rpm.espn.com: Commentary: Too much drama for me

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Sunday, July 8
Commentary: Too much drama for me
By Robin Miller
ESPN.com

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Walking into the Indy Racing League paddock on Sunday morning, the sarcasm was dripping like sweat from the 100-degree temperatures. "Gee, how about that NASCAR race last night? I couldn't believe Little E pulled it off. What a storybook finish. Gosh, it was almost like it was scripted."

The open-wheel fraternity has long been suspicious of NASCAR's "too good to be true" storylines and subplots. From Richard Petty's 200th triumph at Daytona with President Reagan as the grand marshal to hometown hero Jeff Gordon capturing the inaugural Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis to Dale Earnhardt opening NASCAR's 50th season by finally winning his first Daytona 500.

But, Saturday night in Florida, NASCAR scriptwriters might have penned the unthinkable. They may have taken the most obvious fairy tale of all time and shoved it down our throats -- on prime time.

And, of course, most of America swallowed it.

It's not hard to wonder if Dale Earnhardt Jr. got "The Call" on Saturday night preceding his Pepsi 400 win on the track that took his father's life five months ago. It was "Rocky," "The Wizard of Oz," "Miracle on 34th Street," "Heidi," "Alice in Wonderland" and "Days of Thunder" all rolled into a perfect made-for-television production. The NASCAR purists will say the spirit of his father drove Little E and that The Intimidator was riding with him and the sun was destined to shine on The Son.

Pardon my skepticism, but what Junior appeared to have riding along with him was an engine with no equal. In a race usually decided by drafting and partners, Earnhardt could dance alone and drive around any gang of cars he pleased. He reportedly radioed into his crew that he was running three-quarters throttle on a wide-open track because he was using too much fuel and he did not want to run too far ahead of the draft.

"You don't go by yourself on the outside and make that kind of time up," Johnny Benson said of Earnhardt's late-race rush to the front after he'd been sixth in line. "But it's OK. It was good that Junior won."

Gee, wonder what kind of restrictor plate he had? If any. Now there's no way to know exactly what might have happened under the hood. It could be as simple as chamfering the edge of the hole in the restrictor plate. That could increase the airflow enough to get 25 horsepower. Or something to produce a leaky manifold. It's also possible Junior's restrictor plate had holes that were slighter larger than the competition. Nothing you could see with the naked eye, mind you, but certainly enough to improve performance. Whatever it took to get more air into his engine.

Regardless of whether he had an assist in the restrictor plate department or simply a big motor, that still doesn't guarantee success. There's 200 laps, 42 other cars, pit stops, cut tires and all the other mechanical things that can go wrong.

"It was 100 percent car," explained Earnhardt, whose demeanor has been nothing but classy in the face of his tragedy and the media's persistent pounding of the subject.

Earnhardt's assessment was as honest as he appears and it's even possible he didn't know exactly what was going on with his Budweiser Chevy until about Lap 30 when he flexed his muscles. In one past transgression, one of Rick Hendrick's cars was found in rules violations and neither Hendrick nor his driver (Ken Schrader) knew what was going on until NASCAR's technical police informed them.

Of course, that would be the amazing thing about getting "The Call" in NASCAR. You cannot guarantee a win in motorsports, you can only give a team an advantage. Yet, more often than not, the result is exactly what makes for the best story.

"I knew going in the No. 8 car was going to win this race. Something was fictitious," said Jimmy Spencer -- in a rare and honest appraisal of what happens whenever NASCAR needs a positive spin -- to the RPM2Night crew. "He was real fast the other night and last February ... I mean, you know, it's not ironic the No. 8 car would win at all."

	“	You don't go by yourself on the outside and make that kind of time up. But it's OK. It was good that Junior won. ”
		— Johnny Benson

There's no way to know if Earnhardt received any preferential treatment. But, in the wake of Earnhardt's death and all the unanswered questions about safety, this would be a perfect way to remind all the loyalists that everything was fine in NASCAR-land.

Naturally, most of the drivers (sans Spencer, who likely won't pass tech inspection for a month) played along like good soldiers. Michael Waltrip finished second and admitted he never thought about trying to win, playing blocking back although Earnhardt didn't need any assistance. Rusty Wallace, Jeff Burton and Dale Jarrett all gushed about a perfect result.

In my 33 years of covering open-wheel racing, I never saw A.J. Foyt, the Unser brothers, Mario or Michael Andretti, Johnny Rutherford, Nigel Mansell or Juan Montoya back off and not try to win a race. And they would never act giddy about finishing second.

Tony Stewart is cut from that old-school mold and he hates to do anything but win. He was trying to get to the front Saturday night and, trust me, he wasn't about to be part of any staged drama at 185 mph. He was trying to reach the front when he got shoved to the bottom of the track. Maybe that's why he got black-flagged and sent to the back of the bus.

Most of the Winston Cup boys have been trained, and paid, well. You don't question Big Brother about anything and you can make $3 million a year without ever getting a sniff of Victory Lane.

That's the NASCAR game, where entertainment usually ranks over competition and nothing is too hokey or predictable.

"I don't know why anybody is surprised. This has been going on for the last 25 years," said a veteran observer of NASCAR. It's a brilliant strategy and Bill France Jr. and his people are geniuses. They know the hot buttons for the masses and this apparent latest bit of theatrics is sure to wind up on the cover of Time, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, People, Entertainment Weekly and maybe Variety.

I'll admit, I'm jealous because this Winston Cup con game is so much more popular than the Indy Racing League and Championship Auto Racing Teams. Open wheel racing is much purer and, better on many weekends, yet lags way behind NASCAR in sponsorship, TV ratings and public perception.

But NASCAR should rethink its postseason awards. Instead of giving out trophies at the end of the season, it should present Oscars.

Robin Miller covered motorsports for 33 years at The Indianapolis Star and is now the open-wheel analyst for RPM2Night and a regular contributor to ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine.

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	Dale Jr. wins for dad at Daytona Jr's heroic victory adds to the drama User comments on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s win

	Conspiracy Theory Dale Earnhardt Jr. talks about the Daytona "conspiracy" with ESPN's Kenny Mayne. wav: 714 k Real: 14.4 \| 28.8 \| 56.6 Likely story Jimmy Spencer knew the result of the Pepsi 400 before it started. wav: 163 k Real: 14.4 \| 28.8 \| 56.6