same time and prevent possible antagonizing of the one under probation.
Who knows for sure, it is what it is. One thing can be sure though. At least thus far, NASCAR seems to be sticking to their call to get back to their roots on these issues, and to let the drivers be themselves.
Filed Under: Daytona, Drivers, Joe Gibbs Racing #20, Kurt Busch, Nascar, Penske Racing #2, Sprint Cup, Teams, Tony Stewart, Tracks
Tagged As: Cousin Carl, Daytona, Fisticuffs, Kurt Busch, Penalties, Tony Stewart
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I thought, as it seems you do too, that Jim Hunter liked what Tony and Kurt did. NASCAR is obligated to penalize them and what they have is a very thin tight rope to walk in these deals. I like your idea of both drivers being required to take their teams out for a group feed too. But I think Jim Hunter might prefer that it be at a Texas Roadhouse with a rampant rumor of a barroom brawl flooding through the net the following day.