Party poopers
A couple of weeks ago, we all learned what would happen if NASCAR held a chase and its two biggest stars weren't included. And that was:
People would still watch.
And Tony Stewart would win.
So what would happen if NASCAR held a party and its two biggest stars blew it off?
NASCAR would get steamed, that's what.
I chuckled at Jim Hunter's comment: "It was very disappointing to NASCAR and the entire industry that drivers did not show up for various awards. It shows a lack of respect for the history and tradition of the sport."
Tradition, by the way, is Rockingham and North Wilkesboro and the Daytona 500 and Pearson and Petty and all of them. It's not dressing up, shaving and sitting in the ballroom of an overpriced Manhattan hotel listening to long speeches that sounded like Victory Lane riffs ("I'd like to thank all my awesome sponsors ...") except without the adrenaline rush and the beer spray.
Remember, these drivers are so rich now that they don't need to jump at NASCAR's every command. Besides, the banquet is just for winners. And the banquet no-shows were no-shows pretty much all season.
Speaking of parties, Charlotte's David Poole had a bad time in New York. (Dustin Long didn't go. He never does because there's no news there.) Poole apologizes for his party-pooper column here (second item).
Here's the full AP story if you didn't click the above link:
Party-pooper stars peeve NASCAR
CHARLOTTE — NASCAR officials are "extremely disappointed" in Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and other drivers who failed to attend the season-ending awards ceremonies last week in New York.
"It was very disappointing to NASCAR and the entire industry that drivers did not show up for various awards," NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said Tuesday. "It shows a lack of respect for the history and tradition of the sport."
NASCAR president Mike Helton plans to speak with the drivers who failed to attend last week’s ceremonies, Hunter said. The sanctioning body also is considering ways to ensure future attendance.
NASCAR has held its season-ending ceremonies in New York the past 25 years. Each year the sanctioning body hands out numerous awards during a weeklong celebration capped by a black-tie banquet in the grand ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria.
Gordon, who finished 11th in the standings, skipped the banquet because he was in Paris preparing to compete in the Race of Champions all-star event. Actor Will Ferrell, pretending to be Gordon, accepted the $1,075,386 payout — which included a $250,000 bonus for finishing 11th — on Gordon's behalf.
Gordon's absence was glaring because under NASCAR’s new points system the 11th-place driver is awarded a spot at the banquet as a reward for being the highest finishing driver outside of the Chase for the championship.
Earnhardt, voted NASCAR's most popular driver for the third straight season, didn’t travel to New York to pick up his award. Also absent were Elliott Sadler and Kasey Kahne, who earned a combined $175,000 in secondary awards.
"The banquet is not just for the championship and the top 10 drivers," Hunter said. "It's for everyone that put NASCAR on the map, for all contingency awards and for all the sponsors who support this sport.
"Dale Earnhardt went to New York every year whether he won the championship or not," he added. "It meant a lot to him to represent the sport and we expect that from all our competitors."
It's not clear what NASCAR can do to force drivers to attend the ceremonies. Among the things being considered is revoking the contingency awards that Kahne and Sadler received and giving the money to the runner-ups.
Comments (7)
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That is such B.S. Oh how I hate the powers that be at Nascar.
Posted on December 7, 2005 11:21 AM
Why give up the opportunity to party in NYC?
That's my only question.
Posted on December 7, 2005 2:37 PM
Matt asked: "Why give up the opportunity to party in NYC?"
There is at least one valid reason and it speaks to how disingenuous and two-faced NASCAR really is. (Trust me I was a lot less kind in my post on the matter)
A short week before the extended corporate commercial disguised as a banquet occurred Brian France went on record that NASCAR was looking at South America and Europe as potential places of NASCAR's expansion far into the future.
During the weekend of the banquet Jeff Gordon was out of town. Vacation you might ask? Not hardly!
He was attending, by invitation, the annual Race of Champions in Paris France with Travis Pastrana as representivies of America and NASCAR.
One would think an organization that has plans to expand in any form, whether it be a working relationship, a financial partnership, actual sanctioning or any other form it may eventually take, would not be so quick to be critical of Gordon.
Sadly that isn't the case. Hunter and France cried their eyes out as Gordon made the semi-finals in the RoC, only losing out to a broken gearbox. And not so incidentally beating F1’s Christijan Albers and Champ Car’s Sebastien Bourdais to get there. With American teammate Pastrana they made the semi-finals in the Nations Cup the same day.
So someone please tell me what's more important? Representing not only the auto racing sport, but NASCAR and America as well, on an international stage. Or attending an over-hyped banquet to accept an award for what is in essence finishing the year as the tenth loser?
NASCAR didn't think it too important when they replaced Gordon with a has been, and nearly never was, comedian!
Posted on December 7, 2005 7:02 PM
Whoa, Marc ... you're telling me that Eddie Murphy will be driving the No. 24 next season? Cool ...
Seriously ... thanks for the Race of Champions update. Was that the one that Gordon got sick and had to miss last year?
Also, anyone know where Dale Jr. was this week? I suspect just chilling back at his house. I'd like to think he was working on his race car while everyone else was goofing off in NYC, but who knows.
Posted on December 7, 2005 7:05 PM
The very same event John. Funny NASCAR didn't complain last year as Gordon obviously struggled to make it through "awards week" last year and missed the RoC.
As far as Dale Jr. goes, honestly who cares? He's the 18th loser in the 2005 point standings correct? Are we to believe all 51 drivers listed on NASCAR's website as competing in Cup were at the banquet?
Somehow I doubt it.
I also thought it was pretty low to invoke the name of the dearly departed father and lay some sort of "guilt trip" on Jr. because he didn't show up.
Posted on December 7, 2005 8:07 PM
Points taken away for missing the banquet in 5...4...3...
Posted on December 8, 2005 3:14 PM
Apparently the big joke Friday night at the banquet (other than Jay Mohr -- was he sober?) was that Tony Stewart, ah, slept in Friday (after a Thursday night party) and missed an a.m. NASCAR breakfast.
But Stewart did show up for the banquet, so I guess all is forgiven.
Posted on December 8, 2005 7:22 PM