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Winston Cup schedule needs to be given a thorough exam

The season that never ends is, mercifully, doing just that.

No, I'm not talking about major league baseball, though that sport could trim a few games -- and teams -- and be a much more enjoyable pastime.

Rather, the beast that is the Winston Cup season is a mere month from pulling into the garage for the winter. While nothing can be done for 2003, NASCAR should at least explore the idea of trimming the slate to 30 races. And that means a tough look at cutting back at some of the historically significant tracks, instead of the lip service the sport has given contraction the past few offseasons.

There are 23 tracks currently on the Winston Cup circuit. Las Vegas, Texas, California, Infineon, Chicagoland, Indianapolis, Watkins Glen, Kansas, Phoenix and Homestead all play host to one Cup race. The remaining 13 tracks have two points races each year, while Daytona and Charlotte also feature all-star and/or qualifying events (Bud Shootout, Twin 125s, The Winston).

As recently as five years ago, several team owners did not see the wisdom in running 33 races, three fewer than the current schedule. Felix Sabates, one owner who didn't see the value in expansion, said: "Don't forget, they own the circus. We're the animals and the clowns."

Three-time Cup champion and current FOX broadcaster Darrell Waltrip says money makes the wheels go 'round. "Understand that the sponsors are the people that are making this sport happen. It's not the purses; it's the sponsors. The sponsors want to be in Texas, they want to be in California, they want to be in Las Vegas."

Still, NASCAR apparently doesn't get the message: Less is more. Think not? Ask Victoria; that's been her secret for years. Like skimpy lingerie, stock car racing is guys going all-out for the finish line. And like top-of-the-line underwear, Winston Cup drivers deserve to race on the best tracks -- no matter their historical significance.

Count Sparta, Ky., among those who feel jilted at the altar. The $154 million, 66,000-seat Kentucky Speedway was admittedly built for a NASCAR race. Its founding father, Jerry Carroll, thought it would only be for Winston Cup -- not Busch, Truck, IRL or ARCA. But in the end, that's all the Bluegrass State will be hosting for the time being.

"This facility was conceived and built for a Winston Cup race -- period," said Carroll, the track's chairman and co-owner. "We've already proved we can draw fans and put on huge events. All that's left is for NASCAR to say the word and give us a date."

Jerry, for what it's worth, don't wait by the phone.

When the 2003 Cup schedule was released, Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president of corporate communications, noted: "I think the people there [in Kentucky] knew when they built the facility that getting a Winston Cup date was not likely. We would have a hard time expanding the schedule and staying loyal to the people who helped get us to where we are today."

"And we already have several races in that part of the country -- at Indianapolis, Bristol [Tenn.] and Talladega [Ala.]."

Well, no one ever confused the NASCAR hierarchy with geographic geniuses. Talladega is 480 miles from Sparta, but who's counting? Nonetheless, if that's the mindset, why give Pocono two races? It's only 170 miles from Watkins Glen, N.Y., which is only 370 miles from Loudon, N.H., which also has two race dates.

"NASCAR logic isn't always logical," Waltrip said. "I mean, they talk about having races at Indianapolis, Talladega and Bristol, but there's about 10 races in the Carolinas and Virginia alone.

"We can't change the past. Those tracks have always been there and those races have always been there. What NASCAR has to look at is the future -- and this place is the future."

Well, no one ever confused NASCAR with Nostradamus, either.

B. Duane Cross is a senior producer for CNNSI.com.

 

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