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Not a week goes by in NASCAR nation when there isn’t a discussion about downward trends in track attendance and TV ratings, and there’s as many opinions out there as there are fans. And just as sure as there are a variety of complaint offered, there as many attempted fixes by NASCAR to try to address it, the latest being tweaks to the side skirts with the aim of creating less down force and greater ground clearance,by another inch. At the end of the day, the desired end is that it will make it easier for the cars to pass each other.

Beyond the points, the Chase, the economy, the sponsorship demands and the well-intended attempts to grow the sport beyond its traditional base, there is very little I hear about what I think is another central issue for discussion concerning automobiles, racing, and shifts in the culture concerning the two topics.

And you thought Talladega was unpredictable?

Darlington is one of my favorite tracks. The track deserves two races. And when you look at all the factors in play Saturday night, this might be the most must see race not named Daytona. Here’s why:

 
Don’t like “points racing?” This season, Jeff Gordon is your guy. I could go on about how fans who accuse drivers of playing it conservative know nothing about the competitive spirit, but that would be a digression. Besides, no one need look further than old Super G to find a racer driving with purpose over the next 16 events.

A lot of “Monday Morning Quarterbacks” are writing off the four-time champion as if he is NASCAR’s Mariano Rivera. I wouldn’t be so fast to dismiss this as a lost season. In fact, I will go on record as saying he makes it.

Let us consider is case….shall we?

Reality bites.

This isn’t about an annoying movie, rather the reality of losing two straight races and going to NASCAR’s most unpredictable track. If there is going to be a curveball thrown in the 2012 Sprint Cup schedule, this is the weekend. Here’s why.

It’s not what fans always to hear, but it’s true; officials don’t win or lose sporting events, the participants do. Before you start throwing things at your monitor or disparaging this observer’s ancestry, think about it.

Officials aren’t infallible, and they do make some horrendous calls. Worse yet, they can become magnified by the moment in which they occur. With that said, for every bad call, there are numerous win costing, competitor errors: missed shots, incomplete passes, bad defense, and jumping the re-starts.

Kyle Busch may think he got a “gift” with that “mystery” debris caution Saturday, but if he thinks about it, there’s more to the story than that. His driving, and more importantly, his team put him in a position to win. The real gift was a car that completed the duration of the race, and a pit crew that put him in a position to win.

As for Tony Stewart, his argument is not without merit. There won’t be any debate here that if it was a water bottle “out of the groove” that brought out the caution, it was a bad call. Manifactured drama reeks of the same odor as kiddie league soccer games. By the same token, Smoke and Shrub both had the same opportunity for success and failure. Re-starts are a part of the competition; Busch is the master if re-starts, and on this night, Stewart was mortal.

Don't get me wrong. NASCAR does need to be a little more transparent with their debris cautions.  Dave Moody says there was a piece of metal on the track. I won’t argue that, but where was it? Whether or not it’s true, the perception among many fans is that the TV networks and NASCAR are in cahoots, and will turn a blind eye to a “mystery” debris caution. There’s one way to end it; point it out, put a camera on it, and let the fans see it. If it can’t be seen lying on the track, then show it being carried off the track. Heck, put a dashboard camera on the truck! How hard is it? If it's not there, don't call it.

The argument about whether or not Edwards was the leader is a red herring. The bottom line is Edwards was gunning it before the “re-start zone” and would have been penalized anyway.

That aside, controversy can be avoided by taking however much time is necessary to make sure the field is properly re-set, even if it takes an extra lap or two. Perhaps another solution is to say that if there’s a false start on a re-start, give the field a “do over’; if they screw that up, they’re black-flagged.

NASCAR has often been accused of doing the “monkey see, monkey do” with the NFL. While there’s still mistakes made, and those replays take forever, they take the time to get it right, and explain to the fan what is going on. IF NASCAR is genuinely interested in eliminating the perception that the fix is in, they establish some sort of relationship with a motorsports review board (if doesn’t exist, it should be established) for review and oversight. Is it worth it? If they really want this to be seen as a real sport, it’s a no-brainer. It's time to shine some sunlight on the rulings at the race track.

This comes from the perspective of one who thinks 99 percent of conspiracies are pure ferilizer. Nobody tried to screw over Edwards or Stewart either one, and they sure as heck weren't trying hand the race to Busch. If you look closely  wat happened, there's plenty to go around. NASCAR would do themselves a huge favor opening up. If they don't, it just leaves the governing body open to suspicion.

Other articles by Jim McCoy include:

Luck Is Where Preparation Meets Opportunity
Guess Who's Courting NASCAR History?
The Curious Case of The Burning Busches