March 16, 2009
By Matthew Pizzolato
Matthew Pizzolato
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With all of NASCAR’s major touring divisions off this weekend, the story dominating headlines for the past week is the story of Marcos Ambrose’s crewmember, Jimmy Watts, the man who saved the runaway tire.
Admittedly, the action wasn’t the smartest thing to do, sprinting toward the track with cars running nearly 200 miles per hour bearing down on him, but the entire situation has been blown completely out of hand. Instead of being criticized, the man should be labeled a hero.
There is no telling what could have happened had the tire rolled all the way onto the track and been hit by a car. Obviously, it would have caused a major wreck, wherein one or more drivers could have been seriously injured. On the other hand, what would have happened to the tire after it had been struck by a car going almost 200 miles an hour? More than likely, it would have rebounded, possibly flying down pit road at a time when crew members were over the wall, or it could have been knocked into the stands.
There is no telling how many lives Jimmy Watts saved last Sunday if only by risking his own. NASCAR should have awarded the man, instead they have chosen to crucify him as a scapegoat because the caution flag that was thrown during green flag pit stops and as a result, his heroic efforts ruined NASCAR’s “race.”
Just because some drivers got caught a lap down is no reason to blame the entire incident on Jimmy Watts. The caution would have been thrown regardless of whether or not Watts had chased the tire. So, why blame him because a tire got away from his pit crew?
The incident could not have come at a better time for NASCAR, since all three major divisions were off this weekend. There is no such thing as bad publicity and it gives the media something to talk about while there is no racing.
Another possible reason NASCAR has chosen to place all of the blame squarely on the shoulders of Jimmy Watts is because of the finish of the Daytona 500 that was called early due to rain. NASCAR has taken considerable heat recently for not red flagging the race and allowing it to be run in its entirety, possibly even postponing it until the next day. So when another race ends under adverse conditions, NASCAR points the finger at Watts.
Of course, most of the drivers were angry at being caught a lap down and picked the opportunity to blame Watts.
“Maybe he's new,” Matt Kenseth was quoted as saying in a David Newton article for espn.com. “Maybe he hasn't seen us drive, but we tend to wreck a lot. I wouldn't want to be out in the middle of the grass.”
However, this is not the first time that several drivers have been caught a lap down because of caution flying during green flag pit stops. It is however the first time there’s been a convenient scapegoat for the drivers and for NASCAR to blame.
Instead of being blamed for “ruining” the race, Watts should be lauded as a hero. In a split second decision, he risked his own life in order to save the lives of others. More than likely, when he started chasing it, Watts had no idea how far the tire would roll and had no idea how close he had gotten to the racing surface until he caught the tire and looked up.
The penalties that NASCAR has placed on Watts are absolutely ridiculous; after all, no one suffered any injuries. Watts was suspended for the remainder of the race and for the next four, as well as being placed on probation until December 31.
“To go after the tire was a quick reaction and obviously the wrong decision,” Watts was quoted as saying in a David Newton article. “I want to apologize to my team, my competitors and to NASCAR.”
The man apologized, give him a break.
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