[ 04-25-04 ] [ 6:31 p.m.]
[ Talladega brings out the worst in NASCAR ]

I'm not a Talladega person. I'm not a Daytona person either. There's too much fucking politics involved with both of those tracks for me to enjoy the racing. And today was typical Talladega, which means I'm not in the greatest of moods.

I was kind of encouraged to see Jeffy win. I'm not a big Jeff Gordon supporter, but since about 2002 I have learned to like the man, and I think he's adorable. (He's also friends with Tony, which can't hurt.) I was kind of questioning that yellow-flag call, but I don't think NASCAR put Jeffy ahead on purpose. I think they used their best judgement. Jeffy's Victory Lane interview was really savvy, too, the way he said he wanted to see a review of the tape to make sure NASCAR made the right call. Now that's a class act. Here's a guy who just got given the win under caution, and he wants to make sure that he did indeed win when he could have just walked off with the trophy.

Dale Junior really impressed me today, too. I'm kind of the Dale Junior anti-fan. It's not that I don't like him, I certainly do, it's just that I'm not a fan of his, and I don't especially like his monomaniac fans (like the women who obsess over Dale Junior and think he's the most adorable even though they don't watch races hardly ever). Anyway, his post-race interview was very neat. He was probably dejected about not winning, but you couldn't tell because he looked like he had had so much fun. He made a comment about the scoring, said he would talk to NASCAR, and smiled pretty much the whole time.

Also, I thought it was great of Jimmie Johnson to apologize for spinning Tony. He understands Talladega and he didn't spin Tony on purpose, which he clarified. Just openly saying you're sorry for doing something accidentally definitely gets a vote of maturity in my book.

Which, speaking of maturity - something that does not get a vote of maturity is the reaction of those idiot fans who threw cans onto the track. How stupid can you people fucking be? So the race ended under caution, and so Dale Junior didn't win. That's no reason to throw debris at the drivers!!! You fucking drunk, idiotic people. People like that make me sick. I experienced shit like that first-hand when I went to Daytona in 2002, and I got nailed in the back of the head with a beer can which hurt like a son of a bitch. All because the race ended under caution, while NASCAR was looking out for the drivers' safety. I'll admit, I wanted to see the race finish green, but I was happy that NASCAR chose to look out for the drivers' safety first. Unfortunately their safety was jeopardized by the stupid fucking fans that had to voice their displeasure by throwing cans onto the track. Fucking idiots.

I was not liking Kasey Kahne's commentary on Tony Stewart today. Not liking it at all. Stupid Kahne is making Tony out to be the big bully on the track, as if it's not okay for him to race agressively when everyone else - including you, Mr. "I'm so great" - does. Know this - you are a rookie. A fucking rookie. You have no right to be judge, jury, and executioner when you've been racing these guys for less than a year.

Kurt Busch had the right to be furious with Tony. Tony was making all kinds of chop-ass passes just like everyone else. And one of his chop-ass passes just happened to nudge Kurt's back bumper. It happens. It's Talladega. I could totally see Kurt's argument, and I wasn't the happiest with Tony, knowing that dicey shit would get him wrecked (and did).

I was also not liking Jeff Burton's on-radio commentary. He is a seasoned veteran and has raced against Tony Stewart for six years, and should know by the type of person Tony is and by the nature of the wreck that Tony hadn't footed the bumper and spun Kurt on purpose. Tony hardly touched him. Unfortunately, the aero at Talladega is so finicky that even close quarters, less than inches away, can spin someone out. You want proof - just look at what happened to Tony toward the end of the race. Totally innocent. Jimmie didn't even mean to spin him, and Tony knew that. It's just fucking Talladega.

Tony's interview after the race was so classy that I'm exceptionally glad that Fox showed it. He got blamed by his fellow drivers and fans for purposely causing that wreck, and didn't let it get him mad. He also got spun out, which negated his chances to finish well and advance in points, but he just shrugged his shoulders and went, "Well, that's Talladega." I was so proud of him for giving that interview calmly. He said what he needed to say, and regardless of what any other drivers or stupid fans say, I know he'll stand by that.

Everyone used to talk about how immature Tony was, back before he won his championship. That little interview displayed how much more mature Tony has gotten - and how much more mature he is than some of his fellow competitors who seem to think he's the Big Bad Wolf.

I wish some of these cookie-cutter NASCAR drivers would stop pretending that they always have all the right answers. There are 43 drivers out there every Sunday, plus crew chiefs, crewmen, pit reporters, announcers, NASCAR officials, and fans. Not a single one of them has the correct answer always.

Just because you are a NASCAR driver or a NASCAR fan, doesn't mean you're God. Take a page from Tony's book, or from Dale Junior's book, or from Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson's book, and GROW THE FUCK UP.

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