November 3, 2009
Destined to Repeat a Memorial to a Fallen Star
Making the Grade- Dega 2
By Dennis Michelsen
It seems highly unlikely that a NASCAR article would quote a famous politician from the 18th century but never in the 60 year history of NASCAR has anyone had a better line to describe what is going on in NASCAR! Edmund Burke said, "Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it." In the NASCAR world that means we are not going to see major changes to Talladega until someone gets killed! Does it take another memorial to a fallen star to motivate changes? The new Cup car has a much safer environment for the driver and NASCAR deserves applause for that development. But just as Boeing wouldn't slap 727 wings on a 747 NASCAR should have designed different roof flaps for the new higher center of gravity lower down force car. Since no one got hurt you know we are not going to see changes. Twice a year our "Donuts" will be fully puckered. "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing," said Burke. Racing is an inherently dangerous business and no amount of technology will change that fact. But when there is an obvious thing screaming for change I hope NASCAR listens before we mourn another fallen star! Let's hope we are not destined to repeat a memorial to a fallen NASCAR star before better roof flap technology is developed for these cars.

Race Grade C: While I am hesitant to call this racing the overall product we saw on Sunday does thrill some people. Instead of debating how a certain move in a race helped a certain driver win we are talking about whether the drivers single file racing was a protest or not. Two times a year we get an event instead of real racing. This will not change at Talladega until someone gets killed.

F for Ryan Newman's Luck
Thankfully Ryan Newman doesn't have a neck! After being jammed inside the cockpit of his car after flip flopping at Talladega. Maybe NASCAR will listen to their only driver/engineer in the garage area and do some wind tunnel testing to come up with new roof flap technology.

D for Mark Martin's Luck
In the past listening to Mark Martin talk about Talladega you thought you were listening to NASCAR's version of Eyeore. This year we heard a positive and confident Martin going into the Amp Energy 500. Despite staying out of trouble all race long trouble came back to bite Mark in the backside in the closing laps ending another title Chase.

C for Jimmie Johnson
The old adage of "It's better to be lucky than good" comes to mind when you look at Jimmie Johnson's run at Talladega. The hang out in the back strategy was about to backfire on the No. 48 team until a late race crash followed by a red flag led to another crash and other cars running out of fuel letting Johnson post another top ten.

B for Greg Biffle
The Biff was my pick to win at Talladega because his he was due for some good luck. While he failed to lead a lap and settled for fourth place Biffle was at the front of the pack poised to make a move in the closing laps. The performance of the Fords with the old engine and the new is very encouraging for Daytona in a few months.

A for Jamie McMurray
There is no better way to seal the deal on a new job by winning a race! It had been over 80 races since Jamie McMurray found his way to Victory Lane. Despite having equipment that has won twenty-six times since he has been at Roush-Fenway, McMurray's only two wins have come at restrictor plate tracks. This is still a huge win for Crew Chief Donnie Wingo and driver Jamie McMurray as they shop for new jobs.

Extra Credit for Joey Logano
It doesn't matter what track the NASCAR circus visits the No. 20 car with rookie Joey Logano is racing up front! The 2010 season can't get here fast enough for this talented youngster. In the first half of the season Logano looked over matched but in the last ten races he has looked strong!

Join Mike Harper and the THUNDER CREW for the best coverage of racing from ARCA to NASCAR! The fun starts at 8pm ET and you don't want to miss the "Monkey Butt Award." DIRTY TALK and SPEED51 RADIO with Bob Dillner and the Speed51.com mafia gets things kicked off tonight at 6pm ET! Bob and the gang will get you ready for the North-South Shootout this weekend!