By Staff
Labor Day weekend is the last holiday weekend of the summer and back to school time.
And, for many years in the NASCAR world, it meant the Southern 500.
But tragically NASCAR doesn't visit Darlington, S.C. in September anymore and gone is the Southern 500.
Brian France, President of NASCAR, moved the Labor Day race from Darlington to California in an effort to expand the sport to larger markets. I think Mr. France forgot to tell the folks in California though because the track has yet to sell out for any of the races held there and has left the diehard fans of the sport scratching their heads and wondering why NASCAR even goes there twice a year.
The track, a twin to the Michigan International Speedway, is a beautiful facility. There are seats for over 150,000 fans and the amenities for both fans and teams alike are top notch.
But for some reason race fans seem to stay away when NASCAR comes to town. This cannot be ignored as television camera shots from the sky show thousands of empty seats.
This race fan cannot help but wonder if maybe NASCAR has gotten a little greedy at the expense of forgetting it's roots and history of the Southeast. How much longer will the powers of NASCAR wear their rose colored glasses and think that moves like this are good for the sport?
The race this weekend will prove to be a pivotal one for drivers trying to fight their way into the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup as there is only two left before the final 10 races are run that will determine who the champion will be. Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth are already locked into the Chase but there are 11 drivers fighting for the last eight positions.
When NASCAR visited California back in February, Matt Kenseth was the winner and this weekend he will be gunning for his third straight victory.
Most of the other drivers in contention for the Chase finished well there, but there are dark horses out there that may spoil the party for them and potentially ruin their chances at the championship.
The battle of Bristol last weekend saw Ryan Newman leave with the highest finish of our local drivers.
His eighth place finish was a much-needed shot in the arm for the Alltel team that has struggled all season. Tony Raines came home 25th and David Stremme limped his battered racecar home for a 35th place finish.