Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson and Paul Menard? It won’t take you long to spot the outlier of this group. But, after yesterday’s 18th Running of the Brickyard 400, Menard is allowed to put himself in this exclusive group of Brickyard champions.
This race again was a typical NASCAR race at the Brickyard (minus the first ten laps and the final ten laps). There was no passing and very little action that could keep the casual fan’s attention. In fact, during the race, Dale Jr. actually said over the radio that this place is ONLY for IndyCars.
But, the ending was just great because you didn’t know who would win. For a while, Jamie McMurray came out of nowhere and you thought he would repeat. Then, Menard took the lead, but Gordon was turning lap times much faster than the leader.
The finish reminded me a lot of the 2010 Indy 500 finish. In that race, I could bet that Dario Franchitti would have run out of fuel if the race went another lap or two…Dan Wheldon would have won. In the race yesterday, I could bet that Jeff Gordon would have won if it went another lap or two.
Meanwhile, the crowd, or lack thereof one, was quite noticeable. Never in a million years would I think that the Greatest Racetrack in the World would be forced to close off certain sections of the grandstands because there was that few people who attended an event.
What NASCAR should play off of is that Menard is the 14th different winner already this year. The issue is that a big name didn’t win the race. I think making it about parody instead of promoting the same drivers all the time will benefit the sport if they want to attract new fans and get close to 200,000 people again at the Brickyard.