It’s a special Monday/Tuesday edition of Speed Addicts here at the Pulse! This was hardly by design, of course, but life intervened and I ended up taking a whirlwind tour of the pretentious little port known as Charleston, South Carolina over the weekend (and missed most of the Budweiser Shootout and ALL of qualifying on Sunday as a result, which must be making Slayer wonder what he invited me here for in the first place). Nevertheless, your favorite redneck is here to makeup for his absence with a dandy little column, one that will satiate your hunger for more NASCAR action! On tap for today: we’re gonna tackle all the Qualifying notes from Daytona International, as well as a recap of the Budweiser Shootout under the lights. We’ll also do a little bit on the Rolex 24 which was held on February 5th of two weeks ago at the track, so you better get comfortable.
The Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona
Hey, what do you know? It’s that little bit about the Rolex 24 that I promised you to cover five seconds ago! The Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona (02/05/05) went off without hitch on Saturday, and featured the #10 DP Class SunTrust Racing/Pontiac Riley crew of Wayne Taylor, Altamonte Springs, FL; Max Angelelli of Monaco and Emmanuel Collard of France taking the victory. For those of you who are a bit confused, the Rolex 24 is as close to a “team” race as you can get in racing. More than 1 driver is on a given team, while some crews have up to four drivers. A NASCAR contingent featuring Kurt Busch and Matt Kenseth had four drivers, for instance, while some of the GT-class entries only had two drivers involved. The SunTrust #10 had quite an impressive finishing line, for those that are into this sort of thing:
Circuits Completed:
710 Laps (The Daytona 500 has 200 Laps by Comparison)
Mileage (Based on 3.56 Racing Circuit):
2,527.6 Miles Completed
Best Lap Time:
1:47.3
In Lap/Average Speed:
368 / 105 MPH
Let’s break these figures down, shall we? They ran 2,527.6 miles in twenty four hours. By comparison, NASCAR drivers take about four hours to run 500 miles, which means that over the course of 24 hours, it could be possible for them to complete 3,000 miles in theory. But NASCAR drivers stick to the 2.5 mile Tri-Oval, whereas the Rolex 24 racers take to the oft touted Daytona Infield Circuit, which is a road course that extends the overall length of the track to over 3.5 miles! This also decreases your average speed, because drivers (GASP!) actually have to use the brakes in the road course portions. This means that winning the Rolex 24 is quite an accomplishment, and despite the logistical problems of airing it live (hence the name, “Rolex 24 Hours”), the race is quite an interesting little look into the world of… well, everyone else affiliated with racing outside of the United States.
The Budweiser Shootout and Qualifying Redux
In a surprising twist, it seems as though Dale Earnhardt Inc. has lost a bit of its edge at the Restrictor Plate tracks, no? Okay, it was only a matter of time before the rest of the field caught up, but I’m pressed for some material here, so suck off. We rednecks need some patience too, don’t you know. Jimmie Johnson won on Saturday night, closing off a fairly uneventful night of racing, though what I saw wasn’t too bad. Is it just me, or is Daytona just not a great place to run night races at? Maybe I’m reverting back to the way I used to feel when I actually had a life and couldn’t watch races on Saturday night, who knows. Anyways, back to the main point: Johnson held off a couple of late charges from Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle, and his teammate Jeff Gordon. Dale Earnhardt Jr. didn’t figure into the finish… and his qualifying run was shit-ass pathetic, quite honestly. Dale Jarrett of all people took the pole for Sunday’s race, who will be flanked by Jeff Gordon in the first of the Gatorade Duels on Thursday. For a look at how the Gatorade Duels work, you can check out NASCAR.com… or better yet, why don’t you just read what I had wrote several weeks ago here:
Daytona Qualifying Altered
I wont harp on this too much (since its covered later on in the column), but it bares mentioning that NASCAR and Daytona International Speedway officials have once again tinkered with the qualifying format for the Daytona 500. Essentially, the Top 35 finishers in points from the previous Nextel Cup season are guaranteed entry into the Daytona 500, circa the setup for the Gatorade Duel/Twins. Depending on whether or not a driver finished in an odd-numbered place in the points (1st, 3rd, 5th, etc.) or an even-numbered place (2nd, 4th, 6th, etc.) will determine which of the two qualifying races that the driver will be entered into. This basically means that the Duels are simply there to determine where a majority of the drivers will be starting, as opposed to knocking most of them out.
