Topic: Jimmie Johson - Nascar Champion x5

[Juke1]

Jimmy Johson - Nascar Champion x5

Joins the ranks of the New York Yankees and the Montreal Canadians, to name a few.

Outstanding.

[Mike]

I've given upon NASCAR after yesterday.  The new rules make that there is no way the top 'resourced' (money) teams can lose short of crashing.  NASCAR has become as authentic as a reality show and I am no longer buying it.

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"  "Make sure Junior pits last so he can lead a lap to keep the attention of the Earhardt fans"

[TopGun]

I've given upon NASCAR after yesterday.  The new rules make that there is no way the top 'resourced' (money) teams can lose short of crashing.  NASCAR has become as authentic as a reality show and I am no longer buying it.
.....

A pretty typical view you have Mike.  The issue I have is that most of the teams are big money teams - Hendrick (4 cars), Gibbs (3), Steward-Haas (2), Roush (4), Childress (4), Penske (3), Ganassi (2).  That's 22 teams right there...yet they haven't beat the 48 team in 5 years.  The only time a big-money team hasn't won that I recall was Kilwiki in 1992.

NASCAR is the only sport that I know of where the fans bring the sanctioning body into disrepute constantly.  Sure, people get on the hockey refs, but I don't hear the NHL is fixing games after each game.

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"  "Make sure Junior pits last so he can lead a lap to keep the attention of the Earhardt fans"

The ratings are dropping badly.  However, NASCAR's challenges pale in comparison to those of major league baseball whose ratings are also dropping...but baseball can't do much to change the sport to attract attention deficit younger people.

I would certainly agree NASCAR needs to shorten the races.

[Winklovic]

I would certainly agree NASCAR needs to shorten the races.

Cut 20% from race distances, except Daytona.

[TopGun]

I would certainly agree NASCAR needs to shorten the races.

Cut 20% from race distances, except Daytona.

They've already done some.  They made the switch from miles to km...which shortened up the distance and still allowed them to be called "The Skeeter and Bubba 400"

Back to JJ - It's a team sport, and I anticipate that he will never get much credit unless they separate him from his crew chief...or he switches teams.  Kinda like Jeeter - Great player...or good player on great teams?

[Mike]

I would certainly agree NASCAR needs to shorten the races.

Cut 20% from race distances, except Daytona.

They've already done some.  They made the switch from miles to km...which shortened up the distance and still allowed them to be called "The Skeeter and Bubba 400"

Back to JJ - It's a team sport, and I anticipate that he will never get much credit unless they separate him from his crew chief...or he switches teams.  Kinda like Jeeter - Great player...or good player on great teams?

Yeah, that is what Tony Stewart did when he created his own team and Gordon did to a degree as well.  I don't think the races are fixed per say, they just seem to favour the big money.....but what sport doesn't these days?

[TopGun]

Yeah, that is what Tony Stewart did when he created his own team and Gordon did to a degree as well.  I don't think the races are fixed per say, they just seem to favour the big money.....but what sport doesn't these days?

Yes, Tony being given 50% of the team was a great opportunity for him...and a great opportunity to get away from Joe Gibbs to be his own guy...which is good for the sport.

Big money - Not "the" answer, but yup...especially applicable in auto racing.

Q: How fast do you wanna go?
A: How much money you got?

[Mike]

I guess I am just an idealist.  When I first got into Nascar (about 10-15 years ago) I love that 25 or so guys could win on any given sunday.  A nice change from most professional motorsports where only 2 or 3 people really had a chance to win.

This year there were only 13 differnet winners (12 if you ignore Montoya winning on a Road Course).  After the few years where Gordon won everything in sight (late '90's) there were 17-18 winners.  I don't like the trend as 2008 had 12 winners and 2009 14 winner.

Oh well

[triuman]

Amazing feat from an amazing team. My fix for NASCAR would be to shorten up the races, add more road courses and short tracks.

[Winklovic]

Jimmie falls solidly in the "Great" category.  He's been driving, and winning, for a long time.

From nascar.com:
Finished eighth in Nationwide Series points in 2001, driving for Herzog Motorsports. ... Earned first career Nationwide Series victory in the series' first race at Chicagoland. ... During first full season in the Nationwide Series, had six top-10 finishes and finished 10th in the point standings. ... In 1999, started five Nationwide Series races, led 22 laps and collected one top-10 finish. ...Won Rookie of the Year honors in the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series in 1998. ... Johnson won six off-road racing championships, including two MTEG Superlite championships (1992, '95), the 1992 Miller Challenge Superlite title, the 1993 SCORE Class 10 Desert championship, and two SODA Winter Series overall titles (1996, '97). ... Also was named 1991 MTEG Rookie of the Year in the Superlite Class and 1995 SCORE Rookie of the Year. ... Began racing in motocross events at the age of 5.

[TopGun]

Jimmie falls solidly in the "Great" category.  He's been driving, and winning, for a long time.

From nascar.com:
During first full season in the Nationwide Series, had six top-10 finishes and finished 10th in the point standings.

Not that he cares, but I certainly wouldn't put him in the "great" category yet.  A self proclaimed B/C driver, his record in NASCAR is nothing special until you get to the cup level.  Many have had much better records, and have been driven from the sport.

For example - Justin Allgaier:

• 1st full season of Nationwide he had double Jimmy's top 10s at 12 and 3 top 5s - 6th in points.
• 2nd full season of Nationwide (2010) he had 1 win, 8 top 10s and 20 top 5s - 3rd in points behind some guys named Keselowski, Edwards and Busch.

