Voice Of Vito

As it turned out, wrecks and drafting partnerships defined how the Great American Race was run. But were those circumstances enough to sour NASCAR’s Super Bowl?

Here we are, the day before the Gatorade Duel qualifying races to set the field for the Daytona 500 – and there is palatable pessimism in the air.

With the dawn of the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season just a few weeks away, NASCAR decided to change the rules – yet again – at the very last minute.

For the fourth time in less than ten seasons, the format used to decide the champion has changed once more. There were rumblings of something happening regarding the ranking system used throughout last year, expanding the Chase field to 15, more points for winning, a wild card entry (just like the NFL!), among a myriad of other subtle tweaks and changes. So at the 11th hour, in the midst of NASCAR Pre-Season Thunder media tour, NASCAR unveiled their new points system.

Talladega has been one of NASCAR’s signature tracks since 1969, but try telling that to fans who stayed home to the tune of a 14% decline at the turnstiles.