The notable exception is for the drivers that were not among the Top 35 in points from the previous season. For them, they would have to finish 1st or 2nd among the other drivers who failed to make the Top 35 in points in order to enter the Daytona 500. The pole position and the 2nd place will still be based on the qualifying times that take place prior to the running of the Gatorade Duels. [Credit: NASCAR.com]
Get all that? Who the Hell knows why Daytona has to be different, aside from being two-bit twits that love to make my job complicated as all get out. I’ve got shit to do as well, so if you didn’t get it, go look at the fancy print at NASCAR.com and see for yourself, damnit.
KNOW YOUR NASCAR (Beeyatch)
This section is geared more towards international readers as opposed to American readers, who probably know a bit more about NASCAR racing by sheer osmosis. Each week, we’ll drive headlong into a facet of Stock Car Racing here in the United States, whether it be a bit about the sport itself, its personalities, or its history. This week, as promised, we take a look at two of the most controversial (and greatest) NASCAR drivers to ever burn rubber. The man so eloquently nicknamed “the Intimidator” Dale Earnhardt and the only guy brave enough to argue with Richard Kiel of The Spy Who Loved Me / Moonraker fame: Darrell Waltrip. Yes, Virginia, you can get excited. Hell, Nguyen gave it his personal approval, so it must be good, right? Right… and, as a note before you start, I make reference to the “modern era” several times from here on. The Modern Era of NASCAR includes everything from 1972 to the present, just for reference.
Dale Earnhardt was born in a small mill town up I-85 from Charlotte, North Carolina called Kannapolis (whoo, Piedmont NC representing) on April 29th, 1951. His father, Ralph Earnhardt was something of a local dirt track kingpin in the Southern North Carolina piedmont, and his racing prowess rubbed off on Earnhardt, who found himself in and out of relationship/school/monetary troubles throughout his early manhood. “The Man in Black” made his NASCAR debut in 1975, where he made an appearance in the Coca Cola 600 (then called the World 600) as a favor to Charlotte Motor Speedway president Richard Howard. In 1979, Dale Earnhardt made his debut in what would be his first full-time season on the NASCAR Winston Cup scene. It took him just 16 starts into his career before he notched his first win at Bristol, and another eight races before winning his first pole at the now defunct Riverside road course. He won the 1979 Rookie of the Year award, edging out Terry Labonte and Harry Gant in a close race.
One year later, Earnhardt made history by winning the NASCAR Winston Cup Championship in his sophomore year, becoming the first man to win the Rookie of the Year award and Winston Cup Championship in succession. Without getting into too much detail, Earnhardt would eventually find his way to Richard Childress Racing, where the two would become the paramount racing duo in NASCAR for the better part of two decades. The duo won their first Winston Cup championship in 1986, and never looked back. Over his career, Earnhardt became synonymous with racing, and very much embodied the sport that he loved so much. And so it came to pass that in February of 1998, the country watched as the veteran Earnhardt, who after 20 attempts to win the Great American Race finally took home the checkered flag at the Daytona 500. It was arguably Earnhardt’s defining moment, and really propelled the sport into the national limelight. Sadly enough, Earnhardt would not live long enough to see the popularity boom that he helped create. Earnhardt died on February 18th, 2001 at the now infamous 2001 Daytona 500, where he crashed in Turn 4 on the final lap of the event. When everything fell silent on Daytona after his death, Dale Earnhardt’s career could be put into perspective. Earnhardt had 76 career wins (2nd in the Modern Era, 6th All Time), seven NASCAR Winston Cup Championships, four International Race of Champions (IROC) Titles, 23 Pole Awards, and over $40 Million in earnings. Earnhardt won the Busch Clash (now the Budweiser Shootout) a record six times, and he remains the only man in history to win the Winston (now the NEXTEL All Star Challenge) three times. He was also named the NMPA Driver of the Year six times. Earnhardt has a strong case for being the second greatest driver in NASCAR history, next to Richard Petty.
