We wonder...Talladega
by: Mark Spoor, NASCAR.COM

... is Brian Vickers a wrestling fan?

As Vickers was quite literally pushing his way to his first Nextel Cup victory Sunday, all I could think of was how WWE announcer Jim Ross would have called the action:

Oh my God! Why, Brian, why? For the love of God, Brian, why?


THIS FAN WONDERS...
... will Brian Vickers be invited to a "special" team meeting this morning?

• Wilbur L. Walk Jr., State College, Penn.


I haven't seen a heel turn that impressive since Paul Orndorff piledrove Hulk Hogan in 1986. To the fans in Talladega, Vickers literally went from moderately popular to hated in a matter of seconds.

What's more, the storyline is basically the same. Vickers was feeling left out of the group, as was Orndorff when Hogan wouldn't "pick up the phone." He decided to take matters into his own hands, much like Orndorff did. All that's missing is Bobby "The Brain" Heenan cutting a promo with Mean Gene justifying Vickers' actions.

In the end, it's a win -- and a great story. If Vickers had his choice, would he have wanted to win like that? Clearly not.

There is one question, however: If Dale Earnhardt Jr. was not involved, would the fans have booed?

... could any other sport change its rules in the middle of the playoffs and get away with it?

NASCAR's decision to shrink the restrictor plates the day before the race without giving teams even a lap of practice had a lot of people shaking their heads on Saturday.

Didn't teams test at Talladega after the new pavement was put down? Didn't we have some idea that the speeds were going to increase on a new, smoother surface? It's not like there's not precedent. When they repaved Lowe's this year, the speeds went up.

It's hard to imagine another sport making a similar decision. What would happen if Major League Baseball decided to make the ball smaller or the bats smaller the day before the World Series because they feared someone would get hurt? And oh, by the way, we're not going to give you batting or fielding practice before Game 1. Did we mention that?

Of course, the Yankees may have been playing under those rules this weekend.

... can Mark Martin keep Martha Nemechek as a mascot when he goes to the 01 Army car?


We need Martha to keep the uniform on. Credit: Autostock

If you've never been inside the Nextel Cup garage area or out on pit road, let me assure you that there's nothing more entertaining than seeing Joe Nemechek's mother Martha doing her best R. Lee Ermey impression. It shows a bit of personality sorely lacking in NASCAR and it's an interesting tribute to our folks in uniform.

Plus, it always seems to put a smile on your face.

Martha seems very sad that her son's relationship with the Army is ending, but there's no reason she couldn't still follow Mark Martin around next season. Here's hoping she does.

And while we're at it, Mark Martin in the 01 car? Who saw this coming? The only thing I could think while reading the story last week was if some Nextel Cup team could give Martin the opportunity to run all 36 races with the promise of no sponsor commitments and limited media interaction, would he take it?

... what exactly was Allen Bestwick asking Denny Hamlin during Sunday's pre-race?

Thank goodness for Tivo, otherwise there's no way a transcript of this question exists. Bestwick -- who did a remarkable quick change from a jacket and tie to a firesuit following that ADT Sportsdesk thingy -- asked Hamlin the following question shortly afterward:

Why does or does not this race make you any more nervous than any of the others in the Chase?

Amazingly, Hamlin gave a coherent answer. Must be those cookies his mom bakes come with special powers.


.. .what did the folks in Indiana think when Bill Weber announced to the world that Talladega is now Tony Stewart's favorite track?

No more free ice cream for Tony at the Dairy Queen, I guess.

... can Jeff Gordon suffer a DNF without throwing somebody under the bus on the way out?

This just in: Bump-drafting is part of restrictor-plate racing, these days. NASCAR has clearly given the practice the green light. Why not just say "we got involved in someone else's mess. We'll move on to next week."

... what room was that Dale Earnhardt Jr./ Marty Snider interview given in?

Did you see that during the pre-race show? Brick walls, chairs that looked as comfortable as cinder blocks and those annoying table lamps that are just a little bit too bright? Why not just hang a light bulb from the ceiling on a string and put a flashlight in Junior's face?

The opinons expressed are solely of the writer.