August 31, 2005

By Rebecca Gladden

It was boon or bust time Saturday night in the pinball machine known as Bristol Motor Speedway, where several prominent NASCAR drivers tried to improve their points standings in the Race for the Chase.

Heading into Bristol, just 104 points separated 10th from 15th-place. The drivers occupying those spots were Jamie McMurray (10), Dale Jarrett (11), Jeff Gordon (12), Elliott Sadler (13), Kevin Harvick (14) and Matt Kenseth (15).

Of the six drivers on the Chase bubble, two moved up in the points after the Sharpie 500. Race winner Matt Kenseth had the strongest showing, climbing four spots from 15th to 11th, now just 11 points shy of 10th. The 17 team has rallied from 24th place to 11th since mid-June.

Jeff Gordon finished a respectable 6th at Bristol and moved up one spot in the standings, while Elliott Sadler finished 13th in the race and held on to 13th-place in the points. Sadler is currently 34 points behind Gordon, who is in 10th.

The race was not as kind to Jamie McMurray, Dale Jarrett and Kevin Harvick. McMurray qualified 18th but finished 26th with late-race tire trouble. Although he fell from 10th to 12th in the standings, McMurray remains just 12 points out of Chase contention.

Dale Jarrett was a victim twice on Saturday, first of contact with another driver and then of his own temper. Ryan Newman, 8th heading into Bristol, tagged Jarrett from behind on lap 301, sending the 88 Ford hard into the oustide wall. Seventeen laps later, Jarrett lay in wait for Newman and promptly returned the favor. The No. 12 Dodge ricocheted off the wall and down the track, directly into the path of Kevin Harvick, following one car behind Brian Vickers as both came off pit road. Harvick, who had no chance to see or avoid Newman, eventually came back from the garage more than 100 laps down and finished the race in 37th place.

Newman, Jarrett and Harvick all took a hit in the points; Newman stayed in the top 10, however, slipping one spot to 9th. Jarrett fell three spots to 14th and Harvick dropped two to 16th.

Harvick, the hapless victim of the altercation, was simply the latest driver to be in the wrong place at the wrong time at Bristol. Before the race, Harvick was 82 points out of 10th and still had an outside chance to make the Chase. Now a distant 122 points out, that dream is all but dashed.

The Law of Unintended Consequences holds that every action has one or more effects that can not be foreseen. In fact, NASCAR itself was an unintended consequence of the passage of Prohibition laws and the bootlegging that followed.

Whether or not you accept Newman's claim that his contact with the No. 88 was unintentional, both his decision and Jarrett's had far-reaching consequences. In this case Kevin Harvick was the innocent victim, but it could have been any other racer on the track.

Saturday's Bristol altercation was reminiscent of events last season involving acknowledged Chase players. One of the most memorable occurred at New Hampshire in the first official Chase race. Robby Gordon retaliated against Greg Biffle for contact earlier in the race; neither driver was in the Chase, but two who were - Tony Stewart and Jeremy Mayfield - became unintended victims.

Mayfield finished the Loudon race 35th and remained 10th in the standings, while Stewart, who finished 39th, plummeted from 4th to 8th in the Chase. Stewart never fully recovered from the hit in points, climbing only as high as 6th during the remainder of the season, his finish for the year.

There's no question that Robby Gordon's contact with Biffle was intentional, but afterwards, Gordon explained that he did not mean to involve the two Chase contenders: "I hope they have an opportunity to climb back into the championship," said Gordon. "I'm sorry we got into this situation. I didn't intend for it to be this at all." Unfortunately, you can't put the genie back in the bottle, and the damage had been done.

As the Loudon and Bristol incidents demonstrate, there are times in racing when the actions of one or two drivers - like shockwaves from an earthquake - reverberate far beyond the epicenter. Rubbing may be racing, but wrecking and retaliating often go beyond what is prudent. Everyone involved is harmed to some degree, including the aggressors themselves, who may capitalize on a bump and run for the moment, but face payback later on. The impact is simply greater on the Chase contenders because they have more to lose.

Over the course of the next 12 weeks, it would benefit all of NASCAR's Cup drivers to consider the unintended consequences of their racing decisions, especially those made in the heat of battle.

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. Although we may not always agree with what is said, we do feel it's our duty to give a voice to those who have something relevant to say about the sport of auto racing.