Wednesday, July 23, 2008
ESPN needs to pick up the TV ratings slack and get NASCAR perking again, with the Indy 400 and Tony
With all the focus on Tony Stewart, maybe Kevin Harvick and others are being overlooked (Photo by Jonathan Fickies/Getty Images for NASCAR)
By Mike Mulhern
INDIANAPOLIS
Now, after a weak six-week TV run by Time Warner’s TNT network, it’s ABC-ESPN’s turn, taking over the NASCAR Sprint Cup series for the next four months, beginning with the sport’s second-biggest event, Sunday’s 400 at Tony George’s Brickyard.
And it’s Tony Stewart center-stage. Not just because he won here last year, not just because he’s won two of the last three here, and not just because he’s in one of Joe Gibbs’ Toyotas, the hottest brand on the tour today….but because this will be his last time around this legendary track with Gibbs and crew chief Greg Zipadelli.
Stewart’s decision to leave Gibbs after some 10 years and oh so much success is not only controversial but also a new weight around Stewart’s neck – he’s got to rebuild the Gene Haas team that he’s buying into, so it will be a contender next season. And he’s got to handle that job while also doing his best to leave Gibbs and Zipadelli on a winning note…hopefully with a third Cup championship.
Certainly Stewart and Zipadelli are one of the three favorites in this year’s title chase, at the moment. And it looks like they’re catching Chevy rivals in a down period, particularly Rick Hendrick’s guys, who have won the last two championships but who have been woefully off the mark this year.
“The first year (2005) I don’t think we got to enjoy the win as much as we did the second time,” Stewart says. “The first year it was more of a huge weight lifted off our shoulders—that we accomplished a lifelong dream.
“Last year we really got to enjoy it with our team, enjoy the win that night, versus the emotional drain of finally accomplishing a goal, like the first time around.”
But while he’s preparing for this race and the rest of the season, Stewart is also rebuilding the Haas team: “In just the amount of time since we made the announcement at Chicago, we’ve had a lot of really good people call and want to be a part of this program. That’s going to be a big key to getting it turned around.
“How long it’s going to take, I don’t know. I wish I could say everything would be perfect by the time we go to Daytona, but I think it’s going to be a work-in-progress.
“You look at the caliber of teams and quality of car owners out there…it’s going to be a lot of work to get caught up to where they are.
“But that’s something I’m excited about—having that challenge, to get it to be a team like a Joe Gibbs Racing or a Hendrick or a Roush or Childress.”
Or maybe this is Carl Edwards’ Indy (Photo by Jonathan Fickies/Getty Images for NASCAR)
And his new teammate? Speculation is it’s Ryan Newman. But Stewart says sponsorships issues are hanging things up. “It will be a key to being able to attract sponsors to the second car,” Stewart say. “I want to get that done as soon as I can.
“Having the right teammate is definitely key to a good start next season.”
And the right crew chiefs.
“Obviously the crew chief situation is a big factor,” Stewart says. “It’s full-court press now. And we need two crew chiefs.”
But this is the guy to keep an eye on—Denny Hamlin, the third man in Joe Gibbs’ lineup (Photo by Jonathan Fickies/Getty Images for NASCAR)
At least Stewart has finally made the decision and doesn’t have the media all over him for that.
“It’s taken a lot of pressure off me,” Stewart says. “I’ve got a great team and we’ve battled a lot of adversity the last 9-1/2 years.
“Even though it’s tense, we still have found ways to laugh and joke and cut up and keep each other relaxed, to a certain degree.
“I can’t say it’s a big weight off my shoulders, because it’s like you just switched weights—we took one off our shoulders and added another one.”
For the next few days Stewart and Zipadelli will have to focus on this 400. And if these new winged cars are that difficult at banked tracks, they should really be a handful here. And tires, especially right-side tires, could be an issue.
Tires have been an issue here the last few years. Of course with hard left-handers like these, four a lap, fast and flat, these NASCAR stockers, with so little downforce to begin with, and even less under this year’s body configuration, tires are expected to be an issue of some sort, particularly on a green track.
“This year is going to be another landmark year, bringing the new car-of-tomorrow for the first time,” Stewart says.
And that, he says, means this year’s running could be another fluke.
“It’s not a track where you back into a win,” Stewart says. “Track position helps you, but it doesn’t win you the race. It always boils down to who has got the best handling car and the best straight line speed.”
Uh, not always Tony. Check the history books. And ask Ernie Irvan and Dale Jarrett, for two.
One thing Stewart is right about is no side-by-side running. This track is notorious for so little of that. And passing is quite difficult.
“You’re not going to have one of those finishes where you’ve got two guys side-by-side coming to the checkered flag,” Stewart says. “It’s normally decided before that.
“At the same time, there is drama, and it’s always fun to watch a team when they have a good day. The two races we won, it’s been awesome to get in those last ten laps. You pray that when you’ve got a lead and you’re pulling away, that you don’t get a caution late. And you just have to hit your marks.
“But you’ve got four opportunities each lap to make a mistake. So it’s always more nerve-wracking. And those last ten laps seem like they take forever when you’re leading.
“The preferred line is on the white line in each corner. It makes it a little harder to pass…but sometimes the fans and media loses sight of you’re still winning a race at a track that has a rich history. And just to have your name on the list of winners is a huge, huge accomplishment.
“Each time you win Indy makes it easier when you return. The pressure goes away, but the desire is still there, and it makes it easier to focus on what you’re trying to do.”
Can Stewart win this one for Zippy?
It would be a nice way to go out.
“When you spend ten years with somebody like that --- and this is something Zippy and I talked about before a decision was made, and we both understand why we made the decisions we made…and what was right for me wasn’t necessarily right for him,” Stewart says.
“We’ve been around each other long enough to respect the decisions we’ve made.
“We’ve had the professional side of the relationship, but we’ve also had that personal side.
“He’s always going to be like a big brother to me, even when we’re not working together next year.
“He’s somebody I’ve spent over a quarter of my life with, every weekend each year for the last ten years.
“And we’ve really started to hit on things the last three or four races. It still has not led us to a win yet. But Chicago (the last tour stop) I thought was a great example: for a large portion of the race, we were a contender to win.
“The car got away from us the last couple of runs, but for the majority of the day we were as fast as our teammate (winner Kyle Busch) was… and the guy that’s been the dominant driver in all of NASCAR racing this year.
“To be running with him like that is exactly what we were going to have to do to probably win the championship.”
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Now this would be a nice Indy upset—Martin Truex Jr. Maybe he’s fired up by all those Daytona penalties (Photo by Jonathan Fickies/Getty Images for NASCAR)
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