March 20, 2010
By Brenda Benedict
This Sunday we will all be watching to see if the 'spat' between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski continues.
After Edwards caused Keselowski to wreck at Atlanta, many people are expecting things to be exciting in the upcoming race at Bristol -- where the short track and low speeds make 'trading paint' less dangerous than Atlanta where speeds were nearing 200 mph.
There are various opinions about when the bad feelings began between the two of them but I'm confident it didn't begin at Atlanta. I am equally as sure that it didn't end at Atlanta and we will be seeing more sparks fly between the two of them. I am more confident of this than I am of my picks in the NCAA basketball tournament.
Many readers agreed with me that NASCAR's three race probation for Edwards was little more than a slap on the wrist. However, Edwards' sponsors may be what brings an end to the situation between him and Keselowski.
Scotts, Edward's primary sponsor for the Atlanta race, made it clear that they were not pleased with what happened between Edwards and Keselowski. They posted the following message on their web site.
“Scotts appreciates the support of NASCAR fans everywhere, and we have an excellent relationship with Carl Edwards, Jack Roush and the No. 99 Roush Fenway Racing team. However, like many fans, we were very concerned about the on-track incident that occurred in Atlanta this past weekend. As a result, we have strongly expressed these concerns to both Carl and [team owner] Jack [Roush], and we are confident that they have a clear understanding of the trust we have placed in them as ambassadors of our company, our associates and our brands. In addition, as a sponsor, we want to make sure that drivers, race teams and NASCAR focus on keeping these types of incidents and misjudgments from happening.”
My question is, "Does Scotts have more power in correcting the Edwards-Keselowski situation than NASCAR does?
It seems that way.
NASCAR has said that they want to return to the racing of the past and tells the drivers to "have at it boys".
But Scotts recognizes the fact that there is no returning to the past. NASCAR has changed a great deal from the days of the past when drivers policed each other and kept aggressive drivers in check. I believe drivers of the past were able to do that because their love of racing was a motivating factor. Today's drivers do not have that privilege.
Scotts can control Carl Edwards. This is because money controls NASCAR in a way that it has not in the past.
Carl Edwards admitted to his Facebook friends that he chose to wreck Keselowski because of his outlook on racing. He posted, "Every person has to decide what code they want to live by, and hopefully this explains mine."
But Scotts has now shown that there is a higher code by which the drivers must live by -- the code of the sponsors. I think we will see a side of Carl Edwards at Bristol that wasn't at Atlanta. A Carl Edwards who has to listen to the 'suggestion' of his sponsor.
NASCAR announced Wednesday that they are meeting with Edwards and Keselowski and their owners sometime this weekend. Although they have not discussed what will transpire in the meeting, it is quite certain they will be warning each driver to maintain their composure without retribution to each other.
But don't worry NASCAR. Scotts has already taken care of that for you.
You can follow me at Twitter @nascarfaithful
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
