SO,.. who'll miss top 10

[Checkeredflag]

I need some Tums after yesterday's diaster. Nothing like coming home, turning on the tv and them showing Tony hitting the wall. Then to make things even worse he starts 40th tonight. I know that Tony can easily come from the back to the front in no time espically at Richmond and he did say his backup car is good in race trim but still. I will def be pacing back and forth all race long tonight.

I'm with you on the Tums, and my driver only has to finish 40th.  Do you think I can hold my breath long enough for 3 drivers to fall out of the race (woohoo - Morgan Shepherd and Chad Blount made the race and should be two of them, but why couldn't Derrke Cope make the race, too?)

This is the first year I had to worry about the Richmond race -this is tough!!!! 

[Tonyfan14]

Well best of luck to everyone's favorite Chase driver in these next 10 races. Looks like Tony was the one who has missed the Chase. Was a VERY and I mean VERY long night. Glad it is over and now that team and all his fans can just sit back and relax and just try to win some races to close out the season. Still your number 1 fan Smoke!!!

[Checkeredflag]

I can honestly tell you this - as a fan, it doesn't matter that Tony missed the Chase.  If you consider that without the Chase he wasn't' going to be anywhere near to winning the championship this season, the only thing you're going to be losing out on is watching the banquet.  Just ignore the pre-race Chase hype (if nothing else, it saves an hour every week).

Tony is still going to be in each of the next 10 races.  He's still going to get tv time when he runs well, and ignored when he doesn't, just like during the first 26 races. 

The only negative to missing the Chase is that he's formally locked out of the Top 10. 

Trust me on this one- after 2 seasons of Harvick missing the Chase, I learned to adjust, and just take the races for what they are - races - not (as NASCAR would like to believe I think) do or die steps to a championship.  It's actually more enjoyable, because you don't get all nervous about the outcome.

[Chris]

Yep...
Your right CF...
When the truth is told ....
when it's all said and done,... the only two driver that REALLY have a claim to the title is Kenseth and Johnson.  They been head and shoulders above the rest of the field this season.

ANYONE that gets a shot now is some folks JUST to make it more interesting.
Be a shame if anyone besides those two guys won the championship.  They are the only two who TRUELY deserve it.

[smyler]

Wow!  That race went nothing like I thought it would be.  I did think there would be brake problems, but not for front runners 24 and 8.  11 is newer so I wasn't really sure how he'd treat his equipment.  I also never really considered that 20 would be out of the game.  He is always able to right his day, unless he has major issues, like hitting a wall.  It just goes to show that sometimes it is more the equipment than it is the driver.

On a side note, wasn't it great to hear BP?  His voice was fine and he was in good spirits.  TNT actually did pretty well at coming back on time, until that last restart, too.  They missed an entire lap, but watching it on Trackpass, I saw we didn't really miss anything.

I sat in my chair after the race and kept saying, "I can't believe it".  This is one race for the chase that I will definitely remember.

Oh, by the way, did you notice that Harvick won and that Kyle B basically dominated until the end?  Funny, but the guys on tv talked so much about the race for the chase that I almost forgot there was a race for the Chevy Rock and Roll trophy.  KK making it wasn't much of a surprise and I think he'll actually do something with his chance that Jeremy never did, too.

[Chris]

I agree with you Smyler for the most part...
And I don't want you to take this personal,.. I just want to point this out,.. and it's differing points of view.
You stated this...

TNT actually did pretty well at coming back on time, until that last restart, too.  They missed an entire lap, but watching it on Trackpass, I saw we didn't really miss anything.

Now I know that missing one lap out of a 400 lap race could be looked at the way you see it...
On the other hand,.. the restarts are some of the most exciting parts of the race... will there be a crash, etc. To miss it cheats the fan.  Also they are SUPPOSED to show the race and schedule to be back in time for the starts.... so in my book that is a failure on TNT's part.
And it happened several times through out the night.  Miss a lap,.. 1/2 a lap, etc... looked like it happened time and again.
And in the past it is routine.
SO to say we "didn't miss anything"... I kinda equate to going to a football game and getting there at half time; seeing the score is 0-0 and saying "we didn't miss anything"

like I said... no offense,.. but it just grips my ass when the TV folks put more emphasis on showing their COMMERCIALS then they do on showing the race.  They just don't realize if the wasn't a RACE to START with,.. they wouldn't have a market for their commercials.

