Big Frickin' Deal

by 4ever3 on Nov 4, 2007 11:19 PM EST Comment 10 comments

Carl Edwards clinched the very last Busch Series title this weekend even though there are still two races remaining. So what. Really, so what? Did we expect anything less? With Roush/Fenway behind him during his full-time run at the Championship it is no wonder he won. It is the same as Kevin Harvick in the Richard Childress car last year. Big Frickin' Deal.

What I think is more impressive is that David Reutimann is currently in second - in a Toyota prepared by Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) no less. That is impressive, considering the difficulties this start-up team has faced all year at the Cup level.

What is even more impressive than that is the fact that the car owners, Roush/Fenway, of Carl Edwards are not leading in Car Owner Points. In fact, they are third behind second place Joe Gibbs and first place Richard Childress. Why are these owners leading in the points but not in the driver category? Because they have had more than one driver drive their cars throughout the season.

That is impressive, to be leading in the Owner Points with a myriad of drivers for one car. That says a lot about their Busch programs. To me, if either Gibbs or Childress win the Owner's Championship ahead of Roush/Fenway then that is a far better victory than Carl's Championship, because they were able to do it with different drivers. To get a team set up so that it can handle different driver styles, whims, etc. is a great accomplishment.

Now granted, you may say that Gibbs and Childress may have brought in 'ringers' to field these cars, but to be honest with you isn't Carl a 'ringer' as well? Besides, if you take a look at who has driven the #29 Childress car that is currently in 1st you'll see it has been either Jeff Burton or Scott Wimmer in the driver's seat. No real ringers here - no more than Carl anyway.

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"What I think is more impressive is that David Reutimann is currently in second - in a Toyota prepared by Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) no less."

And just as impressive is the Tasmanian Devil sitting in 9th as a rookie driving a Yates machine. And if weren't for being taken out a couple times he'd be the leading rookie.

"What is even more impressive than that is the fact that the car owners, Roush/Fenway, of Carl Edwards are not leading in Car Owner Points."

Now it's my turn... BIG Frickin' Deal!!

Bob ESPN has you hooked and you can't get off the barb.

Come on, think back... how many times has the press been interested in Busch (or Cup for that matter) owners points?

The Full Throttle Wayback Machine says never.

The only reason it's a darling of the media this year is ESPN had to find something... anything to hype the last half of the year.

Spit out that hook Bob, you don't want to land in ESPN's boat. Honest.

by marc on Nov 5, 2007 2:47 AM EST reply actions

All I cansayhis, when he does his backflip and misses I will be one of the first laughing at him (as long as he isn't hurt).

by Tiredawg on Nov 5, 2007 5:51 AM EST reply actions

When he misses & twists an ankle, I bet thats the end of that sill stunt he pulls.

I hope the rumors of NASCAR pulling the Busch points from full time Cup drivers become reality. I have always thought that the Cup guys going there to run for the Busch championship is like Tiger Woods playing on our local greens for cash.

Just a bit unfair if you ask me.

I realize the Cup guys going down & racing with the Busch guys has a lot of benefites for the Busch series. But that is their Championship, let them win it.

by Anonymous on Nov 5, 2007 1:11 PM EST reply actions

"anon" - "I hope the rumors of NASCAR pulling the Busch points from full time Cup drivers become reality. "

Why?

Do you really think Cup drivers will give one wit whether they get points or not?

They could care less and removing any points they earn is an exercise in futility.

That aside, with the Cup and Busch cars so different in 2008 the days of seeing 20 Cup drivers is history.

by marc on Nov 5, 2007 2:03 PM EST reply actions

You know what else should be added to the "Big Frickin Deal?" list? Jimmie Johnson.

Gee, Jimmie Johnson wins another race.

BIG FRICKIN DEAL.

I want Kenseth to take him out so bad at Texas ... I still find all his "wins" suspicious. But I digress from the conversation at hand ...

by Lena and Chris on Nov 5, 2007 2:51 PM EST reply actions

Edwards Busch win has no signifigance...it was basically Roush money and technology sledgehammer ...I would term it a hollow victory at best...Kudos to Reutiman who has come a long way since he got the chance in the Hills Brothers Coffee program that promoted short trackers and put them in Nemechek's Busch car for a ride or two a few years back....

by Robert on Nov 5, 2007 9:23 PM EST reply actions

Marc, I don't get ESPN so I can't be hooked. Anyway, I've always been into the whole owner's championship - I'm a freak, I know. I've always liked that whole David Pearson thing where he ran a handfull of races each year for the wood brothers and so on.

The point I was trying to make is that even though Carl has 'dominated' with the big budget Rousch/Fenway team in the driver's standings and 'bought' himself a Championship, I can't believe they are not winning the owner's standings as well.

I think, at least in this case, the owner's points are a more acurate assessment of the teams running in Busch this year compared to the driver's points.

by 4ever3 on Nov 6, 2007 12:01 AM EST reply actions

Hi Lena,

Nice to hear from you, I hope things are well. Looking to write something? My offer is still on the table.

by 4ever3 on Nov 6, 2007 12:02 AM EST reply actions

Curmudgeon.

Heh, I originally used 'hollow victory' as the working title for this but I changed it to 'big frickin' deal' instead.

by 4ever3 on Nov 6, 2007 12:04 AM EST reply actions

Anon,

The Tiger Woods reference is a good one, but I'd still like to play against him just once - it would get really pathetic if I had to play against him all of the time though.

So why not, instead of limiting Busch points for Cup drivers, limit Busch races instead. For example, each full-time Cup driver is limited to say no more than 10 Busch races per year.

I think that is a good an viable solution. This still allows Cup teams to run a full-time Busch team, but to do so they must have at least 3 or 4 different drivers.

This would force these teams to look at their developmental drivers more, or hire on full-time Busch series regulars to fill out the schedule.

by 4ever3 on Nov 6, 2007 12:11 AM EST reply actions