Will this be the end of the Brickyard 400?

[Indydriver]

Moved from the end of July to September supposedly to avoid the heat, this new date competes against NFL opening weekend and has been cursed by the remnants of the ironically named Hurricane Gordon. Saturday is doomed to be a complete washout. Raceday Sunday will be wet in the morning but with cool temps and grossly high humidity, it will take a minimum three hours to dry the track. If the race gets going at all it will be late afternoon and perhaps abbreviated by darkness. Expect attendance of
The Speedway will literally and figuratively take a bath on this event. Will it be the last?

 

[skyactiv]

Nascar is dieing. The younger generation could care less about it and sponsors will soon realize the cost to return ratio isn't there.

 

[BigD1]

It's just not the young generation.

When Nascar went to the highest bidder ESPN many years ago, I starting losing interest. Sure there was the few races that came on free TV, but those were far and few between. Now, at the first of the season, Fox broadcasts some races on free TV, and then NBC takes over, and you get a few free TV races, and the rest are on their paid sports network.

Personally, I am not paying to watch the race on TV, and then watch the dang commercials on top of it.

 

[sopususer]

Originally Posted by BigD1
It's just not the young generation.

When Nascar went to the highest bidder ESPN many years ago, I starting losing interest. Sure there was the few races that came on free TV, but those were far and few between. Now, at the first of the season, Fox broadcasts some races on free TV, and then NBC takes over, and you get a few free TV races, and the rest are on their paid sports network.

Personally, I am not paying to watch the race on TV, and then watch the dang commercials on top of it.



BigD1 I see you are from NC as well. And I am in total agreement with you. Nascar is dying with the younger generations as well as its core. Nascar abandoned its strongest fanbase in the Carolinas and the rest of the southeast. They built mega tracks across the country than now are 1/3 or 1/4 full every race and cut their tracks like Darlington to one race and deserted the Wilkesboros, Rockinghams, etc that filled the house every race. I realize they wanted to expand their audience, but they walked out on their most loyal fans. I was a fan when it was Earnhardt vs Elliott and Petty vs Pearson. Those days are gone and as you said I'm not paying them to watch what is a feeble facsimile of what Nascar used to be. Stages, playoff points, gimmicks....all to try to regain what they willingly gave up. No thanks.

 

[billt460]

Indy is for Indy Cars. Not Taxi Cabs.

 

[MParr]

Like the others said, NASCAR is dying. NASCAR did it to themselves. You do recall several years ago of the talk about parity? Well, NASCAR made in happen. It's just not racing anymore. The real race is in the pits. I think the downward slide started the year following Alan Kulwiki's championship win. NASCAR and Goodyear put the squeeze on Hoosier Tire. They changed the rules as to require tire makers to have a certain number of tires on hand at every race. Hoosier Tire could not meet those requirements and pulled out as a supplier. DIRTY! So Goodyear is the sole supplier of tires to NASCAR. DIRTY! The year Kulwiki took the championship, a lot of races were won by cars outfitted with Hoosier Tires.

 

[marine65]

I'm not a big fan of NASCAR but I do watch a race or two here and there.
What if they took all restrictions off the engines and go to run what ya brang?

 

[bubbatime]

There making a left turn.......................their making a left turn.............................their making a left turn.

 

[KCJeep]

I love what Nascar used to be. It is still cool in concept, but I have mostly lost interest. It started when it became a cable sport, now it's largely what I consider "new kids" most of whom I don't even know who they are. Toyota is in, and favored, Dodge is gone meh. Not a fan of "playoffs" and all that silliness they keep trying to reinvent themselves either.

Before I lost interest they had done a good job, popularity was peaking in the 2000's and on any given day any one of 25 cars had a shot not just a handful like the old days.

 

[Greggy_D]

Originally Posted by bubbatime
There making a left turn.......................their making a left turn.............................their making a left turn.


They are...... they're

 

[Gebo]

Originally Posted by sopususer
Originally Posted by BigD1
It's just not the young generation.

When Nascar went to the highest bidder ESPN many years ago, I starting losing interest. Sure there was the few races that came on free TV, but those were far and few between. Now, at the first of the season, Fox broadcasts some races on free TV, and then NBC takes over, and you get a few free TV races, and the rest are on their paid sports network.

Personally, I am not paying to watch the race on TV, and then watch the dang commercials on top of it.



BigD1 I see you are from NC as well. And I am in total agreement with you. Nascar is dying with the younger generations as well as its core. Nascar abandoned its strongest fanbase in the Carolinas and the rest of the southeast. They built mega tracks across the country than now are 1/3 or 1/4 full every race and cut their tracks like Darlington to one race and deserted the Wilkesboros, Rockinghams, etc that filled the house every race. I realize they wanted to expand their audience, but they walked out on their most loyal fans. I was a fan when it was Earnhardt vs Elliott and Petty vs Pearson. Those days are gone and as you said I'm not paying them to watch what is a feeble facsimile of what Nascar used to be. Stages, playoff points, gimmicks....all to try to regain what they willingly gave up. No thanks.


+1 I wouldn't watch any if I didn't have a DVR. Shudda kept dancing with the NC and SC tracks. Peepee on any track outside of the Carolinas, VA, and TN. Kill the restrictor plate and let the boys learn to lift when they get scared.

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

IMHO the high speeds are cool, but the real racing and action are on the much, much shorter tracks. On the superspeedways, the ability to spread out the field makes it just like driving on the highway, with everyone governed to 55mph.

Give me something with a half to full mile, steep banking, and only a cubic inch and 2V limitation. Let the innovators innovate, and let slower traffic sort out the rest. This will get back to grassroots interest... no real racers like cookie-cutter machines where 90% of the races are decided by who starts first.