[AfterShock]

If a driver not in the chase for the tail wins the next 10 races in a row, who deserves to be champion?
Hmmmmmmmmmm?

IMO, for all intent and purpose, the season is now over. What's left? Additional time to advertise.
What a farce!

Now there are 10 who have an opportunity to be champion. Much better than 15 or 20, right?

Can someone tell me how that's more exciting?
What am I missing here?

[smyler]

My comments on the coverage were based on comparison to recent coverage.  Let me make it clear... TV should NEVER miss a restart or the pit stops.  They'll never do it the way we want though, so rather than getting all excited about how awful it is, I rate this one as better than how it has been and leave it at that.

As for AfterShock's comments, how can you disagree?  I understand why they made the changes, but I'll never be a fan of the chase.  The champion should be the best guy over the course of a season, not ten races.  But hey, what do we know?  We are only fans.

[AfterShock]

[quote author=smyler link=topic=378.msg5137#msg5137 date=1157903798

As for AfterShock's comments, how can you disagree?  I understand why they made the changes, but I'll never be a fan of the chase.  The champion should be the best guy over the course of a season, not ten races. But hey, what do we know?  We are only fans.
[/quote]
...

And former fans.

Instead of tweaking the rules and format, someone oughta tweak Brian.
I'd be a "fan" of that!!

[Chris]

My comments on the coverage were based on comparison to recent coverage.  Let me make it clear... TV should NEVER miss a restart or the pit stops.  They'll never do it the way we want though, so rather than getting all excited about how awful it is, I rate this one as better than how it has been and leave it at that.

yeah... THAT I'll go along with.
It was better than usual... hard to get worse than "it sucks"... ROFLOL   

[Tyyrus]

Nascar Babe , Marky probably has stocked up on xtra seat cushions for the Chase..Eh!  P.S. Hated to see Smoke miss the cut TonyFan . If Mark finally does exit Cup (someday) Tony,s earned my respect this yr. He
has been through a lot over the last few yrs. and has turned the corner ! The chase won't be the same without the colourful Mr. Stewart...but I bet he will win a race during it. I could probably root for a Chev. Driver (someday).....Not !  Gibb's will have to switch to Ford's...Eh!

[Dustcloud]

I think maybe it's a good thing Stewart didn't make the chase in a sense... maybe he can make it more exciting from the outside.

Past few years, there weren't any real spoilers. When Gordon and Earnhardt missed the cut, they already weren't all that electric. they ran well enough, but not exciting.

This year, you've got a bevy of guys outside that top-10 with the potential to liven up any race, including Stewart, Busch and Edwards when he has a strong day.  I think there might very well be more races won by non-chasers in the last 10  this year than last.

[Tonyfan14]

I think maybe it's a good thing Stewart didn't make the chase in a sense... maybe he can make it more exciting from the outside.

Past few years, there weren't any real spoilers. When Gordon and Earnhardt missed the cut, they already weren't all that electric. they ran well enough, but not exciting.

This year, you've got a bevy of guys outside that top-10 with the potential to liven up any race, including Stewart, Busch and Edwards when he has a strong day.  I think there might very well be more races won by non-chasers in the last 10  this year than last.

Not only that but Tony and the team can finally just relax. Been a really stressful year for them so this little break of not worrying about points should do them alot of good.

[Tyyrus]

I THINK YOU GOT A POINT AS FAR AS THE QUALITY OF THE NON-CHASE GANG... DUSTCLOUD . THEIR
LOOSE AS A GOOSE IN A NO PRESSURE SITUATION...CAN'T WAIT TILL SUNDAY..CHOW BABY !!!