At the Daytona 500, where the France family recently sank $400 million in renovations—which included Wifi, JumboTrons and a multicolor seat paint scheme to make empty grandstands look full on TV—attendance had been in a steady decline until 2012, when NASCAR stopped releasing figures. They also removed 45,000 seats.
The circumstantial evidence: Tony Stewart once hosted a talk show on Sirius Satellite Radio, and, during a tirade about NASCAR meddling with results by throwing bogus debris caution flags, said: “They can almost dictate the race instead of the drivers doing it. It’s happened too many times this year. I guess NASCAR thinks, ‘Hey, wrestling worked, and it was for the most part staged, so I guess it's going to work in racing, too. I don’t think they’ve run a fair race all year long.”
At the Daytona 500, still NASCAR’s biggest show, there are storylines leading up to Speed Week and the Saturday Qualifying. This year, that story is the rookie Chase Elliott, Last year, it was Jeff Gordon’s final run at Daytona; the year before that, Richard Childress’s grandson Austin Dillon was driving a No. 3 car for the first time since Dale Earnhardt, Sr. died. Before that Danica Patrick was starting her first full season.
And guess who won the pole each of those years? Chase Elliott, Jeff Gordon, Austin Dillon, Danica Patrick.
If NASCAR officials were to engage in a conspiracy to handpick the pole sitter in a race, they’d do it at Daytona or Talladega, the two restrictor plate tracks in the 36-race schedule. Why? Because those are the sport’s two most popular events. Also: It’s the only opportunity they’d have to directly affect the speed of a single car.
According to a source at NASCAR, who asked to remain anonymous, “For qualifying and the race events, NASCAR provides the restrictor plates.” The team provides engine specs and undergoes testing onsite. However, the plate itself is all NASCAR.
“NASCAR officials install the plate,” the official says. “The team does not touch the plate during the installation process. Once the race and/or qualifying is concluded, NASCAR officials remove the plate. The team does not touch the plate during the removal process.”
http://www.thedrive.com/article/2270/is-the-daytona-500-rigged?xid=hl
The circumstantial evidence: Tony Stewart once hosted a talk show on Sirius Satellite Radio, and, during a tirade about NASCAR meddling with results by throwing bogus debris caution flags, said: “They can almost dictate the race instead of the drivers doing it. It’s happened too many times this year. I guess NASCAR thinks, ‘Hey, wrestling worked, and it was for the most part staged, so I guess it's going to work in racing, too. I don’t think they’ve run a fair race all year long.”
At the Daytona 500, still NASCAR’s biggest show, there are storylines leading up to Speed Week and the Saturday Qualifying. This year, that story is the rookie Chase Elliott, Last year, it was Jeff Gordon’s final run at Daytona; the year before that, Richard Childress’s grandson Austin Dillon was driving a No. 3 car for the first time since Dale Earnhardt, Sr. died. Before that Danica Patrick was starting her first full season.
And guess who won the pole each of those years? Chase Elliott, Jeff Gordon, Austin Dillon, Danica Patrick.
If NASCAR officials were to engage in a conspiracy to handpick the pole sitter in a race, they’d do it at Daytona or Talladega, the two restrictor plate tracks in the 36-race schedule. Why? Because those are the sport’s two most popular events. Also: It’s the only opportunity they’d have to directly affect the speed of a single car.
According to a source at NASCAR, who asked to remain anonymous, “For qualifying and the race events, NASCAR provides the restrictor plates.” The team provides engine specs and undergoes testing onsite. However, the plate itself is all NASCAR.
“NASCAR officials install the plate,” the official says. “The team does not touch the plate during the installation process. Once the race and/or qualifying is concluded, NASCAR officials remove the plate. The team does not touch the plate during the removal process.”
http://www.thedrive.com/article/2270/is-the-daytona-500-rigged?xid=hl
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