NASCAR TV Ratings Declining

[blykins]

I think there's a huge bias towards the bowtie guys as well....it seems in times past that they get a lot of nods while the Dodge/Ford boys lag behind.

I've heard stories of Ford engine builders being extremely upset because the restrictor plates were more restricting to Ford head designs than Chevrolet heads. This of course made the Ford guys have to work a lot harder to keep up.....no one else seemed to mind though.

I'm with the rest of you guys....I don't even watch anymore. It's pitiful, boring, and money/ratings is making most of the decisions now.

[Don]

Wonder what the true story is on why Gibbs switched to Toyoto ? One comment made he was not the #1 Chevrolet team when compared to RCR, DEI, Hendrick and/or others, even after winning 2 Championships.

Another reason may be the additional direct factory support and funding as Toyoto did not have a strong team in the Cup series

A few seasons ago, DEI was dominant in the restrictor plate races, even when compared to other Chevy teams

[Ron61]

Don,

Remember that Gibbs started with Pontiacs and then they all vanished. Now that none of the cars are even close to any name brand, I don't think they should be called Chevy, Ford, & etc. Just call them the NASCAR Car and forget it. More sponsors are leaving all the time. Bush has sponsored that series since it begin and he is pulling out. Next year Nationwide Insurance will sponsor the Bush series and they will most likely drop it in a year or so. The Nextel Cup will be the Sprint Cup. Although I have always liked road racing better, I have been a big NASCAR fan until about 5 years ago and now I just don't care who wins in their phony set up. When they raced real cars that they had modified for racing it was a lot better racing.

Ron

[Wayne Maybury]

Another thought about the lucky dog rule. Lets face it, they can talk about racing back to the start finish line but that is BS. Everything is now timed electronically so they can freeze the field at the push of a button no matter where the cars are on the track. The only reason they have this rule is to get cars back on the lead lap because NASCAR wants the finish to be as close as possible. They have 10 to 15 cautions per race so it is possible to have as many as 10 to 15 cars getting back on the lead lap in one single race. It is rediculous. Of course they could also have a phantom yellow if one of the "star" drivers is in a position to be the lucky dog, thereby getting him back on the lead lap.

Can someone please explain why a caution for a small piece of debris on the track has to last 5 laps? If there is a piece of crap on the track, bring out the yellow for one lap, pick up the stuff, and immediately go back to green. Instead they go round and round behind the pace car giving everyone a chance to pit under the yellow. They should force the teams to pit under green as much as possible by significantly reducing the number of laps run under caution. Wouldn't it be great fun to have 25 or 30 cars heading into the pits and they immediately go back to green?

Wayne

[Ron61]

Wayne,

What about the so called debris cautions and they never send a person out on the track. Just another way to get in a TV time out like in basketball and football. If a coach doesn't call a time out, then they will for TV. If you notice and green flag run that gets close to a pit stop window will suddenly have a caution so their stars can catch up and also the TV can get in their 15 minutes of crap. I hardly ever watch a complete race anymore and I used to really look forward to them. Of course in a race now that takes 5 hours to finish, you only seem maybe 40 minutes of actual racing. The talking heads in the booth don't even notice when the lead changes half the time. I really feel that NASCAR is losing more fans with that type stuff than most anything else. I don't care to see 4 1/2 hours of commercials, Larry McRenolds telling how great he was as a crew chief and that idiot with the cut away car.

And this is just my non important opinion, but I wish they would do away with the so called Lucky Dog and also the top 35 in points and whoever qualifies fastest races.

Ron

[stengun]

Howdy,

I'm a Huge Nascar fan!

But this year, it has been like, it's no big deal. Why bother to watch when you already know who's going to win. It's either Jeff Gordon, or Jeff Gordon Jr. Between the two of them, they won 16 of the 36 races, came in 1st and 2nd in the points championship and Mikey Waltripfinished 44th in points, ran in only 14 races and is still more popular than Jeff or Jeff Jr.

Why Nascar wants to force them down everybodies throat is beyound me.

I guess that's why Texas Motor Speedway had 50,000 empty seats for the fall race which was in the "heat of the battle" during the chase.

I guess Nascar needs to decide if they want to be know as the greatest race on 4 wheels, or the WWE of auto racing.

Paul

[Wayne Maybury]

Originally Posted by stengun

I guess Nascar needs to decide if they want to be know as the greatest race on 4 wheels, or the WWE of auto racing.

Paul

Paul, all NASCAR is now missing is a bunch of scantily clad females with silicone boobies running around and they would definitely be the automotive equivalent to the WWE.

Wayne

[Mumblerone]

Too much advertising...