The 2022 running NASCAR, IMSA & other racing things thread

[Neutral Corner]

 

[playthrough]

"Enjoy every sandwich." ~ Warren Zevon

The 20th anniversary of Zevon on Letterman (and that quote) was recently, The Ringer (I think it was them) talked to Letterman for a fantastic look back.

 

[murphyc]

Damn. Just woke up from a nap to hear this. I had totally forgotten Kevin Harvick got tossed in the NASCAR penalty box for stuffing Coy in a truck race at Martinsville because Harvick felt Gibbs wrecked him on purpose. Yeah, Kevin was/is a hothead who found himself with more car than brains at the beginning, sort of like Ty, to be honest.

At 20, Ty's going to have to find maturity that he doesn't currently have. I hope there's a father figure -- Dave Alpern? -- who can give him the "come to Jesus" talk that I assumed would be coming from Coy this off-season. The folks in the garage area will feel for what he's going through but once the flag drops, he's Douchebag No. 1 until he changes peoples' minds by driving with talent instead of his bumper.

I saw a really good clip by Dale Jr. talking about how he'll give Ty grace next season, because he was given that grace when his dad died. At one point, Jr. referenced Ty's dad being only 49. What he didn't say: Dale Earnhardt was also only 49 when he died.

 

[Neutral Corner]

The 20th anniversary of Zevon on Letterman (and that quote) was recently, The Ringer (I think it was them) talked to Letterman for a fantastic look back.

I watched it that night. Tore my guts out.

 

[Driftwood]

Give him grace right now, but it's a long time until February.
His dad dying doesn't give him a blank check to be a douche on the track.

 

[maumann]

Ralph died at 45. Ironhead at 49. Junior is now 48. Time flies quickly.

 

[wicked]

Give him grace right now, but it's a long time until February.
His dad dying doesn't give him a blank check to be a douche on the track.

This is what I'm worried about. Junior rarely if ever made blatantly dickish moves to wreck another driver before his dad's death, and he certainly didn't do it after. He even told everyone to lay off Sterling Marlin when the fans wanted to burn him at the stakes for "causing" Ironhead's death. Ty Gibbs would never be that forgiving and he's not changing his driving style because his dad died.

 

[murphyc]

Ralph died at 45. Ironhead at 49. Junior is now 48. Time flies quickly.

Part of me wonders if Junior was always petrified about being in his late 40s given the family history, and how relieved he will be if indeed he hits 50.

 

[Driftwood]

Especially seeing as how he was involved in a plane crash.

 

[maumann]

So if NASCAR is going to let Hendrick build a car that's way better than the sh*t sandwich they foist on their paying customers, why not actually, you know, race this instead?

The Le Mans NASCAR Chevy Camaro Already Laps Way Quicker Than a Cup Car

"We have less weight, we have a bit more downforce," said test driver Mike Rockenfeller, who won Le Mans overall in 2010. "Power is a bit different, so we increased a little bit there as well in that area. Now we have paddle-shift, we have traction control in, we have a new dash. I mean, everything is different, basically. So we are pretty close to what we think will be the race car in Le Mans."

"Between the current Cup car, and this test car, again, it's pretty similar, I would say, its weight, its power, its tire grip—it's just a lot faster. I mean, to give you a figure, around here, I think we are around 10 seconds faster than what I did in a Cup car, so it's quite a lot faster."

 

[wicked]

Wonder what they're running hp-wise.

 

[Twirling Time]

Paddle shift is the bomb.