Win, Fail, and WTF?

by Tammy

Let's evaluate the racing weekend, shall we?

Formula 1: By all accounts, the U.S. Formula 1 race made a good showing this weekend. Consider: drivers seemed to like the track, fans packed the stands, and (gasp!) there was even a thrilling, on-track pass for the race win. (So the traffic in and out of the Circuit of the Americas was a drag ... we didn't experience that watching on television.) The results of this race even set up the last F1 race of the season as the championship decider. Bottom line: not just another boring F1 go-round. And in a good timezone for us to watch!
Score for F1 in the U.S. again? WIN

NASCAR: Jimmie was leading, Brad was mid-pack. One ahead in the Chase standings, then the other, then a tie. One hundred laps to go, and Jimmie stops for gas, guaranteeing he can get to the end with only one more stop. Brad doesn't stop, no one's sure he can save enough fuel to do a one-stop. Sixty-two laps to the end, Brad runs out of fuel, makes it to the pits, rejoins in 24th place (too low to secure the title). Fifty laps to go: horrors, Jimmie's crew misses a lug nut, he has to return to the pits, and he rejoins a lap down, 29th place. He seems out of it, but anything can happen in 49 laps, 48 laps....

And then something broke in the back of Jimmie's car, and they went to the garage. Day done. Season done.  Not the way anyone wanted to see them end. But as long as Brad can get his car around to the checkers (which he does), he's the champion. Everyone's happy for Roger Penske who wins (unbelievably) only his first NASCAR championship. Jimmie is classy in defeat in the media center, Brad is classy in the championship circle. Even Jeff "Mr. Retaliation" Gordon, who wins the race, is classy in the winner's circle.
Score for Penske: WIN
Score for Keselowski as Champ: WIN
Score for how Jimmie lost: FAIL

Hats: Rick Hendrick and Roger Penske reportedly swapped hats in the championship winner's circle when Hendrick (losing car owner) went to congratulate Penske (this apparently has history for the two men). And then there were the podium hats in Austin (seen on Hamilton, the race winner, to the right). Clever? Perhaps. But ... let's just say, once seen, can't ever be unseen.
Score for Hendrick/Penske hat swap: WIN
Score for one-of-a-kind Pirelli cowboy hats: WTF?

What do you all think? Do you agree? Do you want one of those cowboy hats?

Big Weekend Ahead

TAMMY: Two huge events in the racing world this weekend. Not only does Formula One returns to the United States, but also, NASCAR will crown a new champion. The question is, which one is bigger?

I'm voting the NASCAR champion, because of who it could possibly be. It's come down to Jimmie Johnston trying for a sixth championship ... though after a blown tire and a wall-slap last weekend, he doesn't have much choice of beating the frontrunner. That is, if Brad Keselowski can pull together a decent finish.

What I think is earth-shaking about Keselowski possibly winning the championship is that he represents the next generation of NASCAR. He's 28, and an avid Twitterer (@keselowski). He has been a brash, crazy rookie and newbie in the sport, but he's shown real maturity, especially this year. And talent, of course. But he's also captured everyone's imagination by tweeting from the car during red flags. Like the one last weekend (at right). And of course, the infamous red flag back at the Daytona 500, when Juan Pablo Montoya turned a jet dryer into a fireball.

So what will be more significant this weekend, NASCAR or the return of the lifestyles-of-the-rich-and-famous-racers show? NASCAR, because we'll either have a champion who's won six times in the past seven years, or we'll have a first-timer who reaches out to NASCAR fans in a way no other driver has.

But don't get me wrong, I'll be watching both.... What's your vote, Simon?

SIMON: Personally, I'll be watching F1. Don't think it'll be the bigger event, but it'll be the 1st time F1 will race on a proper race track since Watkins Glen. Since '81, F1 has arsed about on makeshift circuits (and parking lots if you consider the Vegas Grand Prix). Even Indy Speedway GP was a half-hearted attempt at a real track when they modified the infield. I hope Austin pulls this off because like I mentioned a few months ago, that F1 needs to race in countries where there's a racing culture and the US has it. I hope F1 remains in the US, so I'm rooting for it. I still question the need for a new track when the US has some established circuits that would make for a great F1 race.

TAMMY: Well, I agree that F1 could have run any number of great tracks that already existed in the U.S., but would that really have fed Bernie's ego the same way? But that's another post....

What about the rest of you, what will you be watching this weekend?