What did Justin get for it?  He almost didn't have a ride for next year.  Crazy.

[Juke1]

Jimmie falls solidly in the "Great" category.  He's been driving, and winning, for a long time.

From nascar.com:
Finished eighth in Nationwide Series points in 2001, driving for Herzog Motorsports. ... Earned first career Nationwide Series victory in the series' first race at Chicagoland. ... During first full season in the Nationwide Series, had six top-10 finishes and finished 10th in the point standings. ... In 1999, started five Nationwide Series races, led 22 laps and collected one top-10 finish. ...Won Rookie of the Year honors in the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series in 1998. ... Johnson won six off-road racing championships, including two MTEG Superlite championships (1992, '95), the 1992 Miller Challenge Superlite title, the 1993 SCORE Class 10 Desert championship, and two SODA Winter Series overall titles (1996, '97). ... Also was named 1991 MTEG Rookie of the Year in the Superlite Class and 1995 SCORE Rookie of the Year. ... Began racing in motocross events at the age of 5.

And I don't see big money here nor the involvement of Rick Hendrick. 

We often hear the chase tracks favor Johnson, I don't get it!!  Are the others so limited in talent that they can't learn after all these years???  Look at Kyle Busch, he could win, but he's an idiot FFS.

[rrocket]

I'm sure some of the NASCAR die hards could answer this question:

If it were not for the 10 race Chase for the Cup play off format, would he still have won 5 in a row??




And BTW Top Gun...Jeter has consistently scored near the bottom of the list for defensive capabilities for a short-stop (some years he was dead last), and he has the least range of any shortstop in the game.  He's not good...but if you play for NY, you're automatically considered great.  And winning a Gold Glove is like being elected to the Supreme Court...once you win one, you'll keep getting some until you die....

[TopGun]

I'm sure some of the NASCAR die hards could answer this question:

If it were not for the 10 race Chase for the Cup play off format, would he still have won 5 in a row??
.....

I'm likely as big a NASCAR die hard as we'll find 'round these parts.  My answer - Maybe not 5...but they'd win a lot.

Chad Knaus is known for being the first to assume that they just need to "make the playoffs"...then prepare your cars like crazy for the final 10.

So if we didn't have the Chase format, they'd just race differently...and the team has been sooooo good at making the right adjustments, that I think they'd still win it under the "old" points system.

BTW - Should we correct Jimmy's name in the title of the thread?   

[rrocket]

My thing about the chase format....what's in it for the guys not racing for the title?  Why try as hard if you're not one of the 10??  Testing for next year??  Securing sponsorship? 

Top Gun..I found this...based on the "old" format:

2004 Jeff Gordon (5)
2005 Tony Stewart (2)
2006 Jimmie Johnson (1)
2007 Jeff Gordon (6)
2008 Carl Edwards (1)
2009 Jimmie Johnson (2)
2010 Kevin Harvick

[Juke1]

I've given upon NASCAR after yesterday.  The new rules make that there is no way the top 'resourced' (money) teams can lose short of crashing.  NASCAR has become as authentic as a reality show and I am no longer buying it.

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"  "Make sure Junior pits last so he can lead a lap to keep the attention of the Earhardt fans"

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"

Please please find another one, that's getting old.

[rrocket]

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"

Please please find another one, that's getting old.

But there are questionable yellows...not just for Jimmie...(so say my NASCAR fan friends).

Oh..and they also thought that DE Jr. win in the Wrangle car was "fixed"....

[Mike]

I've given upon NASCAR after yesterday.  The new rules make that there is no way the top 'resourced' (money) teams can lose short of crashing.  NASCAR has become as authentic as a reality show and I am no longer buying it.

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"  "Make sure Junior pits last so he can lead a lap to keep the attention of the Earhardt fans"

"Jimmie is behind, through a caution for debris"

Please please find another one, that's getting old.

like rrocket said, it is not just Jimmie, it is anyone.  The questionable cautions for debris whenever anyone (incuding Jimmie) are a mile ahead and the race is getting boring have got out of hand. 

There was a big one yesterday when Edwards was running away late.

[TopGun]

My thing about the chase format....what's in it for the guys not racing for the title?  Why try as hard if you're not one of the 10??  Testing for next year??  Securing sponsorship? 

Top Gun..I found this...based on the "old" format:

At least with the chase, the accompanying points reset means there are 10 guys in the fight with 10 races to go.  Under the old format, there may have been 3 or 4 guys that would be in it.  The chase creates more emphasis on more sponsors than in the old system.  Childress is a good example that used the last 10 races (they had a terrible year last year) to test new stuff - worked well.  Kinda like the teams that finish last get to have 1st pick at the draft.

Using the current races and calculating points using the old format makes little sense.  An analogy I might use is something like "So if I never met my wife, how would my life be different?".  Interesting to think about perhaps...but it's of little consequence to my current state of affairs...oh...bad choice of words.   

[rrocket]

Using the current races and calculating points using the old format makes little sense.  An analogy I might use is something like "So if I never met my wife, how would my life be different?".  Interesting to think about perhaps...but it's of little consequence to my current state of affairs...oh...bad choice of words.   

I've heard many people wish it was back to the "old" way.  And when you do the compare, you can see why...a better variety of champions...

I'm not a fan..so it doesn't matter what I think.  I'm just passing on what I've heard from people I know, or people I see on NASCAR on ESPN, etc...

Oh..and you MUST go see a race at Indy, TopGun....