Looking across from Dale Earnhardt in this head-to-head match up is Darrell Waltrip. Waltrip was born in Owensboro, Kentucky on February 5th, 1947. The man known as “DW” was often running from authority (which includes the Law, obviously) from an early age, as his aggressive nature would set the stage for the early years of his career. Darrell got his start with Go-Karts in his early teens, and eventually graduated to the stock car level when he was only 16 years old! Of course, Waltrip had little success at first, but after making the transition from dirt to pavement, Darrell found his niche, and eventually made his debut in NASCAR at Talladega, Alabama in 1972. Over the next three years, Waltrip would run the Winston Cup sporadically until 1975, where he became a permanent fixture in the series. Within a few years, Waltrip would find his way under the wing of Junior Johnson, and history was written from there.
Throughout his first years on the circuit, Darrell would often find himself under public scrutiny for his outlandish behavior, both on and off the track. Truth be told, Darrell Waltrip was probably the least popular driver for much of his early career. His aggressive style of racing (and his hyperactive mouth) earned him the nickname “Jaws”. It was following this coining that Waltrip began a heated and downright spiteful rivalry with another prodigy at the time, Dale Earnhardt. The two would swap paint (and words) at every possible opportunity, including a famous incident in Richmond once where the two literally tore each other’s cars apart in a spectacular wreck. However, time and age mellowed Waltrip a bit, and he would actually become the most popular driver in NASCAR in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was in 1989, though, that Waltrip would have one of his final claims to fame. After 17 tries, Waltrip finally won his first and only Daytona 500 win. His legendary helmet spike and dance in victory lane, along with his quipped line afterwards remain a trademark in the allure of Daytona, along with Petty and Earnhardt. Speaking of Earnhardt, while the rivalry between the two remained fierce on the track, Waltrip and Earnhardt developed a close friendship off it in the years following, and would wind up working together towards the end of their careers. Waltrip would go on to win his final race in 1992, and ended up finishing his career in 2000 at Homestead. The last race of the 2000 season saw the end of Waltrip’s career. The first race of the 2001 season saw the end of Earnhardt’s life.
Darrell Waltrip amassed impressive totals over his career, and they include the following: 84 Career Wins (3rd All Time, tied with Bobby Allison), 59 Pole Awards (1st Modern Era, 4th All Time), 3 NASCAR Winston Cup Championships, 809 starts (3rd All Time), and the inaugural Winston victory in 1985. Waltrip has several key milestones, including being the only five time winner of NASCAR’s longest race, the Coca-Cola 600, and has the most victories after starting from the pole position in history (8 wins). He was voted the NMPA Driver of the Year three times and NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver twice in 1989 and 1990. Waltrip was the first driver in NASCAR history to surpass the $6 Million, $7 Million, $8 Million, $9 and $10 Million plateau in earnings for a season, and the 3rd man in history to pass the $15 Million mark in a single season. Darrell Waltrip has a strong case for being the second greatest driver in NASCAR history, behind Richard Petty.
So, it comes down to this: one time for all time, no gimmicks, no frills. A straight up decision on who is, in fact, the better driver. North Carolinians would say Earnhardt, Kentuckians and Tennesseans would favor Waltrip. Both Earnhardt and Waltrip were among the most hated, then most popular drivers to ever race in the sport. Earnhardt has more Winston Cup Championships, Waltrip has more career wins and poles. Earnhardt is the master of Daytona, and Waltrip rules Bristol. Both the #3 and the #17 are synonymous with Earnhardt and Waltrip, and both won the “measuring stick” in this sport exactly once, the Daytona 500. Now, the gloves come off. It is time to make the decision… the greatest driver not named Richard Petty in the history of NASCAR… forever and ever, eternity and beyond IS…..
Find out next week, as I reveal who the greatest driver really is!
And you thought I’d actually pick between the two? Har har, the joke is on you guys…
Victory Lap for the Pimps
Here’s the obligatory Eric Szulczewski pimp right Here.
And the obligatory Patrick Nguyen pimp right Here.
Victory Lane
This criminally short column is short for a reason, as we kick off Countdown week here at the Pulse. I’ll be updating my Blog every day this week, to keep you up to date with the happenings in Daytona. Look for a new column on Thursday and Friday this week as we get closer to the 500. Starting on Thursday, also be on the lookout for the newest racing feature here at the pulse, as full reports on the twin Gatorade Duels will be up. If time permits, I’ll also have a full recap of the Busch race from Daytona on Saturday as well. Look for the final Pre-500 column from me on Saturday evening, and I’ll meet you back here on Sunday night with a full rundown on the 2005 Daytona 500. Until then, stuff yourself full of Doritos, you damn dirty apes. Catch ya later…
