I can't believe he said that!

Raoul Duke · 29 Oct 2001, 03:12 (Ref:166810)

Prior to the start of the race today Bobby Labonte was interviewed about his wreck last week in Talladega. And he said that the reason it happened was because he was fighting so hard to win the race, but that he whished instead that he would have just backed off and quit to avoid causing the accident. What a disrgacefull thing to say. If your not going out there to give it 100% then why bother at all?!. I understand this need to be safety conscious, but it's getting to the point where they just want to kill the racing, what a joke. If these people just want to ride around in a processional parade then they should stay home and give their jobs to people who understand what racing is all about.

Emfa · 29 Oct 2001, 05:28 (Ref:166819)

This comment was made with the wisdom of hindsight and was probably motivated by:
1. A desire to preserve the physical wellbeing of himself and other drivers,
2. Frustration with Nascar for not acting on recommended aero changes and other safety issues for restrictor plate races.

I really don't think Bobby is any less of a racer today than he was a week ago. Numerous teams stated that their strategy was to lay back to "ride around in a processional parade " for most of the race. That is what restrictor plate racing has become.

Ax Slinger · 29 Oct 2001, 12:27 (Ref:166911)

And it works too. Just ask Tony Stewart. He stayed in the back of the pack all day, and when the right time came, he made his way towards the front and finished 2nd. Ahead of many people who had been out front all day.

Bobby Labonte on the other hand, said before the race that he was going to lay back and do what Stewart did, but he didn't. He made his way up front, lead the race for a bit, but due to the "big one", ultimately finished 22nd. If he has backed off, he may have avoided it, and finished a little closer to the front.

But even though he didn't finish better, and didn't win obviously, he still pulled himself up a spot from 9th to 8th in the points race. Maybe only by 8 points, but if that were the last race that would mean a bigger season end payoff. (Of course, it wasn't the last race of the season though...)

Raoul Duke · 29 Oct 2001, 18:49 (Ref:167039)

But that's simply not an acceptable attitude for a race car driver to have. Were not talking about the start of the race, or even the middle. Were talking about the LAST LAP here. IF your in even with a fighting chance to win, you go for it. Do you think that Dale Jnr won the race simply by sitting back and trying to avoid the "big on"?. He11 no!, he fought like he11 to keep at the front during those final couple of laps. That is what racing should be all about.

How do you think that Dale Jnr would have looked in an interview after having finished 20th, and saying "well I just hung back and took it easy, I had a chance to win...but why risk getting into a wreck?".

zealot · 29 Oct 2001, 20:51 (Ref:167131)

Does the term "live to fight another day" mean anythhing to you, RD.

There are times when it's smart to come to terms that, on this day, you've been beat. There'll be another race – unless you do something over aggressive (and stupid) and cause a shunt that hurts you or other drivers.

KC · 29 Oct 2001, 21:44 (Ref:167158)

I am all for a driver pushing the envelope to win, but there was no way that he could keep the #55 car behind him without some form of contact. Driving 110% is great but what he did bordered on the foolhardy and outright dangerous. The #1 objective is to win, if you cannot win, for whatever reason, the #2 objective is to finish as high as you can, barring that the #3 objective is to finish to garner as most points as possible and the final objective is to survive the day. As it was one or more drivers could have been killed or injured just because a racer wanted to get 5 more points than the guy behind him. How great would that win be if he made the impossible move, won the race and Johnny Benson did not survive his crash in the process? Not nearly so great I think. If he had finished 4th instead of 22nd he is doing a better job for his team and himself. NASCAR is not about the winner at the end of the day, its about who has the most points at the end of the year. Fourth is always better than 22nd.

Raoul Duke · 29 Oct 2001, 23:04 (Ref:167182)

Quote:

Originally posted by zealot
There are times when it's smart to come to terms that, on this day, you've been beat. There'll be another race – unless you do something over aggressive (and stupid) and cause a shunt that hurts you or other drivers.

But Bobby was NOT in that position. He was cearly in a strong position to fight for the win. He was even leading the race for a point within the last 3 laps or so, for him to imply that he should of just given up is disgracefull and not keeping within the spirit of what racing is all about.

I'm not expecting him to do anything dirty like ramm another driver in to the wall(that would be stupid) but I do fully expect him to fight as hard as he can to maintain the lead, especially in a race were one false move can mean going from 1st to 20th in 1 lap.

I do generally feel that since Earnhartds death, people have become a touch oversensitive about certain issues. Yes, I'm all for safety, but not at the cost of the racing.

Ax Slinger · 30 Oct 2001, 10:57 (Ref:167331)

Quote:

Originally posted by Raoul Duke
...but I do fully expect him to fight as hard as he can to maintain the lead, especially in a race were one false move can mean going from 1st to 20th in 1 lap.

That is exactly what he did. He fought tooth and nail to hold his position. But he didn't drop back to 20th. Even 20th is better than 22nd, which is where he ended up. I can understand his point in what he said too. It boils down to "less money, less points, and less face". All around, I'd say he did far worse than just lose the race. He lost some of his credibility. And that is why he's having regrets.