For decades, I have always loved pole qualifying day. Why you ask? The crowds were smaller, it was is if it was open and available for a select few! Lines were shorter at the souvenir haulers. You could take your time, shop and leave with your pick of merchandise! Drivers hosted autograph sessions and you could take your time and enjoy the atmosphere, and grab some treats and head up the stairs to your grandstand seat.
Then, the main event! As a younger fan, I got to watch the cars on the track, one at a time, compete for the fastest time. The winner, mashing his foot to the floor and taking the checkered flag with the fastest time, would lead the entire field to the green flag. For me, it was like I was seeing a piece of the upcoming race, that only those that were there with me, would be privileged to see.
That was precisely the problem.
Qualifying day, historically was an event that was to be savored, only by a select few. Seats were not assigned, because it never sold out. Yet, the tv crews, on-air personalities, and the drivers and teams put on a show, as though the grandstands were packed for Sunday’s race.
Furthermore, social media made it almost impossible for the pole sitter to remain a mystery. And let’s face it, if you already know who won the pole position, are you really going to watch it? For most, that answer would be no.
What choice did NASCAR have, but to mix things up?
Everything grows and evolves. That includes NASCAR. This sport has seen proof of that over and over again in the last few years. I have heard at least a million times that it’s too much. For those veteran fans that have been loyal to the sport for decades, they prefer things as it was in the old days! “No more!” “Take things back to the way they used to be”! I am sick and tired of the tinkering, the sport was just fine the way it was!”
But it wasn’t. And, if we are truly honest with ourselves, and with each other, we all know that to be true. Ratings were down, grandstands were empty, and the sport is reacting. That’s their job. They want to put on a great show, the very thing that drew us to the sport, to begin with. And, to maintain that success, they have to keep the stands full.
So, if you are unhappy with the changes made from single-car qualifying to what we see now, part of that rests squarely on our shoulders, doesn’t it?
Granted, I don’t believe for a second, that NASCAR instituted the changes to produce a show as we saw on Friday at Auto Club Speedway. In fact, they also expressed frustration with what ended up happening. Scott Miller, Vice President of Competition, had this to offer to NBC Sports:
“I saw obviously what our fans don’t want, obviously, having the last 12 cars wait until they couldn’t get a time posted on the board and kind of making a mockery out of them to qualifying is not what we expect for our fans,” Miller said. “It’s a little bit on us that we hoped things would go better than that. It’s an exciting show when they’re out there on the race track but obviously, we have a little work to do on our part to get a little bit better format so things like that can’t happen.
“We certainly want to provide our fans with what they deserve and we and the teams didn’t do a very good job of that today, so we’re really disappointed.”
Fans cried out on social media, and any and all available platforms to express their frustration with what took place. Some liked the idea but didn’t like the fact that several drivers and teams didn’t use Round 3 qualifying the way it was intended. Several cars waited on pit road, not wanting to be the first car out, but rather wanting to use the draft to propel them to a faster time. What they ended up doing, was waiting so long, they didn’t take time at all.
Sitting in the stands or at home in front of the tv, it’s easy to judge what we saw. Like it or not, there is a strategy that goes along to being the fastest car, besides just getting in and mashing the gas. After all, it’s their job to work within the rules, to the best of their ability, and bring home the best finish they can for their team and their sponsor. That’s what they did. However, it doesn’t always mean that is going to be a great show for the fans. Therefore, several drivers felt the need to shoot back in defense, as expected.
“Don’t hate the player. Hate the game,” said Kyle Busch.
He’s right, to a degree, isn’t he?
So, what’s the solution?
There are several, but the easiest seems to me, that if you don’t post a time you go to the rear. That’s how it was done for single round qualifying, and can easily be carried over here. The goal of qualifying is your fastest time, regardless of the number of rounds. If you don’t post a time, you start in the back. End of story.
That being said, there are most definitely a million other variations of rules that have and will continue to be discussed that could just as easily be adapted. In the end, NASCAR will have the final say as to how it will be conducted. In fact, they, just like the rest of us, are already looking at how to address the situation and wasted no time making that known. Following Friday’s qualifying debacle, they announced that they would be making tweaks to the current qualifying rules within two weeks, in the hopes of preventing what we saw here at Auto Club Speedway on Friday.
In the end, I have every trust that NASCAR will do what’s best for the sport. Decade upon decade of their steady leadership has proven this to be true. While some of their decisions may not have been the most popular at the time, or resonated with the most finicky of fans, in the end, it was always the right call.
I like the new qualifying format. It brings a level of excitement that just wasn’t available with single car qualifying. It was time for a change to improve the ratings, the attendance, and the overall show. Yes, it absolutely needs to be tweaked to ensure that it maintains the integrity and end result we saw with single car qualifying. However, there is no doubt in my mind that NASCAR is well on its way to achieving the excitement it was looking for in making the change. Be patient, I believe it will pay off. The new qualifying procedure has the ability to be great.
