Dale Earnhardt Jr. on NASCAR’s decline
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- Опубликовано: 4 сен 2018
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. says he is not bothered by a recent decline in NASCAR’s attendance and TV ratings, as he’s certain the sport will eventually rebound. Dale Jr. also says he hopes his contributions as a broadcast commentator will help the popularity of the sport, even if just a little bit.
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Развлечения
NASCAR is the reason that NASCAR is in decline. Stage racing, debris cautions, chase for the cup. They messed with it too much.
v12tommy agree
Good point. I grew up a Bill Elliott fan and saw Chase every year at the fan club meetings. If it wasn’t for Chase I wouldn’t watch anymore.
I see "Awesome Bill" out and about from time to time. Super nice guy.
I agree, I'll still watch part of the races most weeks but it's lost something in my opinion. The stage racing sucks ass and yes they have messed with it way too much.
I keep hearing the same opinion from fans, I barely watch anymore unless the race is on Saturday night
Of course he’s not concerned now. He has $350 million reasons why.
You are correct
How is his networth so high? Did he inherit his dad's wealth because he does not seem like the Michael Schumacher of Nascar to me.
Also he's not gonna say something bad! Why? He works for nascar in the booth they still employee him lol
@@whispercars306 , no his step Mom got most of Sr.'s money, Jr. Was a highly paid driver due to his popularity and PR campaign and not to mention sold a crapload of souvenirs and had an instant fan following from his Dad
Radar1310 what’s he going to say? NASCAR ownership is incompetent?
One car per team owner would be a start. Owning six cars and blocking for one guy is not racing.
David 1167 the charter system is total BS.
The whole sport is a mess
One rich guy owning multiple cars should have never been allowed.
@David 1167 They're* and they're*
Six cars plus associations with smaller teams! Nascar needs to get way way smaller! Shorter seasons plus get rid of all the cookie-cutter race tracks! Get back to your roots!! Plus make qualifying mean something if you don't qualify you don't race! Make it like a Saturday night short track racing! You can run the bigger tracks but once a season, not multiple times a year. They have over-saturated us it's boring it used to be awesome! Thx one love y'all😁😁😁🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🙈🙉🙊
Get back to STOCK CARS, win on Sunday, sell on Monday. There is no stock in the cars anymore.
@Ethan Weeter I mostly agree, however I think one of the things that helped sustain and grow their popularity is that the cars they used, or at least looked like, WERENT sports cars like Mustang/Camaro and now Supra (ironically, the street version isnt even a Toyota to begin with.) They were your every day drivers of the time like a Grand Prix or Thunderbird or Monte Carlo. The reason 'win Sunday/sell Monday' worked is because you could walk into a showroom and actually recognize just like you could walk down the street and recognize.
They were the family car.
How many families are using a Mustang or Camaro as their primary transport? Guessing not many. With Ford abandoning all cars outside the Mustang/Fiesta and Chevy being known for making pretty crappy cars outside of the Camaro, this psychological hook is gone, and probably for good.
Nascar the last few years had the SS for Chevy. Nobody had any idea what it was. Never 1 commercial about it . But at the time was the only production rear wheel drive car out of the 3 in Nascar. Now the SS is discontinued and here comes the Camaro. It hasn't been stock car racing in a looooong time
@@brianp2707 To my knowledge, outside of the very recent past, the Camaro has NO stock car racing pedigree. The Camaro/Firebird were road racers as was the Mustang. In their heyday, the Ford NASCAR counterpart was the Galaxie 500/Torino Talladega, and Chevy wasnt even in the sport.
@@snappy452 I was referring to rear wheel drive. The Toyota has the Camry and up until 2017 Ford had the Fusion. Both front wheel drive.
snappy452 yeah they were only pace cars until now
The reason it is down is the Chase. Put it back to where a winner is whoever has the most points at the end of the season, people will return.
If only that were it. The quality of racing is poor, the drivers have no personality, the broadcasts are obnoxious as heck and oh by the way NONE of those cars look like their street counterparts.
The best things NASCAR had going for it were its rich history and blue collar star power, where a guy like Tiny Lund could go from pit crew member to Daytona 500 champ on the same day. Boy, did they smother both.
I hate the Chase. But the reason they did it was because they want wins. Kenneth won the last title before the Chase. He had 0 wins but 0 DNFs. They wanted excitement and wins. Just like baseball now with 5000 home runs a year.
@@brianp2707 And thats how we end up with Austin Dillon's attempted murder to win the 2017 Daytona 500. Fans appreciate consistency. Chasing the casual fan dollar with manufactured drama is always a bad idea.
Oh man! I so agree with you. I long for the day when NASCAR officials get their collective heads out of their collective butts and get rid of that abominable chase. In every other motor sport, the driver who garners the most points throughout the season wins the championship. It's that simple! Why can't NASCAR understand this? The introduction of the chase, or whatever it was called, is when it all started going downhill, but NASCAR officials have gone out of their way to deny that it's a failed gimmick.
@@snappy452 attempted murder really this is the problem with NASCAR. The true race fans left NASCAR years ago and now we're left with people like this
No more playoffs! This isn’t hockey or baseball, just race boys!
i miss the old format now even the nhra has adopted that
I agree wholeheartedly with this statement.