There's a reason why there's still a huge amount of local 3/8 mile dirt tracks still packed with multiple classes of racers every weekend...

 

[69Torino]

I've been to the Brickyard 400 once. We were given tickets. Would never pay for them. NASCAR is such a joke. I'll stick to drag racing. Both racing myself at Lucas Oil Raceway (IRP for you old guys) in grudge nights and bracket races, and watching the big boys run at the U.S. Nationals Every year.

If you can turn, you're not going fast enough.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted by skyactiv
Nascar is dieing. The younger generation could care less about it and sponsors will soon realize the cost to return ratio isn't there.

Originally Posted by sopususer
BigD1 I see you are from NC as well. And I am in total agreement with you. Nascar is dying with the younger generations as well as its core.........

Originally Posted by MParr
Like the others said, NASCAR is dying. NASCAR did it to themselves.......

Originally Posted by KCJeep
I love what Nascar used to be. It is still cool in concept, but I have mostly lost interest.......

Originally Posted by Gebo
+1 I wouldn't watch any if I didn't have a DVR........

Originally Posted by 69Torino
I've been to the Brickyard 400 once. We were given tickets. Would never pay for them. NASCAR is such a joke.......

These comments personify why NASCAR is finished. And remember, these comments are just from a single page thread on one forum. Imagine what you would get if you interviewed 100,000 racing enthusiasts from across the country? NASCAR is in total free fall at this point. The only question left to ask is when will they bounce?

 

[bbhero]

NASCAR is in trouble like you said...

And those examples are right..

Here's my list in no particular order..

#1 they left the base fan base in NC and the southeast US... Aka closing North Wilkesboro Rockingham

#2 economic down turn... It led to huge effects upon people... And NASCAR was very, very slow to pick up on this..

#3 Bruton Smith and Speedway.... Him and Speedway played a game.. buying tracks to close them down.. only to put tracks in places that "made sense" at the time aka more money bigger markets... But those places were stupid places to put a track in.. now they know..


#4 Cost of tickets and hotels/motels... And lack of camping at the tracks.. watch old races from 70s 80s 90s... You see regular everyday people camping out in the infields... Now.. it's either not there at all... Or its the big money people only.. Going away to a race isn't cheap.. and lodging is the highest expense.


#5 Lack of drivers who seem more like everyday people.. good, bad, or indifferent... Richard, Dale, Bill Elliot, Rusty, Mark seemed like regular everyday people.. Now... Just spoiled brats.... Who's parents could afford to put them in a good ride..

#6 Drivers like Kyle Busch who seem like complete number2 exit openings to the fans... And he does not seem to care... And he's not alone in acting this way either...

#7 The stupid Playoff garbage and that being toyed with... Not helpful. The Chase was not the greatest idea in the wide world of sports to begin with.. but then they made it really stupid in the past number of years.. right now I'd take the old Chase formula back in a heartbeat..

#8 Retiring drivers has not been helpful... Jeff, Dale, Tony..

#9 The COT... And the fact the cars really have not been anything remotely like a real car since 1995... Before 1995... The cars at least on the outside looked and were real to the cars that could be bought.. Now I know the rest underneath the hood and the rest wasn't... But that was true going back to the 1970s and 60s for that matter...seats taken out to cut weight etc etc.. motors we're not bone stock then either.

#10 Toyota coming in... Yeah I know more yotas are made here than Ford or Chevy... But this was not a popular thing with many NASCAR fans.. especially the ones from the original areas where NASCAR became popular..

#11 Younger people not having a long attention span... This is where a sport that takes a long time to decide a winner... Is not helpful with young people.. And 500 mile races at Dover, Pocono and Rockingham sometimes took 4 to almost 5 hrs! Even 400 mile races are too long for many people younger than 45 years of age..

#12 The development of multi car teams... Yes this. This led to the extinction of "independent" teams by the mid to late 90s pretty much. More big money for bigger and bigger teams equalled more and more money needed to even try to get into racing to begin with.. thus the spoiled brat generation.. true statement... AJ Foyt himself said if he had to try to get into racing now .. he could not do it. That's not a good circumstance there.

#13 Too many races.. used to be a 30-31 race schedule in the 80s and 29 before that. 36... Way, way too many. Cut schedule back to 29... And go to venues even if "smaller" would be far better idea..

#14 Far too many cookie cutter tracks.. This ties into Bruton Smith and his shenanigans... Plus putting them into stupid places.. 1.5 to 2 mile tracks are far too common..

 

[Indydriver]

Good points, some of them out of NASCAR's control. I'd select 9, 1, 7 in that order. The car is ridiculously identical from team to team and has zero connection to "win on Sunday, buy on Monday". They need a total reset. Make the manufacturers start with a truly stock car. Wouldn't it be great to see real ZL1s vs GT350s? Let the teams tweak for unlimited horsepower (NA of course) then limit speed with tire width. Make teams and manufacturers develop race cars again instead of spec shops churning out the same thing for every team.

This would take care of Toyota....

Adding back short track ovals is important. Yes to resurrecting Wilkesboro and The Rock. Add Gateway. Eliminate double visits to 1.5s. Imagine an under-tired and over powered ZL1 trying to get around The Rock...it's a beautiful thing.

And finally, all this artificial playoff excrement must end. A season long champion is what we want. Make them earn it all year. You won't need to try to create situational suspense with the standings if you've got exciting racing on the track every week. I went to the USAC midget show at IMS and it was the best racing I've seen in decades. 110 entries!