NASCAR running thread

It's possible she might still be at the front when they complete lap one, but by the time they come around again up to speed she won't be in the lead.

 

I agree with this. Being the pole winner is nice but that doesn't mean she contends.

 

Winning a pole at Daytona means squat. You run four laps wide open, without traffic. If/when she wins a pole at Darlington, get back to me.

Ward Burton was far from a fluke 500 winner. Circumstances fell into place for him, but that team was pretty decent for a number of years. If nothing else, Cope had put himself in a position after 499 miles where he was able to take advantage of Earnhardt's tire blowout.

 

You are correct. It's one thing to drive on a huge track like that wide open. It's quite another with three dozen cars once the start-and-parks are gone.

 

+1 on this. It's a step in the right direction for her, but qualifying well and contending for a win on the same track are two different things.

 

Based on the small sample of Saturday night, avoiding wrecks is going to be the key to winning in the new cars, and this has not been one of Patrick's strengths.

 

DING DING FREAKING GODDAMN DING.

She's not going to be in the front of the field all day. No one ever is. And when she shuffles back, she's shown an extreme lack of patience as well as terrible reactions to things happening around her.

 

Anyone have any fantasy NASCAR thoughts to share?

I'm thinking Kevin Harvick will have a big year.

 

Winning the pole at Daytona (or even qualifying on the front row) shows you have a fast car, at least by itself. That's not a jab at Danica, that's just the way it is. Same thing when Loy Allen Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough and every other Daytona 500 pole winner did so.
What a lot of people forget about Ward Burton is how strong he was in the 2001 Daytona 500. He was top three material, quite possibly had the fastest car in the field, until he got taken out to trigger that massive wreck. His car wasn't as strong in 2002, but that year he didn't get swept into the big one and took advantage of Marlin's brain fade under the red flag.
As for Cope, what really put him in position was Geoff Bodine spinning with less than 10 laps to go. Earnhardt was 40 seconds ahead at the time and cruising to the win. But, like Burton's 2001 run, a lot of people probably forget how stout Cope was in the 1998 race. He was able to run right with Earnhardt before his pit road crash.

 

By and large, Danica stunk on the road courses in IndyCar, especially in her last couple of years. Not Milka Dunno bad of course, but still. Though AP always mentioned where she finished, no matter the position. Danica appeared much more comfortable on the ovals, especially Indy.

 

This is classic America, the minute someone achieves something significant, people cannot wait to tear them down and point out their deficiencies.

 

The amusing thing to me is both the anti-Danica and pro-Danica crowd probably figures they gained ammunition. The pro-Danica crowd sees it as proof positive Danica is as good as anyone, and those making mean comments just can't stand a woman doing well. The anti-Danica crowd sees it as proof Danica has a fast car (pointing to teammates Newman and Smoke also being in the top five) and smugly waits to see how Danica does in traffic on Thursday.