Peak of NASCAR was 2000-2008. Back when teams had more freedom in how they could tune the cars and wrecks that weren’t life threatening but still spectacular. Still remember the double 0 finishing a race upside down on the grass
I didn’t watch a single race during that 2000-2008 period but between 2000-2004 I had every nascar video game, a coupe nascar die cast cars, and a couple leather racing jackets. The sport was just incredibly popular during that time for whatever reason. Everyone in the world knew who Jeff Gordon was even if you never saw a race
Having a networth of over 300 million makes it EASY to say-"I am not really concerned "....
That's a short sighted comment.
Well he worked for if you ever was a dale jr fan you’d know i mean least he ant like bubba wallace cry baby’s his way around so there
That’s not true at all! Give me $300 million and I’ll prove it.
This is exactly what was said about CART. They collapsed in under 10 years.
Another RUclipsr compared NASCAR in 2018 to CART 2001 to 2003. The only advantage NASCAR has is there is no rival stock car series in the U.S. right now.
CART shot themselves in the foot, owners got greedy and stupid decisions were made, shame because it was an amazing series.
@@Mario_Ramirez Every series in their final days shoot themselves in the foot. They saw no one coming to oval races so they went to the European market. CART was still popular overseas. Like extremely popular but they died even when they still got 50k people at the races. Series die regardless of if you shoot yourself in the foot.
this was what was exactly said about n2k3 and the exe mods your fat ass is making. n2k3 online collapsed in under a year.
i cannot wait till you get sued for copyrights. that will be a day to celebrate greatly.
1:46 - Let's see how well that quote ages
B O I
Starkill3r -- *Citation needed.
Starkill3r -- Is that one of your hobbies?
Starkill3r -- Good boy.
I was thinking the same thing. Someone in NASCAR once said 'NASCAR is recession-proof.'
Is that so??
This is what happens when you get complacent and just take for granted that the sport will just always stay popular.
I have always been a Jr. fan, but I highly disagree with his statements. Nascar drivers have become neutered and terrified to say anything against the establishment of the France family. I have been a Nascar fan for 30 years. I live only an hour away from Daytona Beach, but have not been to a race in years. As the old saying goes.... "If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it". They became too politically correct and too controlled by corporate America. Year to year now you have no idea what the series is going to be called... What the points system is going to be... What new rules they will have. They stopped allowing racers to be racers. Too many fines and regulations. Every car basically being identical to one another. Too much restrictor plate nonsense. Ticket and concession prices being WAY too high. Hell, even to park at Daytona for a race you are forking out at least $60. I could go on and on..... Nascar has gotten too big for it's britches and way too greedy. We used to live for going to the races. All series of Nascar. Frankly, it just isn't worth the trouble and money anymore. Maybe if Nascar decides get back to it's roots maybe the thousands of fans it has lost will start to have a change of heart. They are on a very slippery slope. Jr. knows that... Just afraid of telling it like it really is. As much respect I have for Jr. He and many others need to face the reality of what has happened and what is going to happen if Nascar doesn't wake up. Til then......
I agree. Who can do more than one race.
Parking, travel expenses, hotel cost, food, souvenirs, merchandise. I can only do Watkins Glen and that's it.
That's it Kevin. They have priced it out of popularity, along with messing with it to the point the true fan is left behind to satisfy the whims of the fickle, short attention span public. It grew too big for its britches and in trying no to let go, has abandoned what made it great in the 90's - RACING without gimmicks!
Very well put
@Topspeed350 Dale would give corporate Nascar the middle finger, and Jr. realizes that.
I like to add that young boys growing up in the 60's loved their cars and spend hours tuning them up. Friday night everybody had to parade the cars down main street. Cars these days are impossible to work on with all the emission crap. How many boys could even change their oil? They're all wrapped up in "video" games. 😏😏🙄❓❓
NASCAR has become a four hour infomercial, who the hell wants to see that?
For Toyota
Im not a nascar fun but....Nascar got too big for itself. And once Corp America got involved massively it was marketed outside of its base and shoved down the throats of television audiences.
Bottom line. Tickets cost too damn much. Too much Television and marketing and too little racing.
More racing less bullshit
!Darwin Carey That dog’ll hunt! Seriously, in total agreement with you. Way too much PC and politics in Motorsports today and subsequently has all but ruined what once was a gladiator showdown between racers willing to put it all on the line for victory. Pathetic!
Gray Sinclair Both well said!😎✌️👍
Gray Sinclair and Darwin agree 100%
also the custom race car cost to much to build. it not even stock car racing.
NASCAR is going to be back very soon, i'm a NASCAR fan who hasn't been watching a full season but there's going to be some changes that will bring it back out of that hole.
They need to bring back having ONE main sponsor and consistent car paint scheme. Dale Jr. was the bud car. Dale Sr was the Goodwrench man. Bobby Labonte interstate batteries. Ricky craven was tide. Jeff Gordon dupont. Having the consistent personality of car on the track you instantly know and recognize who is in the car. I still miss all of those drivers and their cars back in the 90s when I was a kid.
RIP Dale SR.
