NASCAR: The Line Between Sport And Entertainment Has Moved

USA Today Sports

For years the debate has raged back and forth between fans and non-fans on whether or not NASCAR is a legitimate sport. With the incidents the past two weekends, it would be hard for even the most ardent NASCAR fan to defend the sanctioning body. Rather than talking about two thrilling races, everyone is talking about the incidents that occurred in both events.

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Let’s review the big controversies in the past two races. At Talladega there were two controversial incidents. The first was a green/white/checkered restart that NASCAR called off due to a wreck and the field not receiving the green flag. The second was an wreck that was initiated by Kevin Harvick which ultimately ended the race. Many drivers and fans felt that Harvick caused the wreck on purpose however NASCAR didn’t agree and no penalties were levied.

In the most recent race at Martinsville there were also two incidents that were contentious. The first was contact between Danica Patrick and David Gilliland. Earlier in the race, Patrick had spoke on her radio that she was looking to wreck Gilliland when she missed an opportunity. On lap 419, she got that opportunity and ended up wrecking herself in the process. Under caution, she attempted to damage Gilliland’s car again only to do further damage to her own ride.

Of course the incident that everyone is still talking about was the wreck between Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano. Unsurprisingly, Kenseth denied intentionally wrecking Logano. Common sense and a look at the recent history between the two drivers ultimately disputes that claim.

NASCAR is supposed to be an auto racing sanctioning body but based on all the news coming out the past two weeks, it is anything but. Racing is supposed to be about competition. It’s supposed to be about drivers competing head-to-head, racing at high speed door-handle to door-handle lap after lap. Instead NASCAR racing is devolving into made-for-tv drama where everyone talks about everything but the race itself.

NASCAR has nobody to blame but themselves for this. The series boomed in the late 90s and early 00s largely because they offered something different than any other sport. When Brian France stepped in as CEO and Chairman of NASCAR taking the role from his father, Bill France, Jr. things began to change. NASCAR began to add gimmicks to the series such as The Chase. Then came additional rules like the free pass rule, wave arounds, double file restarts, “debris” cautions and green/white/checkered finishes.

In spite of these changes, NASCAR’s television ratings and track attendance has continued to sag year after year. Many long-time fans stopped following the sport because of the numerous changes. Many fans NASCAR had gained in the boom period left because the attraction they had to the sport faded.

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Though the incident between Logano and Kenseth may have entertained fans in the short term but in the long term it is not good for the overall health of NASCAR. Drivers wreck each other on purpose without worry of severe punishment sets a dangerous precedent. Unless NASCAR steps in and actually does something, what is to prevent this from being a weekly occurrence?

As loud as the cheers may have been for the wreck, what most fans want to see every week is good, hard racing. That was what attracted so many fans to the sport for so many years and that is exactly what NASCAR is lacking these days.