Feud: Junior's issue with COT, Martin's fuel gamble, more Kyle whining
CBSSports.com's Brian De Los Santos and Pete Pistone provide analysis on three weekly racing topics.
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| Pete Pistone | Brian De Los Santos |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. was recently critical of NASCAR and the new Cup car. Do you agree with his comments or is he complaining because he's having a bad season? | |
 If you listen to what Junior said closely when he addressed the media last week in Michigan he does touch on some very good points. Overall it seems like he was responding to a question of how the sport could get better and the need to put on a better show. Those are issues that everyone takes seriously and NASCAR is very sensitive to, as was the case when the double file restart rule was added to increase excitement. But the cries about the new Cup cars struck me as coming from frustration and a performance level that before Sunday's third place finish was poor. Junior opened himself up to the criticism he took over the comments when it seemed he was pointing his finger at the car and away from the person behind the wheel to explain why the 88 team has struggled so much this year. |  I don’t doubt Earnhardt’s disappointing season played some part in his comments, but it’s not as if this is the first time a driver has voiced displeasure about the new car. Enough drivers have complained that I don’t think Earnhardt is simply speaking out of frustration. Kyle Busch won eight races a year ago and often criticized the car afterward (of course that may just be a character flaw). But what the drivers say may be true, I don’t think it’s going to improve the racing all that much. It might make life behind the wheel a little bit easier, but will it really lead to more side-by-side racing? It seems to me, people have a distorted memory of the past. I think the racing is the same as it ever was. Drivers have always complained about something or another. |
 COMMUNITY GUEST 'HardToBeat20': Maybe allowing for a little more adjustability with the new car will produce some better racing on the track, which would be a good thing, so from this aspect I agree with his comments. I don't think Dale Jr. has the talent to drive the new car within the limitations of the current rules. Great drivers have the ability to adjust their driving style based on the type of vehicle they are driving. This is the advantage that other drivers with experience running in other forms of racing have over guys like Jr., whose experience if focused around stock cars. I think if NASCAR allowed some further adjustability to the new car, then Jr. would benefit greatly, because he just doesn't seem to be able to get the car set up in a fashion that allows him to run how and where he likes to run. Fortunately, his name is 'Dale Earnhardt Jr.', otherwise, unless NASCAR grants the teams the ability to adjust more on the car, then he might not find himself in a top notch ride in another year or two. So should NASCAR make a change just because 'Dale Jr.' is the only one that can't adjust? -- "NO" | |
| After gambling -- and losing -- on fuel mileage at Michigan, Mark Martin is back on the cusp of falling out of the top 12 despite a series-leading four wins. Did you agree with the team's fuel strategy? Do you think he'll make the Chase? | |
 It's interesting that Martin and crew chief Alan Gustafson looked like geniuses back in June at Michigan when their fuel mileage strategy gamble paid off and the 5 car inherited the win when Jimmie Johnson and Greg Biffle ran out on the last lap. But this time around they came up way short and I think it was a mistake to gamble the way they did because of the Chase implications. Rolling the dice back in June didn't mean nearly as much as it did with only three races now left to make the Chase. I still think Martin will make it -- barely -- but he could have been breathing a lot easier with a different tactic last Sunday. | Hindsight is 20/20, it’s too easy to play the result. I think without question, the smart thing would have been to pit during the caution with 42 to go. But that goes for Martin, who ran out of gas, and Brian Vickers, who went on to snag the win. But who’s to say that if Martin pitted he doesn’t get in a wreck back in the middle of the pack. Then his team gets ripped for playing it too safe and trying to points race. Or what if a mistake is made during his pit stop (speeding, loose lug nut, etc.). There’s all sorts of scenarios where pitting could have backfired as well. Nobody makes the correct call 100 percent of the time (though I’m close at 99 percent). You win some, you lose some. It’s life. It’s sport. I’d say based on his overall performance compared to the others he’s battling for a spot in the top 12, Martin should make the Chase. But with visits to a pair of short tracks within the next three races, luck might play a large part in deciding who makes the Chase and Martin hasn’t exactly been the “luckiest” driver out there over the course of his career. |
| COMMUNITY GUEST 'HardToBeat20': "No" I do not agree with the team's fuel strategy. That was a very, very foolish gamble for Mark's team to make, especially with the team being on the cusp of making the Chase. I think at worst he would have had a top 10 finish if he came to pit road for some fuel and at best he may have still been able to win the race. If he came to pit road, then maybe even a few more of the guys behind him would have also pitted, so he may not have even lost many spots by pitting. I'm sure with as good of a car that he had, he would have been able to get several, if not all, of the spots he lost back. | |
| Kyle Busch and Brian Vickers were at odds following Saturday's Nationwide race. Was Vickers too concerned with Busch? Did his tactics cost him the win? Does Busch have a legitimate gripe? | |
 The comments Busch made after that race may have been the most ridiculous to come out of a racecar driver's mouth I've ever heard. Busch was upset that Vickers raced him too hard as they went for the win? There was nothing dirty or out of line in what Vickers did at all. It wasn't a cheap shot that moved Busch out of the way or a clear dumping on the last lap. Busch tried to block -- just as he did in a somewhat similar situation at Daytona in July in the Cup race with Tony Stewart -- and it didn't work. He complained about Marcos Ambrose's move at Watkins Glen the week before in the Nationwide Series race, another out of line whine in my mind. Busch has to learn he's not the only one entitled to win a race and if someone beats him fair and square he should accept it and move on. |  I actually do think Busch has a legitimate gripe -- to a point -- but because he complains about most everything, people turn a deaf ear. Fact of the matter is, because Vickers became so enamored trying to beat Busch, he forgot all about Brad Keselowski lurking right behind them in third. I don't think Vickers was necessarily wrong in what he was trying to do in his battle with Busch, but tactically he made his move a little too early, which allowed Keselowski to get by them both with a lap to go. But here's my rub against Busch. You can bet that even had Keselowski not snuck by, Busch would have been moaning and groaning. I have the feeling there might be more fireworks between these two before the end of the season. |
| COMMUNITY GUEST 'HardToBeat20': Yes, I think Vickers' tactics cost him the win. However, I would challenge anyone of us to choose which battle you would fight: would you be more focused on Kyle Busch running second with his nose on your inside or Brad Keselowski running third and on your extreme outside? I wouldn't need a fraction of a second to make the decision to keep my attention focused on Kyle. No, I don't think Busch has a legitimate gripe; the leader was doing everything in his power to keep from getting passed on the inside. If the roles were reversed and Vickers had a fast car and was making a move on the inside, Kyle would have likely done the same thing. | |
| Previous Feud of the Weeks: June 16 | June 23 | June 30 | July 7 | July 21 | July 28 | Aug. 5 | Aug. 12 | |