NASCAR is boring to watch these days, it’s simple as that. They did it to themselves. Put em out there in stock cars and people will start watching again, something they can relate to
I agree the days of yesterday were great! But it would be too dangerous and boring to watch a REAL Stockcar present day. There is nothing to the chassis or body of cars today. I guess you could modify them slightly, but would it still be STOCKCARS?
I quit going and watching after Dale Sr left....it will never be the same without him..Sr wasn't afraid to stand up to anyone in or out of the car...he was a man's man...
Ehh. I think concern is warranted.
denial or padding his job security?
Denial
Yeah i think dale jr is padding his job i disagree with his take on NASCAR it's boring! Stage type racing alot of the big names in racing have retired danica gordon DW mark martin Ernie ervin rusty wallace among other great drivers.
I think Dale is a guy who values integrity and loyalty. NASCAR was good to him and gave him the chance at the life he wanted to pursue, then paid him handsomely for it. He also still races as an owner in Xfinity. Just my opinion, but I don't think Dale wants to turn and bite the hand that has kept him fed for so long.
Sterling Crockett his step mom treated him bad as well.
Both. NASCAR is Dale Jr’s financial livelihood and he knows it.
Ratings dont bother me, no one showing up doesn’t bother me 😂😂
Exactly ! ....really ?
Jr., cmon man... you're kidding, right? The sport is in a death spiral!
It bothers the fans... it bothers the fans when Brian France is clearly destroying the sport and nobody wants to talk about it. He gets caught doing drugs and the Nascar media decides once again that the best way to cover it, is to just not talk about it. It's not very responsible journalism. I watched the other clips where he was super honest about everything. Ask about Nascar's decline... COMPLETE DENIAL mode!!!
Basically nascar had what I would call Similar to a "oil field " boom in the mid to late 90s and it peaked around 2005 once the temporary fans and sponsors left the sport has returned to what it was in the 80s as far as attendance and viewership goes similar to the oil field booms come and goes
Yes, but what did NASCAR do to contribute to those declining numbers? It didn't just happen, they screwed around with every possible area they could trying to attract newer fans, when they already had a huge base. Now they've got the same number of old & new fans, but the base is around a third, maybe a fourth of what it used to be.
K Ben24 i used to watch every race, from a kid in the early 80's till the early 2000's when they changed the points system. That was the deal breaker for me. Not seen one since, you used to be able to tell the difference between cars too (ford, chevy), now they all look the same.
WWE best explains what's happening here, remember before the PG era? Now they tried catering to a different audience with PG era and they no long pack arenas and sales are at a new low ;) and still dropping btw
The-Frantic: I was going to compare WWE to NASCAR and how they both are in trouble with ratings because when you go woke you go broke and don’t fix things that aren’t broken. NASCAR faking hate crimes and trying to draw a new audience (non white). WWE hires two BLM females who have openly admitted to hating white people (they were hired by Stephanie). Notice how theirs no charisma anymore in both companies? Listen how boring NASCAR press conferences or interviews are, listen how boring WWE promo’s are. Tony Stewart needs to buy NASCAR, smoke isn’t politically correct and will tell it how it is.
I for the most part agree with him that the sport will continue to be around but I also say things have to change and they have to change fast. When the defending cup series championship team has to shut its doors at the end of the season because they can’t afford to be competitive that’s a red flag. Let’s put the stock back in stock car racing
Agreed. They need to get back to some old school basics.
Historically in NASCAR, there has only been 8 or 10 cars in the field with a real chance at winning. I'd say maybe half the field would qualify as "competitive". What we have in today's NASCAR isn't much different. It's always been about funding. Not being able to afford to stay competitive isn't a new problem.
Look at any top level motorsport and you'll find the same thing. I'm not defending NASCAR. Please don't misunderstand. I'm only pointing out, this has nothing to do with "today's NASCAR" vs "old school NASCAR". It's economics.
NASCAR has tried to help with keeping costs down for teams. Doing things like, limiting tires for the weekend and race. Eliminating the ability to test at tracks. No longer doing 3 days at the track at most places and going to some combination of one day of practice and one day of qualifying and practice. All of these were a definite advantage for teams with more funding. They've limited rear end gearing. The list goes on and on.
I'm not saying NASCAR is perfect. Far from it. I'm just pointing out that although the sport is ever evolving, some things stay the same, and they always will. It's just part of competition at the highest level(s).
Dale may not care if theres 10,000 fans at daytona, but tv, media, sponsors, manufacturers would care. Hes a car owner. He knows without sponsor money its over. Drivers from the jeff gordon era on became rich from being in the right place right time.
One contributing factor... Fox's BAD decision to air races on their cable channel (FS1) excludes many, many fans including me. I haven't been able to watch one single race this season.
Even the Almighty Dale Earnhardt Jr, doesn't want to talk about the ELEPHANT in the room!!!!!
NASCAR to Dale Earnhardt Jr. upon seeing this clip “thanks kid, your check is in the mail...”
