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Goodyear not the only ones to blame
By admin | July 27, 2008
By Richard Allen
The AllState 400 at the Brickyard is mercifully over. Rather, it could have been called the AllState 25, 25, 25, 25, etc…
What many hoped and expected to be a great race turned into a tire management and competition caution fiasco. NASCAR announced well before the race that there would be a “competition caution” somewhere around lap 10. It actually turned out that the planned yellow flags flew about every 10-12 laps throughout the entirety of the 160 lap event.
In all, there were 11 caution periods causing almost a third of the race to be run behind the pace car.
Many long time NASCAR participants such as Richard Childress and Jeff Gordon said the race was like none they had ever seen before.
Indeed, no one had ever seen the likes of this race and hopefully never will again.
Since the issue was centered around tire wear many will be quick to blame Goodyear, and they will be right, to a point. However, the tire and rubber giant is not the only entity at fault for this nightmare of a race.
Goodyear had a tire test some weeks ago and saw there were issues with the right side tires. It seems, however, they did little to correct the problem, or if they did they totally missed with their correction. It almost appears as though they did not account for the differences between last year’s car and the Car of Tomorrow.
The CoT is known to create more of a load on the right side of the car which in turn causes greater wear on those tires. There were tire problems in this race last year and apparently Goodyear did not factor that or the differences among the cars into their equation when constructing these tires.
Goodyear is one part of this mess but so too is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
IMS has used a diamond grinding process to create a smooth yet abrasive surface on the track. This process is perfect for Indy cars. Those cars are lighter and have a lower center of gravity than their stock counterparts. Thus, there are not the load shifts experienced by stock cars when Indy cars enter the corners.
The diamond grinding process allows drivers of all types of cars have a better feel for the track. Unfortunately, the process allows for too much grip. If the tire being used is too soft the track will simply chew up the rubber. That is what happened on Sunday.
In past races on this track and others to have used similar methods the track would “come in” and the tire wear would decrease. Meaning, as more rubber was put down the surface would not take such a heavy toll on the tires. The track never did “come in” on Sunday because the tires were so soft they wore into very fine bits of rubber and simply blew up to the top of the track. Thus, the track was just as bad at the end of the race as it was at the beginning.
Finally, Goodyear and IMS certainly played significant roles in what happened during the AllState 400 but the bulk of the blame lies with NASCAR.
NASCAR is the ultimate overseer of competition. NASCAR sets testing dates. NASCAR determines when it is unsafe or detrimental to the sport for an event to be contested. All of these decisions are made by the sanctioning body and they failed on every count.
Sure, it sounds good for high level officials to come out during or after the race and say they did the best they could or to imply that the events were beyond their control but things could have been done differently.
If this really is the second biggest event on the NASCAR schedule, why was there not an open test session so that this problem could have been discovered weeks ago?
NASCAR says they want to clamp down on things like testing that cause teams to spend so much money but if races like this are going to be the result teams will not have to worry for long. There will not be any form of major stock car racing taking place because no one will want to watch it and the sport will die.
Also, NASCAR is so intent on mandating and controlling every part and piece that goes onto the cars that teams never have a chance to engineer something better. Shocks, springs, camber angles, wing angles and so much more are dictated before teams ever build their cars. If the set up devised by NASCAR is bad, it is bad for everybody and causes something like the AllState 400 to happen.
Goodyear has been criticized earlier this season, and now we see rightfully so. Indianapolis Motor Speedway has had tire related issues with NASCAR and a very famous incident with Formula 1 in the past. And, NASCAR has been a target of media, competitors and fans for some time now.
If these entities as well as the other companies and tracks involved with this sport do not sit up and take notice soon, they may find themselves wondering where all the fans went. And from the looks of some grandstands this year, we are quickly nearing that point.
Richard Allen is a member of the National Motorsports Press Association. His weekly column appears in The Mountain Press every Wednesday.
Topics: Articles |
July 27th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
The Brickyard was a joke and the problem is NASCAR not goodyear. The C.O.T and NASCAR not letting these teams work on the car is the problem. Take away some of the restrictions and these teams will get this car to run good. NASCAR is going the way of IROC and the sport is suffering because of it.
