NASCAR's Hypocrisy (and the hypocrisy of several thousand fans) Takes the Checkered Flag

For those of you who remain blissfully unaware, NASCAR has been besieged by bad publicity for the last week or so. The Sprint Cup series has reached the playoffs, called the Chase for the Cup. Never mind that a playoff in racing doesn't really work...

Michael Waltrip Racing (MRW) decided to take it upon themselves to work as many of their drivers as possible into the Chase. To accomplish this, Clint Bowyer intentionally spun out. No one questioned this spin until the transcript from Bowyer's radio came out, in which he was told to "scratch and itch on his arm" just before spinning. Brian Vickers mysteriously pitted for no good reason. The result is MWR driver Martin Truex Jr made the Chase.

The front office of NASCAR proceeded to dock MWR lots of points and lots of money, but Bowyer remained in the Chase, though dropping to 8th in the standings. Truex, who actually did nothing wrong in the race at Richmond, was kicked out of the Chase. It then came to light that Joey Logano had, in essence, cut a deal with Front Row Motorsports to make his way forward in the pack, positioning himself in the Chase.

The aftermath has now seen Jeff Gordon added to the Chase for the Cup.

NASCAR, and fans, were livid at what was called blatant manipulation of the outcome of a race. The points are fair, as MWR truly did manipulate the outcome. There is some doubt has to just how much collusion existed between Logano and Front Row. But let's be honest about something:

Look at all the debris! It's everywhere!!!

NASCAR has been manipulating the outcome of races for years. All it takes is watching one races to realize just how manipulative NASCAR is. It seems like every race, as the field spreads out, NASCAR will throw phantom "debris" cautions to bunch everyone back up. NASCAR instituted strangling Restrictor Plates for Daytona and Talladega, ostensibly for safety, but it has forced the field to run in one big pack. They created a "debris" caution that is used only when there is no visible debris anywhere on the track. NASCAR invented a contrived playoff system that essentially awards the title to the best driver over the last ten races, not the full 36 course calendar. Did I mention the "debris" cautions? It seems to me that when one of the golden boys (read: any Hendrick Motorsports driver) gets too far behind, or is about to go a lap down, the "debris" cautions begin to fly.

And now NASCAR is once again manipulating things. Adding Jeff Gordon to the Chase is basically one giant "debris" caution. NASCAR is complaining loudly and to anyone who will listen that it is wrong for drivers and teams to manipulate the outcome of races. Meanwhile, they've been manipulating the outcomes of races for years. Just another lap on the track, right?