I was a NASCAR fan for 40+ years. Went to a few races a year, Bought die cast cars, driver merchandise, watched on TV. They lost me with changing the format. If they go back to points, no chase. If they go back to timed qualifying one car at a time. If they go back to endurance racing and stop segment racing. I'd return as a fan. NASCAR is losing big time sponsors, they no longer race at popular tracks. Pretty confident Dale Jr. will look back at this interview in 20 years and say man I was wrong. My understanding is Ford is stopping car production and just building trucks. GM is on the decline. Dodge left a couple decades ago.
Did you expect Dale to bash NASCAR? He will never say the things his dad would have. No rebel here.
That was like hearing a friend tell you they had cancer but they are just going to ride it out because “it’s gonna come around”
Good Lord dale what a naïve position to take
Listen how he says it will "circle back to the good." He is acknowledging it's bad now, but remember, he is still on the payroll.
Graham, you know with him being an employee of NBC, who covers races in the second half of the season, he can’t be negative! Jr. was around when the garage was empty because when him & I were little, fans didn’t have the access to that area. When they did have that access in the last 80’s into the 90’s, you had to know someone inside or work for a company that had a deal in place with NASCAR. I know because we wanted to get pit passes to Bristol in the early 90’s & the ticket agent told us those are not for the general public!!
Is Jr. worried deep down about the sport, yes!! He has let it slip on occasions how he doesn’t like things they are doing. He said he doesn’t like the one lug nut but diverted that conversation fast!!! All the teams, drivers, tv personal & even those working inside NASCAR are worried!!
Next season is really the telling tale for NASCAR!! The schedule & this new car are going to help or be the final nail in the coffin of NASCAR!! If the schedule sucks like this new car is looking like, then stands will be more empty & ratings will plummet!! If this is the final design of the new car like NASCAR is saying & the manufacturers can’t really make the cars look like street versions, don’t be surprised if two of the three pull backing like they threatened to do a few years back!!
Those TV ratings are not averaging 4 million a race!! The networks look at those things when it comes to these deals. They also look at attendance for these events & if no one is interested, then they won’t spend a lot of money!!
I just hope some how a new series gets started that will return stock car racing to what it should be, racing!!
Nascar will hit bottom while you're still alive Jr. Trust me on this one.
I quit watching when they gave Goodyear a monopoly. A loooong time ago Hoosier had competitive tires and Nascar slammed the door on them.
Hoosier pulled out, then NASCAR made Goodyear the official tire of NASCAR. Only after Hoosier pulled and and left them hanging that season when the tires were really struggling.
Stop the 3 stage crap
Nascar is it's own worst enemy. They were on top of the world and still growing. It is hard to believe that something that big and successful could be screwed up so badly.
The day they allowed multi - car teams was the start of the slow death. Racing use to be every man for himself. Teammates on a stock car racing track? Racing was cool because the little guy had a chance. Remember Al Kulwicki. A man who could drive, set up his own car and run the team. That could never happen today due to big money, no teammates to help him on the track and an endless number of changes to the rules.
I think Dale Sr. would have survived that race in Daytona had it not been for team racing. He was blocking for his teammates, Michael Waltrip and Dale Jr., when he caused that wreck. Team racing cost Nascar their number one man.
Dale Jr. had a chance to help save racing. He has said his drinking caused him not to reach his full potential. Harvick called him out for his lack of effort, saying Jr. was the cause of Nascar's demise. Dale Jr. sounds like he does not really care one way or another, because Nascar will always be around. It's easier to be a commentator and a social media star than a champion. The fan's favorite does not seem to care, so why should the fans care? He looks like his old man, but that is about it...
They stopped racing at the small tracks due to money. The new tracks are great for single file racing and were great for increased revenue. One good thing about today's Nascar is that there are always good seats available.
Stage racing was installed to try to squeeze blood out of a turnip. Stage racing was not introduced to try to save racing. It was installed to sell advertising, t-shirts, hot dogs and beer.
The good ol'boys of Nascar are only worried about themselves, not the future of their sport. Unfortunately for Nascar, the defending Champion's team is not part of the good ol'boy network so they can't afford to continue after this year. That is embarrassing. What's worse is their seven time champ cannot find a sponsor.
Slow deaths are hard to watch.
1
Multi team owners have been around for a long time, just go back and look at JD Stacy. I remember him having 7 cars in one race. Jack Rousch was the last owner who had 5 cars and Nascar cut it down that you could not own more than 4. The downfall started when they started building those cookie cutter tracks out west. They just stopped caring about the fans that made them what they were. I gew up an hour from Bristol and can still remember when there was a 5 year wait list to get tickets. I gave up on the sport for good in 2010, haven't watched a single lap since. My first race was at Bristol in 1973 at the age of 9. Ol' Cale led every lap. I doubt I will ever watch another race.
I was a NASCAR fan since my childhood in the 70s. But, to be honest, nowadays, I get more excited over watching a guy racing a handful of marbles in a trench he dug down a sandy trail than over anything NASCAR.
LMFAO! A few mins of excitement is our attention span now.
Total BS from JR! He has a vested interest in the sport as a team owner, I’m sure his sponsors wouldn’t appreciate that he agrees with the commentator about NASCAR decline especially when he’s pitching his sales pitch to sponsors!
I couldn't care less about racing, but you're spouting BS Dale. Don't tell me empty stadiums and dramatically declining ratings don't matter. They matter a whole lot.