July 27th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Why not let the teams play with the rear wing? If some teams want grip and others want top speed, let them go for it!
Isn’t that how others handle it!
This new NASCAR/IROC sucks!
July 28th, 2008 at 2:14 am
Good article. We’ve known that Nascar has got to let the teams work on these cars. The idea that this car somehow evens the field is ridiculous. However, for Goodyear to bring tires as bad as these to Indy and Charlotte is inexcusable. I’m really quite surprised that Nascar isn’t talking to Firestone or Hoosier right now about supplying tires for 2009. Goodyear really just isn’t getting it done anymore, and they seem to refuse to step up. Everyone knew about the track surface at Indy, so it should not have taken anyone by surprise. Goodyear faied with the tires, and Nascar keeps failing with the insane restrictions on this new car.
July 28th, 2008 at 6:32 am
I dont mean to sound so negative, but you are right in the end it was Nascar fault, been following Nascar since 1963, you would think the first time they went to Indy they would have had a excuse if tires were a issue, they had issues at Atlanta as well!
But they main issue I have with Nascar is the Public Relations, Mike Helton came on TV and and stated the same old Nascar line, concerning the safety issues and the obvious tire problems, “I hear no concerns about the fans who paid good money in hard times”! I bet the fans in the stands were in the dark about what was happening as well!
Then the worst is when you see Kenny Wallace and Jimmy Spenser on TV allways trying to cover up for NASCAR and be their surragates or yes men! Kenny Wallace even had the nerve to say it was a great race!
My main issue is with all the testing they did, had a week off before the race, AS the “watergate question” is what did they now about the tire problems and when did they know it!
They should have rescheluled the race, or got the word out so the paying fans would know this was not going to be a average race!
Nascar needs to replace its competition directors, maybe I missed it , but not once did I hear Mike Helton show any concern to the fans, his heart was with NASCAR!
Nascar should consider giving money back to the fans, or maybe free tickets to other events, in that there is no excuse!
July 28th, 2008 at 7:40 am
After reading and listening you can sure tell who runs this dictatorship. Not only were the fans upset so were the drivers. The IRON HAND of Nascar still runs the show for the money and not the fans.
July 28th, 2008 at 7:55 am
Well written article. I spent $360 in tickets for my family to attend this sham of a race. Never again will I attend a Brickyard 400 race. This track is not right for these vehicles. Indy 500…..great racing. Nascar…..no way. The passing opportunities are almost nil. Add this tire fiasco to the mix and it’s a giant waste of time. If Goodyear and Nascar had a moral spine, they should be contacting their banks for how to process refunds to the paying customers of this joke. Maybe the Indiana Attorney General should be moving this morning on a bait and switch case vs. Nascar, IMS, and Goodyear Corporation. Oh well, there is a great race every year on Memorial Day. Now that’s racing!
July 28th, 2008 at 8:49 am
It wasn’t a race, it was a disgrace!
July 28th, 2008 at 9:30 am
Due to a snafu at IMS in regards to tickets and a lap sponsorship, I didn’t attend the race for the first time in a few years. Never have I been SO happy to miss a ‘race’. The tires and the questionable decision to close the pits a lap or two before the ‘competition’ yellow AND throw the last one with 10 laps to go virtually handed Jimmie Johnson the win.
At least ESPN could schedule their commercial breaks easier.
*sigh*
July 28th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Anyone notice that since Brian France has taken over the helm of NASCAR that its been on a downward slide. It seems that he has subscribed to the US governments policy of “if it ain’t broke, fix it till it is!”
July 28th, 2008 at 9:27 pm
That was the absolutely worst race ever televised to an unsuspecting public.If King Brian and Mike Helton are allowed to run things for a few more years Nascar will be equivalent to the WWE,they are almost there now.Goodyear has to accept a certain amount of blame for this fiasco,but Nascar is the sanctioning body and has the final say on every decision.The way this thing was set up the only way Jimmy Johnson could lose was to blow an engine in the final ten laps.