Sponsor enters driver fray; IndyCar opens in Brazil

Everyone’s weighing in on the controversial Carl Edwards-Brad Keselowski conflict and the resultant three-race probation for Edwards. Even Scott’s, Edwards’ primary sponsor, got some licks in, reprimanding its Sprint Cup driver in a heavy-handed way, saying it expected no more such nonsense (i.e.: running a fellow competitor off the track) from Edwards in the future. Particularly interesting was the fact that the edict was directed at Roush Fenway Racing and Edwards rather than at NASCAR.

My take is that NASCAR is getting what it deserves. It mandated a new policy over the off-season that now encourages drivers to basically police themselves with regard to on-track conduct—NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton’s now-infamous “Boys, have at it and have fun” decree. Well, give the boys that kind of unconditional freedom and what do you get? It translates to the old wreck-me-and-I’ll-wreck-you code, a throwback to Biblical times and the eye-for-an-eye principle. So why enact a fine on “the boys,” when you, NASCAR, have given them the right to be their own judge and jury? You’ve stamped your approval on the law of the Old West for your sport, so stay out of the line of fire of the gunslingers!

IndyCar: Sunday’s Sao Paulo Indy 300 had just about everything in its rain-shortened race: a monstrous highlight-reel, first-turn crash that saw Mario Moraes go airborne and land on the top of Marco Andretti, who was unhurt. Then the Brazilian monsoons came, but the IndyCars switched to rain tires and ran! Well, briefly. The race was red-flagged for almost an hour while pooled water was cleared from the track. The race, eventually won by the wonderfully named Will Power, ended with a timed finish, 14 laps shy of the originally scheduled 75. Defending series champion Dario Franchitti finished seventh, Danica Patrick 15th.

F1: The 2010 Formula One Grand Prix season also opened Sunday, in the United Arab Emirates’ Kingdom of Bahrain, with major new changes in its sporting regulations. Foremost among them is no refueling allowed during the entire race, a provision not seen in the sport since 1993. The cars are so delicately designed that carrying more than 300 pounds of fuel onboard the lightweight, 1,300-pound racecars (NASCAR cars weigh 3,400 pounds) was viewed as potentially problematic for the drivers. Pit stops, now for tires only, were going to be quick—3.5 seconds on the average! Red Bull Racing’s Sebastian Vettel roared off to a staggering lead over the field, before cracking a header and allowing Ferrari’s Fernando Alonzo and Felipe Massa, plus McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton, past him for the three podium spots. F1 legend Michael Schumacher, making a comeback at 41 after a three-year layoff, finished sixth.

Alan Ross is the author of 32 books and a regular contributor to American Profile. E-mail: alanross_sports@yahoo.com
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