who wins at homestead?

[CIRF]

I would agree with your comment....I know why they do it, Mikey Waltrip spilled the beans a couple years ago, but it has nothing to do with who's winning or not winning, it has to do with closing up the field.. I don't like it, but I've seen worse things...

Mud, there was a day when NASCAR extemporaneously would throw a yellow to help out a certain driver/team. I too, don't believe that is the case today. I don't believe NASCAR plays favorites like it once did say, 20-25 years ago. Favoritism was pretty blatant and obvious at that time but the racing media and social media spotlight is too bright and hot these days for that to be going on today. At least in a blatantly overt way.

That said NASCAR will be scrutinized a good long time for what happened at Homestead regarding the "water bottle at the bottom of the track" caution. There were a lot of dirt track fans excited and pulling for Kyle Larson and the dirt track contingent don't forget.

[mudslinger47]

Kyle Larson will get his wins...they hyped the kid to much, way to much pressure....he isn't the first or the last to have a win escape him because of a yellow....

[CIRF]

Kyle Larson will get his wins...they hyped the kid to much, way to much pressure....he isn't the first or the last to have a win escape him because of a yellow....

Agree with everything except that they hyped Larson too much. If you look at his racing resume' of the 3 or 4 years leading up to his getting Montoya's ride he had done some extremely extraordinary things in various types of racecars. During those 3 or 4 years Larson was the real deal and when a driver runs as good as he did expectations naturally going to be very high.

In regards to the yellow flag deal, it's a certainty that yellow flags at the closing stages of a race will preclude an outcome without a yellow in the past, the present and in the future. It's when the yellow is purely bogus that a bit more angst can be felt in losing a race because of it. These races are difficult enough to win without having an opportunity taken away for no apparent reason. A driver gets only so many chances in the course of a career.

[kidrock]

It's to bad Kyle didn't get a chance to compete for the win at the end of the race. There is no doubt about it he was the entertaimnent of the race that day. He drove up against the wall all the way around the track where no one else did. I'm not so sure he could have gotten around Brad but, the unfortunate thing is we will never know. Thanks to NASCAR for throwing the yellow just so they could have some excitement at the end of the race for me that would have been more exciting to see if Kyle could have won the race or not.

[mudslinger47]

Kyle was really good in sprint and sliver crown cars but a huge weight difference... they just needed to climb off for a year and let him get used to the weight...

[A ron]

I think if you put Larson in some decent equipment, he would've already won. I could be wrong but I don't really see Chase Elliott living up to the hype everyone is giving him.

[CIRF]

Kyle was really good in sprint and sliver crown cars but a huge weight difference... they just needed to climb off for a year and let him get used to the weight...

I wouldn't question the theory that Larson could have benefited from another year in Xfinity but he showed all the signs of being ready to go Cup racing. In fact, his rookie year in Cup showed him to be mature beyond his years and experience. He surely didn't forget how to drive but he did have some life changing personal circumstance developments. Don't know if that had any effect on his performance but for sure it does effect the way some drivers go about driving the racecar. It's been said that Jeff Gordon was a bit different driver after he remarried and had children. In Larson's case, who knows.

Just a side note on the Silver Crown/Cup car relationship. Granted a Silver Crown car only weighs around 1650 lbs. but I remember well hearing Jeff Gordon, Kenny Schrader and maybe even Stewart talk about how the Silver Crown cars can, in a lot of ways, be an indicator as to how well and how quickly a driver could adapt to a Cup car. Their reasoning, IIRC, is that the Silver Crown races are relatively long compared to a lot of other dirt car classes and the fuel load hanging off the back of the car makes it a totally different animal at the start of a 100 miler as opposed to the final 20 or 25 miles. The fuel load burning off of a Cup car has a similar effect on handling even though the cars are a universe apart. Also I remember one or more of those guys saying Silver Crown car control is more similar to a heavier fendered car than just about any other type of dirt car, including a dirt late model.

[fastford]

I think if you put Larson in some decent equipment, he would've already won. I could be wrong but I don't really see Chase Elliott living up to the hype everyone is giving him.

I agree with the Elliott stament , just look at dale jr. if it had not been for sr. he wouldn't be no where near where he is at today, just saying...............

[drano]

One of the only off spring racers that could have matched his dads racing accomplishments would have been Davey Allison and part of that in my opinion was how Bobby made him do it made him work for.

[mudslinger47]

I think if you put Larson in some decent equipment, he would've already won. I could be wrong but I don't really see Chase Elliott living up to the hype everyone is giving him.

I disagree with the Equipment statement, I think they have good stuff, but agree about Chase E. but they just need to give him a little time too...

[fastford]

One of the only off spring racers that could have matched his dads racing accomplishments would have been Davey Allison and part of that in my opinion was how Bobby made him do it made him work for.

I was at Davey,s house 2 weeks before he died. saw the helicopter sitting on a peer in front of his office. watched he and red farmer race at Talladega short track when he was 15. he was a great talent, but truth be known, red farmer had more to do with his success than bobby ever did. Bobby wasn't around much when Davey grew up, but red was.....good assessment drano, but I honestly think Davey would have far surpassed his dad, JMO

[CIRF]

I disagree with the Equipment statement, I think they have good stuff, but agree about Chase E. but they just need to give him a little time too...

You may be correct in your assumption that the Ganassi cars are as good as Penske, Gibbs and Hendrick but the results do not bear that out. Sterling Marlin once had what might have been a championship run going in the 40 car but injury took him out of contention and that was as close as any Ganassi team has ever been to a title. Unlike today, there was no special dispensations awarded for injured and bereaved drivers or ol' Sterling might have got a waiver or two and won the Cup title. Stranger things have happened.

None of us have any way of knowing for sure how Ganassi equipment and staff measure up to the other teams that are winning races and championships. If past performance and results are any indication, especially of the 42 car, then I'd say Kyle might be doin' all it's possible to do with the car and crew he has.

[mudslinger47]

Jamie has ran getter this year then prior years and Kyle ran very well last year and pretty OK this year... It seems to me they switched to Hendrick chassis with ERC motors, but I'll have to check on that for sure... Nope, I got that wrong, Hendrick motors but no idea who they get their chassis from or do they do that in-house?

[A ron]

Cirf Sterling was injured during the wrong time of the year for the gimmick lol

[CIRF]

Jamie has ran getter this year then prior years and Kyle ran very well last year and pretty OK this year... It seems to me they switched to Hendrick chassis with ERC motors, but I'll have to check on that for sure... Nope, I got that wrong, Hendrick motors but no idea who they get their chassis from or do they do that in-house?

Thanks for doing the leg work on Ganassi's engine vendor. We know races can be won using Hendrick engines, see TSR.

Ganassi has so many irons in the fire that it's a wonder he's as successful as he is in all of his racing endeavors. It's remarkable. His cars are front runners in Indy Car and the sporty cars and periodically show signs of greatness in NASCAR. I truly believe that if Chip concentrated exclusively on NASCAR Cup racing he'd have a juggernaut of a team.

Cirf Sterling was injured during the wrong time of the year for the gimmick lol

Yep, I reckon you're right again.