September 2, 2010
By Doug Demmons
Here’s a conspiracy theory to munch on:
What if NASCAR wasn’t really considering ways to restrict Cup drivers from winning the Nationwide championship?
What if NASCAR wanted to rid the Nationwide Series of small independent teams to clear the way for more Cup guys?
Can you hear the whoosh, whoosh of the rotor blades as the black helicopter lifts off?
Well, don’t get too excited. Nobody’s that diabolically clever.
But sometimes the Law of Unintended Consequences takes over -- sort of like kudzu.
Kudzu was introduced from Japan in 1876 and farmers throughout the South were encouraged to plant it to combat soil erosion and as forage for livestock.
Oops.
That’s what happens when somebody has a brilliant idea but doesn’t think through all the potential ramifications. It’s what happens when the cure turns out to be worse than the disease.
Which brings us back to NASCAR and the Nationwide Series. NASCAR decided that next year it will cut the purses for Nationwide races by another 20 percent on top of the 10 percent cut that was imposed earlier.
The idea is to relieve some of the financial hardship on tracks that host Nationwide races, especially stand-alone events. In case you haven’t noticed, the grandstands at many Nationwide races might as well have tumbleweeds blowing around.
It just doesn’t pay to put on Nationwide races except as part of a package that makes up a race weekend instead of just a race day -- like having a band open for the headliner at a concert.
Reducing the purses will certainly help tracks. And it will have the side benefit of making it a lot less attractive to practice start and park as a business model.
But it won’t help the struggling, independent teams trying to gain a foothold in the sport, teams that actually show up to compete. These teams are already faced with the cost of transitioning to the new Nationwide car full time next year.
Would a team owner like Robby Benton has decided to take a chance and enter Boris Said at Montreal if the payback would have been 20 percent less? Maybe, but the odds are there will be fewer owners taking fewer such chances next year.
In fact, teams may have to become much more selective about which races they enter, which raises the very real possibility that Nationwide races will have a hard time mustering a full field.
Would a Nationwide race with 40 cars instead of 43 be a disaster? No. Most races are whittled down to 37 or 38 cars after a dozen laps or so anyway as the start-and-park teams develop mysterious vibrations and handling issues.
But the double whammy of paying for the new car and significant cuts to purses has the potential of inflicting significant damage even on the established teams and making it all the more crucial for NASCAR to keep Cup drivers in the Nationwide Series.
Doug Demmons is a writer and editor for the Birmingham News ~ he writes daily and weekly auto racing columns ranging from NASCAR to open wheel to Formula One, local tracks and more... you can read Doug's columns online at Blog of Tommorow
Follow Doug on Twitter: @dougdemmons
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.
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