The Mechanics Of The NASCAR Win
It is common for the casual NASCAR fan to believe that the way to win is to have the fastest car. Often, this is very true. Throughout the week, the drivers and the crews are spending endless hours tweaking their set-ups to produce the fastest car performance they can before entering the race track later that weekend. As it has been shown on in NASCAR news broadcasts many times, this does not guarantee a win. Unfortunately, not every car can be the fastest on the track, so the teams are constantly analyzing new ways to achieve victory.
Driver David Reutimann won the 2009 Coca Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway following the decision of crew chief Rodney Childers to keep Reutimann’s car on the track while the lead drivers entered the pit. The race was more than half over, and precipitation was falling on the raceway. The question was whether the race would continue or be canceled by the rainfall on the track. Reutimann, and two other drivers, Ryan Newman and Robby Gordon, gambled on Mother Nature.
At approximately 6:30 p.m. eastern standard time, the NASCAR management stopped the race, and gave Reutimann his first ever win at the Sprint Cup. Wins due to rain-shortened events have always been received with a bit of wink and a nod by drivers and officials alike. For the fans, these types of wins are regarded as flukes and support for them is less intense. The opinions of some fans often find an audience on NASCAR news channels. However, the sport of NASCAR is one of the most competitive, if not the most competitive form of auto racing. A win is a win, and every driver on the track would gladly perform the ‘rain dance’ if it meant that they were going to make the coveted trip to victory lane. It has become a privileged position in NASCAR news correspondents to witness the displays of amazing and winning strategies by racing teams.
Strategy played a part in Reutimann’s victory. Armed with the information from the latest weather reports, his crew chief decided to keep Reutimann out on the track. If the showers had stopped, and the cars reentered the track, then they would have went to the pit, but according to Childers and Reutimann, they would have made necessary adjustment to increase automotive performance. Such reconfigurations would have taken too long. Additionally, Reutimann would have lost his place on the track if they had pit stopped with the others, so he chose to wait on the rain. Their strategy turned out to be the winning strategy.
Kyle Busch led 173 of the 207 laps paced, while race-winner Reutimann led only five laps and was in the fourteenth place when the skies opened up.
NASCAR news reported similar events involving Jeff Gordon. In 2007, Gordon used a similar strategy to win a race at Pocono. He did not have a car that could contend for the win, but his team sensed that the rain showers were approaching, and it paid off. If the showers had come only five seconds later, Gordon would have likely finished in second place. Driver Ryan Newman was just passing Gordon’s car when NASCAR put out the caution flag.
Sometimes, the stars must align perfectly in order to get the victory. Factors like tire strategy and fuel mileage offer the type of strategies that can get a driver to victory without needing the fastest thing on the track.
In 2003, Newman and his Penske Racing team were renowned for stretching fuel mileage with a smaller carburetor. At least four of his eight total wins during the 2003 season could be contributed to fuel mileage.
Other drivers have used the two-tire pit stop to get a better track position near the close of the race, thus, affording opportunity to run for the victory. In many cases, this has worked out for the driver.
In NASCAR, a win is a win, regardless. It makes no difference how the trophy was gained, the driver will accept it every time.