They don’t matter to HIM as he has more money then most of us have ever dreamed
Hmm, I'm about 15 years older than Jr and I know he's been there week in and week out. But I don't remember grandstands being empty at any track from the mid 80's to 2001. As a matter a fact, at some tracks back in that era sold more tickets to qualifying then actual race tickets at those same tracks today. The front stretch at Charlotte on 600 pole night basically filled the front Street. But this interview kind of confirms the issue with NASCAR. The upper management and brightest stars are blind to anything being wrong.
Was Brian France telling you to say this?
I'm not advocating going back to a "stock" car, but going back to something that at least resembles something that a manufacturer builds would be a good start. In other words, throw out about half the templates and have some diversity in the cars. Also, throw out most of the newer rules and gimmicks (the chase, etc..) and go back to racing. The cars have gotten so expensive that sponsorship are drying up and ticket prices are outrages.
the fact that none of the troubles and problems "don't bother me" talk directly to the problem....the France family left the South with stars in their eyes and ignored their roots......"don't bother me" that our original fans are being left behind for the trendy new ones. Well now the trendy fans have moved on and there's nothing left.....NASCAR will continue to decline and will become irrelevant......too bad that doesn't bother Dale JR!!!!
I think you misunderstood his point.
Dale was saying he's been around racing when everyone wanted to watch and before when almost nobody wanted to watch, for him it doesn't really matter; it's the racing that matters more.
He wasn't saying NASCAR is perfect, he wasn't saying there aren't problems to address, he was saying that for him, TV numbers and attendance figures aren't a good barometer for the sport, the quality of the racing is.
At least that's how I took it.
@@Im18nowletmewatch no, you misunderstood his point.
Does anyone think it would bother him if he was not already very financially secure?(to put it mildly) No sweat off his back
“A lie with a purpose is one of the worst kind, and the most profitable”.
OMG the interviewer just looks at JR likes he’s full of $hit.
Not American but have lived here for over 30 years - never been a NASCAR fan but would watch it occasionally - F1 guy from childhood.
Fix NASCAR ideas:
Get rid of the Car of Tomorrow idea of cookie cutter cars. Obviously you need some formula but relax it from the current nonsense.
Get rid (and this has been a problem for decades) of the stupid points system giving way too many points to way too many finishers. That doesn't reward consistency it rewards mediocrity. Go to a simple system such as 25 for a win, 15 for second, 10 for third, 5 for fourth, 3 for fifth and 1 for sixth. No points for fastest laps, mid race sprints etc.
You don't need a debris caution for a piece of Scotch tape on the track. It's artificial nonsense to create a faked close race. NASCAR is about as close to WWE as you can get sometimes.
Scrap about half of the newish and seemingly cloned speedways. Bring back some of the old tracks with character in the traditional heart of the sport.
Don't allow teams to bring in ringers for road courses because some of the good old boys can't drive properly.
Revamp the TV coverage so it isn't aimed at 10 year olds or inbreds. We don't need Waltrips boogity silliness. Had a relative over from England one time - he couldn't believe the childish coverage NASCAR gets compared to the serious F1 coverage back home.
Reduce prices for the events. I had loads of friends who used to attend events in the early 90's. None of them go anymore - usually for a combo of the reasons above but mainly for cost.
Grant Jones, You seem to have a lot of opinions about NASCAR for someone who isn't a fan and only watches occasionally.
You would rather watch a series where the same two teams and drivers win every single race? F1 is the biggest sham in all of racing. Period
I agree with most of what you said except for the simple points 1st 2nd 3rd etc, and tv announcers, It has always been a country southern themed sport sense it’s creation why compare apples to oranges an say words like childish and inbred. Points for that will have same effect on the racing as it does now with the same guys on the podium every boring race. Need something like overtake points so the underdogs in the back every week might see running top 5 or 10 just so they might have a shot for a championship. Wonder how many potentially great drivers through the years rode in the back making passes driving there ass off week in an week out but are plagued by low funds.
@@fsca72 I seriously disagree. Up until FOX/NBC took over, NASCAR coverage was very journalistic. Sure, it had a relaxed atmosphere, unlike F1, but the reporters were reporters and the commentators were pros. For someone who fell in love with the league in the 90s, the broadcasts today are insulting. ESPN/CBS/Turner would go through the nuts and bolts of racing with you, unlike today where theyre content to throw the nuts and bolts at you and call it confetti.
Used to be a dyed in the wool NASCAR fan but now just F1.
Unfortunately for INDY Car, they dropped the track which had the most exciting race I have ever seen since the mid 1950s. Get a copy of the last INDY Car Fontana race and see what real racing is all about.
Seems the drivers did not like the constant action at Fontana.
-Of course if he told the truth he would lose his job as the broadcasting host.-
Why is this crossed out and how do you do that!?
How can you not be concerned about the ratings and fan attendance?
NASCAR began to die with the death of Earnhardt Sr.
I'm not stating a cause/effect... just the timing.
The stupid rules like:
-"Lucky Dog" (If you want your lap back, earn it!)
-Throwing the yellow flag every time a bird shits on the track... and even for no reason whatsoever except to bunch up the cars so they crash. "Yellow begets yellow... so let's throw more yellow!"
