NASCAR Speedweeks Review 2015
Another Speedweeks has come and gone and it was as crazy as usual. Without doubt it was one of the most exciting Speedweeks of all time with all manner of things happening. First and foremost thoughts have to be with the Busch family who had a traumatic couple of days on Friday and Saturday.
Kurt of course has been indefinitely suspended after the findings in the Patricia Driscoll case. I would suggest that NASCAR and indeed Chevrolet have jumped the gun with Kurt. There has been no criminal trial and as far as most people are concerned you are innocent until proven guilty. You wonder if Kurt, who has history with NASCAR’s rulers will decide enough is enough. He may look at IndyCar as an alternative, assuming they would have him, or maybe Formula 1 with Haas F1 in 2016. I honestly believe that’s a possible destination for Kurt. For now we await any further developments.
Now to poor Kyle whose Speedweeks ended in Saturday’s Xfinity race with a vicious wreck when he went head on into an inside wall which stupidly had no safety barrier. He has a badly broken leg and broken foot and I would be surprised if we see him again this year. Everybody in NASCAR wishes Kyle and Samantha Busch the best. It’s just sad that it took a driver injury for Daytona to construct safer barriers.
So to the action on track which began with the Sprint Unlimited which proved to be a wreckfest. Matt Kenseth survived the carnage to win his first race for a year in a race that was a fitting curtain raiser to the season. Little did we know that the wrecking was to become a feature of Speedweeks.
Qualifying was, in all honesty, a farce as NASCAR changed the rules for pole day. Instead of the traditional single car runs we had group qualifying which led again to sheer carnage. Drivers voiced their displeasure at the new system and surely it will go back to the traditional single car runs next year. Both the Xfinity Series and Truck Series also had problems with wrecking so much that it really became senseless.
Thursday saw the ever-entertaining duels which finalise the field for the Daytona 500. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson won the races and some big names just about squeezed through. Danica Patrick gave Denny Hamlin a mouthful after a crash late in the race with Denny telling her to calm down and listen to him.
The main races started with a hugely entertaining Truck Series race which had a shock winner in 19 year old rookie Tyler Reddick. The race was packed with incidents with the inevitable “big one” making an appearance. It set the tone for the racing to come.
On Saturday the newly named Xfinity Series was run with typical Daytona pack racing. A couple of multi car wrecks were seen and as already mentioned Kyle Busch suffered his dreadful accident towards the end of the race. However there was a real feel good story in winner Ryan Reed, who is a Type 1 Diabetic. Only four years ago he was told he would never drive a race car again, but he wasn’t having it. He fought back stubbornly and last season saw an impressive rookie season in which really showed his talent. To win at Daytona must have been such a thrill for the talented young man especially as he has proved his doctors wrong.
So to the main event, the 57th Daytona 500. What an incredible race it was too, with constant three wide racing lap after lap showing off the brilliant skills of the drivers. It was certainly the best Daytona 500 I have ever seen, although the finish under a yellow was perhaps a little frustrating. Joey Logano emerged as the victor which was karma after his misfortune in the pit lane during the final race of last season. He will now forever be known as “Daytona 500 winner, Joey Logano” and surely it will not be long until he is a Sprint Cup champion.
Jeff Gordon had a sad end to his final 500 after leading more laps than anybody else. He slipped back in the field towards the end of the race and ended up in a multi-car crash which finished the race. Gordon was happy enough though with his day’s work and came across as the gentleman he is during his post race interview. The race will not be the same without him.
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