Friday, April 1, 2011

Mr. President, What Is Your First Order of Business?

Who doesn't like what NASCAR has become and thinks it can improve quite a bit? This guy.

We all have our own opinions on how we think NASCAR should be run. There will be people who agree and disagree, no matter what. So, here is what I would do if I ran NASCAR.

First, eliminate start and park teams.

This has been an ongoing saga for the past couple of years. I think it is truly disrespectful to enter a race and retire the car after a few laps just to earn a paycheck. There would be zero tolerance for this kind of activity.

Any violators would be fined their winnings and suspended for three races. This includes drivers and owners. I would much rather have less cars in the field and everyone race than five cars retiring early for a paycheck.

Second, fix the qualifying scenario.

The field doesn't need a limit right now, since NASCAR is struggling to fill the limit. I would like the F1 qualifying rule applied to NASCAR. If your qualifying time is not within 107 percent of the pole time, then you don't make the race.

Drivers in danger of missing the race would be given one extra lap to redeem themselves. This, along with no start-and-park teams, will increase the competitiveness that has been missing at the top level of NASCAR.

Third, eliminate the Top 35 Rule.

Everyone must make the field on speed. That's the bottom line.

No one should be given a spot because of points. With the struggle to fill the limit of cars in a race, this rule would become irrelevant.

If qualifying is rained out, practice times will set the field and a limit will be worked out if necessary.

Fourth, establish the lower divisions.

I'm tired of the Sprint Cup regulars running races in the lower series.

Why would Albert Pujols play for Memphis one day and St. Louis the next? He wouldn't.

This is part of the reason for the lack of rising talent.

Owners' points wouldn't matter.

If the driver is above 25th in points, they would not be allowed to race the lower series. Anyone below can go back and forth if they choose.

Incoming rookies would have to declare if they were running full-time or part-time in the Cup Series. Rookies would then be ordered to drive a specific series, depending on their past performance in other series.

If they performed well, then they would only run Cup. If not, they could run both.

Fifth, welcome new drivers.

In order to make NASCAR the most competitive form of motorsports, there would need to be ways to attract new drivers. I enjoy hearing about racers coming from different types of racing making the transition to NASCAR.

Drivers from IndyCar, F1, Le Mans or any other series would be welcome to make the transition. They would bring a fanbase that would be new to NASCAR.

As for foreign manufacturers, I don't have a problem with a new manufacturer coming to NASCAR. If they can be competitive, I don't see a reason why they can't join.

Sixth, change the schedule.

I don't think this schedule is indicative of how talented these drivers are.

There are too many tracks receiving second races that shouldn't be. My schedule would have only seven tracks that hosted two races a year.

Daytona and Talladega are the only superspeedways. Bristol, Richmond, and Martinsville are true short tracks. Darlington has a rich history and it's own unique shape. Charlotte gets two only because it's the home track.

The rest of the 16 tracks will host one race. This leaves six race slots open for new tracks. I would add three more road courses and bring back Rockingham, North Wilkesboro and Milwaukee. The three road courses would be Road America, Circuit Gilles Villenueve, and Mid-Ohio, with possibility of adding another track. Anytime a track was failing to meet standards required to host a race, they would lose one. Also, if a track meets requirements to host a race, they get one. As of now, Iowa Speedway would be the first in line to replace another track.

Seventh, I'd create a new special event.

During the week of The Last Race to Make the Chase, I would try to organize a special event to bring more publicity to what is a crucial weekend for Cup drivers.

It would be a celebrity showdown of 20 drivers on the Thursday night before the race. It would be announced during Daytona Speedweeks, and the first celebrities to sign up would get the spots.

The drivers would be announced during the All-Star Race. They would be randomly matched with a Sprint Cup driver in the top 20 in points. The team would use an older car they don't use anymore with a less powerful, but competitive engine. The crews would be the same, but the drivers would get to be the crew chiefs. Also, other celebrities would get to be commentators and pit reporters for the event. It would just be a fun event on a very important weekend, with most of the money going to charity.

As for the other rules and regulations, I wouldn't change very much. These are just some ideas I had that I think could be interesting. If you have any other ideas, just comment below.

Cindy Taylor Halle Berry Catherine Bell Tessie Santiago Jessica Simpson

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