-And... playoffs.... really?
I try to watch. But watching cars race for one or two laps and then pace around for ten or more yellow flag laps is just boring.
Not to mention 5 min repair rule after a wreck. Or the "go to the garage and youre out of the race" rule. Just stupid.
I agree with you Dale, NASCAR lost so much when Earnhardt Sr. died.
Dale VanCleef the playoffs are amazing shut the fuck up
The Lucky Dog is fine otherwise with the pit strategies and stuff like that only 5-10 cars will finish on the lead lap. The damage repair clock, the caution every time they finish a stage, the playoff points, and the uncontrolled tire penalties and a few other little things would make the sport better.
They brought the lucky dog in after they stopped allowing guys to race back to the yellow flag. That one I don't mind. Plus they're still earning it, but between themselves as lappers and not the leader.
The decline started the day they decided the best driver overall through the year was not necessarily going to be the champion. I hated it, along with most other true fans that understood the concept. I lived with it because they still raced.
My last race was the 500 with the stages, I said never again until they went back to square one. Lose the plates, lose the dumb playoff system, the stages, and make it so the best driver wins the championship, and I might come back. Not until then.
Dale jr is my second favorite all time after Dale Jarret, but he is out of touch with what is happening, fans are leaving in droves.
Maybe he doesn't care because he is sitting on his millions, I probably wouldn't care either.
It’s unfortunate how many people feel the opposite. It sucks seeing what used to be my favorite sport just absolutely failing and catering to the whiny fanbase every single year. Constant changes after changes. I can’t take it anymore and it really bothers me because I love this sport.
GT1Man: Trust me he feels the same way, and he’s not doing it to tow a line tho. He’s just one those people who don’t like to cause riffs.
Most people didnt hate the original chase. And the old point system was stupid because the season is way too long. If you dont want the chase make the season 26 races
When Dale no longer drove the #8 car, that's when it started to decline.....imho of course.
bansheebot2 I gave up then too. That red number 8 was beautiful and iconic.
That's not what killed it though. What Killed it was constant dumb rule changes and constant dumb point system changes (the chase and the playoff).
As a fan the attendance is a problem. The fact 100,000 use to show up on Friday and you can’t get that on Sunday anymore is a problem. Then the viewing audience is down just as much. That’s revenue the sport needs that it’s not getting back.
Just because the famous person says something doesn't necessarily make it true. Sadly Benny Parsons is gone, a very good announcer, and so is NASCAR.
Eleven years have passed and STILL they haven't found anyone even close to the level of charm and charisma of 'ol BP. He was so personable, passionate, knowledgeable and above all authentic. He is SORELY missed.
I agree! The best commentator group ever was Allen Bestwick, Wally and Benny.
a7racing Besides Bob and Ned too
go back to the Original points system and drop the chase BS would be a start
i lost a lot of interest once the Chase was implemented.
Dale jr. is my 7th cousin once removed.
my great grandmother was an Earnhardt.
I was at Bristol 3 days too late to meet #3, when he held a meet and greet a few years before he died.
Keep the safer cars, but wreck the aero on them.
END THE GODAWFUL CHASE.
Look at a 1996 rule book in terms of how a race is to be conducted and how to arrive at a champion, go with that. Allow them to race back to the line again, unless the reason for the caution is at start/finish.
Do those things and I might care again. Used to watch every lap of every race. Now, I might tune in 3x a season. The races don't have a lot of meaning anymore unless it's the chase... and the chase is contrived fake hype BS.
As a race fan
When JR says not concerned about no one showing up to watch you race
Well excuse me but where will $ come from?
Why sponsor?
Its all about $$$$$
I think we should have a CANNONBALL RUN type racing > You can race anything you want no rules or punishment points .They should race on Indy type tracks like street racing .
What's best for the sport is going to be 100% in line with what the fans want.
Thank you for this interview. Dale Earnhardt Jr is one of the best interviews in sports.
Sadly since Jr works for a network he can't tell the real truth. I can't imagine track owners and car sponsors don't care that the stands are empty and TV ratings
are headed south.
In the early '70s, tobacco money propelled NASCAR to heights it never could have reached otherwise. The loss of that revenue, i.e. the end of the WINSTON Cup was a sure sign that the series would be coming back to earth, whether they want it to or not.
That's what we said about AMA Superbike racing in the early 2000's , Supercross in the late 90's, Indy car racing in the 80's. While these series have made it through to today (AMA superbike is now MotoAmerica) it wasn't without times of near certain death. Anything can go away if mismanaged.
He doesn't take it personally but what about the rest of us NASCAR is all done because of attitudes like this. He talks and acts so naive what a joke.
I think we should go back to a stock car, let's put a cage in the zl1 Camaro and the other cars and go racing. let's make them run what the car is on the street. We'd have better cars and better packages for cars also.
NASCAR was at the height of its popularity when it ran the gen 4 which, other than the COT, was about as far from a truly "stock" car as we could get.
I see this "just run street cars" argument everywhere and it doesn't hold any water. At all. And who cares if they came out with certain option packages or trim levels. Everyone's broke af. The average fan can't even afford to attend a race let alone buy a brand new sports car.
