I'm not sure what the percentages are, but a lot of NASCAR fans don't like the Chase.
They want NASCAR to scrap the playoff system and revert to a season-long format (which will never happen, of course, but they want it anyway).
Personally, I think the Chase is a great idea for the sport, even if it hasn't worked out aside from the excitement of 2004, when it came down to the last lap at Homestead. If Jimmie Johnson hadn't been so dominant, perhaps the Chase would have been viewed more favorably.
A lot of fans don't share my enthusiasm. Some even get angry when I say I like the Chase.
But just when I was feeling in the minority, along came Jeff Burton to fire things up. His comments about the Chase on Friday at Richmond reminded me why NASCAR's playoff is worth following.
Read Burton's comments below and tell me if it gets you excited about the Chase. If not, perhaps we're just not meant to find common ground on this issue.
Burton on the Chase:
First of all, this is the most fun 10 weeks of the year. This is what you live for. Every time I get in the Chase, I tell myself I waited my whole life to be in this position, so that's a hell of a cool thing. It really is.
We tend to get caught up in the pressure of it, but man, we're playing a game and it's supposed to be fun. My deal is that I'm going to go race as hard as I know how to race. I'm going to ask my team to work as hard as they know how to work. We're going to work together and try to defeat problems, but we're going to have fun at it.
It's going to be intense. When you waited your whole life for something and it's in front of you, it's going to be intense, it's going to be full of emotion, and as it should be. There is going to be disappointment, there is going to be happiness, all those things and hell that's life. That's what we're doing.
I can't really say I've changed a lot other than my family knows that it's go-time. Racing is going to come first here for the next few months. My team members understand if we've got to build a car in a week-and-a-half, we're going to build a car in a week-and-a-half.
Whatever we've got to do, we're going to have to do. We ask that of everybody every week.
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Jeff Burton Is Fired Up About The Chase; After Reading His Comments, Are You?
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I LOVE the CHASE!
I have always loved the chase. I was 100% in favor of the chase and still am! There was nothing more boring than watching the NASCAR season wind down to it’s inevitable conclusion year after year, sometimes knowing who the champion was three or more races before the end.
The Chase helped NASCAR put the racing back in the sport. Until the chase, drivers would often just ride around not taking any chances. It was “big picture” racing and it was boring as heck! People who complain about the chase don’t really remember just how awful the racing was toward the end of the season. If they had to go back to watching races like that now…they’d REALLY complain. Selective mememory is a wonderful thing.
by Marysafan on Sep 10, 2010 2:45 PM EDT reply actions
I’m in that minority that actually enjoys the chase. I will admit, however, that I am a post 2004 NASCAR fan (started really watching in 2007), so I don’t remember the “Good ol’ days”.
I think this year is a great example of why the chase is needed. Imagine if we didn’t have it. Kevin Harvick would be a pretty big favorite with 10 races to go. Sure, the math says Gordon, Busch or Stewart could catch him, but it seems unlikely. Instead, now we have a tight race with the biggest gap being 50 points (barring who wins tomorrow), which can be made up in a single race.
With the chase, not only are things relatively more exciting from a championship point of view in the last 10 weeks, but race wins actually count for something.
Look at the nationwide and truck series. The drama is pretty much over in both of those series. The trucks and nationwide cars are still fun to watch, but there’s no question who the champions will be (Kes, Bodine)
by Eric Mitz on Sep 10, 2010 2:47 PM EDT reply actions
One interesting thing I think might be cool for the chase is if any guy in the top 12 who wins a race in the last 10 weeks, get another 10-20 bonus points or something.
by Eric Mitz on Sep 10, 2010 2:50 PM EDT up reply actions
It’s often hard to offer suggestions on how to improve on a system you’d rather didn’t exist in the first place; I still believe the ’play off" format has no place in Motorsports.
But, as you say, the chase isn’t going anywhere, so I’d like to see a separate points system for chasers with a huge bonus for winning so there’s an incentive to go for the overall race win rather than just settling for finishing ahead of their fellow chasers.
by FOM on Sep 10, 2010 2:58 PM EDT reply actions
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