News Flash NASCAR is in the entertainment business

Chris Gabehardt commented on Sirrus radio yesterday the "We are in the entertainment business"

WWE is real too

You'd think they'd come up with something more entertaining than 500 miles of left turns, if they were actually in the entertainment business.

Corporate advertising I'd believe. Certainly not advertising stock cars anymore.

He's not wrong. At the end of the day, it's a TV/spectator sport, and if it's not entertaining, people won't watch and the sport won't make money. That's the case for every major sport.

Of course it is entertainment.  All sports aspire to get TV and pay per view money.  They get it by attracting high dollar sponsors who want to hit a large audience.  No entertainment means no money. 

    The only people who race for personal satisfaction are amateurs. 

Many years ago raced a series that was a support race for ESPN2 Thursday Night Thunder sprint car races.  The only time I got claustrophobic in a car - buckled in, adrenaline surge knowing we were going to be live on "The Deuce," waiting - waiting - waiting for just the right time with commercial break then GO GO GO - WOT from the grid, full speed pace lap then the race.  All to time it right for TV.  Glad to do it once but as said above, more satisfaction in the amateur level of the normal races we ran.

I'm mad that they are hypocrites in stripping Austin Dillon of his entry into the playoffs when they let other guys blatantly wreck folks all the time. The is the only time I've had coworkers talk about the race here in Richmond over the past 5 or 6 years was due to seeing that highlight and everything being on the news. Previously the only time anyone has mentioned the race was the drunk guy climbing over the fence and dangling himself over the track.

First, yes.  Duh.

Second, Austin Dillons action reminds me of the old saying, "I can't define pornography, but I recognize it when I see it."

Over the edge to crash two guys, with his spotter yelling "Wreck him!".

Third, we know you hate the most popular girl in high school.  Just because you can't get a date doesn't make her a bad person.

I think the problem here was that it wasn't a racing incident - he was so far back that it wasn't racing.  No way he was going to make the corner or hold a line.  It was a pure send it move with no real hope of success from too far back.  Bumps and such from a side by side or nose to tail - the lead driver knows the trailing driver is close and can make his own moves.  3 or 4 cars back setting up for a corner the lead car is sort of defenseless in that he's not expecting to get driven through.

In reply to glueguy (Forum Supporter) :

My initial thought - having not watched the race nor any replay of what happened - was "What?  Drivers wreck each other all the time in NASCAR..." but that puts the incident into better context. Thanks. 

That said, racing has always been mainly about entertainment. Still... I still fondly recall some races I watched back in the 80s when the last 50+ laps would be all under a green flag and it turned into a tactical fuel mileage race.  Who could drive their car the most efficiently. Which teams could get in/out of the pits for a "splash and go" the best.  While maybe not as "action-packed" I still found those races very entertaining to watch.  NASCAR lost me a bit when that aspect of the sport became less important. 

It wasn't just that Dillon wrecked Logano. After that, Hamlin passed him, so Dillon wrecked Hamlin, too. 

It's rare to be able to say "he was wrecking people left and right" and have it be accurate.

We're just a few steps away from intro music and pyro. I can see it now. Each stage has a "surprise" new leader with a fresh car that the other drivers have to pass on the restart for bonus points.

"IS THAT BUBBA'S INTRO MUSIC?!?!"

(#23 comes rocketing down pit road in a smoky burnout as Wage War - “Death Roll” blares from the track speakers)

It's entertainment

Ian F (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to glueguy (Forum Supporter) :

That said, racing has always been mainly about entertainment. Still... I still fondly recall some races I watched back in the 80s when the last 50+ laps would be all under a green flag and it turned into a tactical fuel mileage race.  Who could drive their car the most efficiently. Which teams could get in/out of the pits for a "splash and go" the best.  While maybe not as "action-packed" I still found those races very entertaining to watch.  CART lost me a bit when that aspect of the sport became less important and they focused only on roundy-round races. 

Fixed to reflect what happened to me rabidly watching every Indycar race.

Even at the lowest level circle track racing is based on the idea that it's entertainment.

The track owner/promoter offers the racers a place to race and possibly earn some money, and in turn the owner/promoter sells seats to watch the circus. It's the reason that the grass roots racer can go to the track and race for little to nothing, because they're the product. 

"Little to nothing"?  You priced race fuel, tires, hot dogs at the track recently?

In reply to RacingComputers :

Those costs exist in all forms of racing.  In the context of the discussion I thought what I was saying was obvious. 

For those who have never done it, at your typical Saturday night track, when you pay to enter the pits, that's your registration cost for the night, typically in the $35 - $45 range. At the end of the night you go to the payout window and if you didn't finish in the money, usually the top ten or so, you get your registration fee back. 

 

However in the mean time the LOCAL Driver has the cost of the car, safety equipment, tires, fuel, replacement parts.  Then there is the cost of getting to the track, normally a pick up and open trailer.   Food for his CREW (family) and it goes on an on.  Short track entrants are dropping all over the country.  Entries in AMATEUR motorsport events are drastically dropping.  Can't see where the decline ends.  Yes, there will always be those who spend everything they make on racing.  However ..............................................

In reply to johndej :

It wasn't just that he won, they let him keep the win. It's that with their point system a guy that's only in s car because his grandfather owns it wrecked two people to take is useless 32nd in points career into having a shot at winning a championship.  They don't want to encourage that. Also the turning Hamlin head on into the wall has been drawing penalties for a few years now because that's how people get hurt.  If it was close and he bumped a couple people that's racing.  What he did was asinine. 

In reply to Peabody :

In addition to entry fees being less and purses if you are popular the promoter may offer tow money and help with fuel and tires.  The cars are often less expensive to run and maintain as well.  

In reply to Wally (Forum Supporter) :

That's true, it's the best deal in racing,  but I mentioned it not really to show how or even why it's cheaper, that was only used to describe how, even at the local level, circle track racing is based on an entertainment model. I think somebody missed that point 

In reply to Peabody :

That was kind of my point too.  It's always been a show, so if you help fill the stands they'll help make it more affordable for you to come out. 

To quote Denny Hamlin "It cost $18 M just to finance ONE car, not including Team Personnel, Shop, Hauler, Transportation, Per Diem and etc.   How is that cost effective?

Of course it is a show, all major entertainment is a show. But there are rules around the show and that is part of the entertainment. If someone takes a baseball bat on the football field and breaks the other teams QB arm is that entertainment? Of course not. People should be entertained by the sport they are paying to watch, this was egregious and he should have been DQ'd for that move. This is racing and not a demolition derby. I am all for a bump and run, a good slide job, and some wheel banging racing. That wasn't that and if you don't want your race series to be a joke you have to enforce that. 

I have been in a lot of Saturday night racing. For me it never seemed like they were cost effective or practically free, it is done because the people love it.  Sure you can enter your car for free. But you have to pay for the crew at $40-50 a head (we need at least 4 people to run), tires are sold by the track typically and you have to buy tires or you are out joy riding, fuel car, transport, etc. Sure you have to pay $400 for a track day if you are not part of the entertainment show but my experience says that $400 is washed away by the lack of any other fees, tires as you wish, no rule book to adhere too and the general schedule flexibility. 

Well stated