Jake from State Farm ....well actually the idea has some merit........running a ‘stock bodied’ sedan with certain rules, limits, and safety requirements, and maybe even a mostly factory engine with a high production number requirement would put the racing development back onto the manufacturers plate. You want your brand to win on Sunday? Build a decent performance sedan with required characteristics that can compete, and recruit a top team or driver to put it up front. I like racing, I don’t like seeing who gets lucky with the car setup. I want to see them race each other, drive the car, like Mark Martin did- no matter how good or poor his car was, somehow he’d most often pull off a top ten and he even raced ‘clean.’
That was sorta the draw of iroc to me- the drivers had to drive each other, race each other, make what they were given work. Of course too much sameness consistently is boring, which is what nascar has become on many tracks today.
The other issue is unrelateability of drivers these days. They’ve become stars, scooting in and out of tracks unseen and insulated from the public. In another form of racing, I remember in my twenties seeing John Force casually walking through the pits and chatting with fans, wandering by the stands and taking conversation up with strangers between rounds. I hear he still does this today. No matter what you think of him it isn’t hard to say this wasn’t a huge boon to his and nhra’s popularity with the fans. Nascar could use a whole lot more relateability and appearances. Like Tony Stewart quietly running local race tracks before that kid was killed. Or Robby Gordon- just always racing something somewhere. Or Ward Burton running heats at a small local track in a local team’s spare car just for fun.
Running a more stock vehicle as developed by the manufacturers probably would increase relateability.
Matthew Guilford I had a similar thought. Race “stock cars” with modifications being limited to: All necessary Safety equipment; wheels/tires; suspension (but must use stock mounting points); brakes; intake/exhaust; engine mapping; glass replacement; and parts removal (lights, seats, carpet, etc). And just go race those fuckers. Would never happen, but I know I’d watch.
Kinda like Trans Am was?
@@jens9829 nothing like trans am, general motors built the trans am just for that series and then they changed the rules. Nascar needs to go back to you drive a Camaro then let's put that number on the side and let go, sorry your camry isn't fast enough I guess you'll have to build a V8 rear wheel drive version
Great interview Graham, I hope you can get a Jeff Gordon interview one day.
Here is something. If you want to stage race don't have a mandatory caution after each stage.
I grew up on the 1/4 mile track. Racing is racing it's not going away.
What could possibly be wrong with a bunch of cars that look identical going the same speed with a bunch of premadonnas driving like children?
Haha yep.
NASCAR needs to head south. Literally!! They abandoned their southern roots and now their chickens have come home to roost.
Awards in NYC, no rebel flags, saying ethanol is good, do I need to go on?
Cool. My 2 cents is run it like a local Saturday night show. Top 10 in the standings run a trophy dash and simplify the chase to the top ten. Invert the field for the main event.
A Year Later... Nascar Disrespected the wrong people. It will never cycle back as good as it was...
Start watching IMSA, a hole bunch of different cars in the same race is fun to watch.
NASCAR grew in the 80s an 90s because of the drivers. Dale Sr Rusty Mark Martin Davey Allison. Fans were passionate about My Driver. Today's drivers just don't generate that appeal. I still will watch a race now and then on tv but it's not like back in the day when you get together with friends and everyone is cheering their guy on and busting each others balls when somebody else's guy wrecks out. I still attend Watkins Glen every year only because it's a half hour drive from my front door and a free ticket. I could care less who wins!
I believe that NASCAR has lost touch with its blue collar fan base, it's true fan, tickets are pricey and lodgings as well.
IMO the cars are of a boring exercise in cookie cutting. My solution? SIMPLE. The body in white. The newer Mustang, Camaro, Challenger are rear wheel driven and could be made, now get this.....into actual race cars again! Thaaaat's right! Yes it will slow the cars down, say to 185 Or 190 mph max. They could use various aerodynamic aids within certain Cd parameters. And did I mention that they would use production based power plants?
That's how NASCAR wins on Sunday and car
N/A It sure would be cool wouldn't it?! They could still use the 9 inch Ford axle and a comparable transmission to get the power down.
You are one of the few to see my vision and agree with it.
It's so simple too.
N/A Also, it brings Mopar back. However, Toyota would have to come up with a proper car to compete with.
Yes yes and yes
Yup give the name "stock car" a meaning again ;)
Thanks guys! I've presented this on a few other channels and didn't get much feedback but when this part of this interview came about I really though it was the best time to break it out again.
I'm glad to see it go. I would much rather watch an exciting game of golf or telemarketers showing us their verbal skills.
Its boring. I dont care if jimmy johnson beats kurt busch in the daytona 500. Its all about the cars. Who makes the fastest car, ford, chev, dodge. Nascar totally lost the very fundamentals of STOCK car racing. They are all the same now dont matter what the stickers say
I think some of NASCAR’s turn down is really about it flying too high in the first place. Attendance and viewership could get better of course, but now it’s being measure based by its highest point, and I don’t think that is realistic.
He may not be concerned, but NASCAR certainly is. That explains why NASCAR went in at all their tracks and replaced the upper level bench seats with individual seats of different colors. From the long shots on camera those stands will look full, even when the stands are only half full.
paraphrased "What conversation can we have with Nascar to have a better outcome for the sport". First, it seems as though they don't care what people have to say. Their disfunction over the last 6-7yrs suggests that. Smoke did an interview and said him and a bunch of other drivers sat down with executives around 2014/15 and told them exactly what is needed to make the sport better and they were laughed at and told that they were going to do the exact opposite of what was suggested by an exec that had no Nascar or racing experience in his life.
"It will cycle back to the good" - talk about head in the sand ... This guy sounds like an idiot. Not trolling. But if attendance is down, and viewing figures are down, investment decline will follow. That can't be good.
“This guy” is one of the most well known NASCAR drivers in recent history. And what he said is true. Even if there is a long decline, a reverse is in order unless the entire sport is retired.
Jr.is without a doubt one very classy man, and if there was one individual who could possibly carry the torch for the intimidator, only one man could truly do it,and that was Jr.
I'm 74 years old, I'm a handshake man who believes that the handshake is the contract more truer than any written word,and Jr. Is a like man.
I love NASCAR. I watch all aspects of it. Look forward to it every weekend. NASCAR will always have a core following. Today more than ever has more distractions and choices of entertainment. People don’t seem to have much of a attention span. It’s not just NASCAR it’s all sports.
He made his money while the gravy train was there there so what does he care.
WOW! That was in depth!
Coming from a guy who hasn't watched a race in 10 years, I will never return to the sport even if they changed everything back to the old days. The sport has been passed up. The damaged is too severe to return. The sport is....just boring in this day and age.
People thought Blockbuster will never go bankrupt...
For me, it's about the lack of factory sheet metal. No more COT and all spec chassis's that are the same inside and out. Inside-sure safety, outside it needs to look like a brand with recognizable shape, etc.. It needs to be factory sheet metal and the same brand motor. I don't care if the engine is from the truck division or whatever. But I need to see factory iron or it's not "Stock Car Racing" ...
I agree, but the problem with that is, the factory cars all look the same now too, or at least so similar you can't tall them apart from a distance, plus they're ALL ugly designs. 😑
NASCAR announcers should emphasize that fans get off their butts, put down their smart phones, and at least attend local races. Watching on TV is nothing compared to being a few feet away from the track as super late models or sprint cars with 800-900 hp go roaring by. Being at races is person is awesome.
Jimbo Elrod so true. Went to my first NASCAR race ever at pocono in June and it was unbelievable
Jimbo Elrod x##
Same here, my son and I went to our 1st race at Dover earlier this year, blew us away. Seeing the cars race in person is an exciting and awesome experience. And all the fun activities outside the track is a blast, almost like a fair grounds.
It’s too expensive to show up now.
Agreed, but a lot of fans live nowhere near a racetrack. Fortunately I live about 30 minutes away from an awesome dirt track in Natural Bridge, but not everyone has that privilege.
He is right about cyclical support .. your local restaurant..bar ..harley Davidson .. people that follow it after decades need to take a break .. if the product stayed the same many people would say the same things ..not all but many ..they tried some new things .. some might work ..others not .. best thing that happened to me ... NFL started kneeling nascar got to commercial .. that meant I got off my ass on a Sunday and lived life ... spent more time doing the important things .. for me anyway.. I'm sure others feel completely opposite
I love Jr. but his not being worried about 10,000 people in the stands & TV ratings being down down doesn’t make me confident that NASCAR is going to survive. The whole “I Can’t Breathe” & “I Stand With Bubba” fiascoes are just that... fiascoes. The owners and the drivers can say “we don’t care what our fans think” all the way to the parts store.
BTW Jr., you gotta valve lifter set for a 2002 Buick Regal back there...?”
Yeah Its just extremely sad to see the sport in that condition.
Love Dale Jr in the booth..
Get rid of the restrictor plates.
back the old point system because if they had the old point system running Junior would have got a championship at least one Jeff Gordon would have won two more championships under the old point system I did the math with my dad one year Junior would have won a championship under the old point system so bring back the old point system hell with this playoff s***
To me, it should be every driver for themselves. Not to say teams aren't bad. But, it is like to me when teams are involved. It dictates who is favored to win. Not giving every driver a chance to win. Not to say in certain ways that it is bad. But, it takes away the thrill of who has a good chance to win. Still like watching it. But, improvements could help.
Again, The best interviewer! Period!😎✌️✌️👍👍
Went to three Nascar races at three different tracks during its heyday. You could see back then the whole sport was a bubble that would eventually burst. I would guess that only 40-50% of the crowd consisted of true fans. About 10% were people like me that got freebies from their employer and were invited to a hospitality tent. The other 30-40% were people that were just there to party and take in the whole scene. 2008 rolls around and companies cut back and stop giving away freebies. Empty seats start to appear. Then the people that are going to party aren't as impressed anymore and they stop going. Nowadays, the only people going are the true fans.
Love your interviews, always look forward to seeing more! Also grab a crystal Pepsi & have a good day!
Head-in-the-sand moment from Junior. They are in serious trouble until they simplify. Lose the Chase, lose the stages (who ever thought THAT was a good idea?), and maybe even shorten the races.
It means that no matter what it's your love. Your life. Your family . Your job but mostly your everything proud of it all, I love racing.