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Has Chase for Nextel Cup turned drivers conservative trying to hold their spot?
Is Richmond International Raceway still the action track? Some think so, some think not so much.
The oft-unpredictable short track is uniquely designed to encourage passing, even in its tight, high-banked corners. The straightaways, a combined 2,150 feet, sometimes surrender superspeedway-like speeds.
In this house that 13-time winner Richard Petty helped build, old-school fans are accustomed to seeing bumper-to-bumper, door-to-door, wide-open racing. They rushed through the gates to watch , the late Dale Earnhardt - The Intimidator - serve up all the spills and thrills they craved.
And not much has changed for most drivers, Emporia's Elliott Sadler said.
"The Richmond night race is one of the best races on the circuit," Sadler said. "You are going to have four guys taking care of their position in the Chase [for the Nextel Cup], but the other 39 guys are going to be battling real hard.
"For someone to say that Richmond is boring, I would hate to hear what they say about Pocono [Raceway]. I race everywhere, so I know how hard it is to race at Richmond."
Yet others contend that the Chase has tempered the enthusiasm of some drivers. They aren't nearly as daring in their high-price, high-tech machines.
That's the prevailing perception among those who are looking for a little more action tomorrow night in the Chevy Rock & Roll 400, the regular-season finale. After the race, only the top 12 in the points standings will be eligible to compete for the championship.
"The drivers these days aren't as gutsy as the older drivers," said Aimee Turner, RIR's director of public relations. "Dale Earnhardt was willing to bump anyone out of the way to win a race or to gain a position.
"These younger guys are more cautious. They kind of watch what they do. They don't want to mess up their cars. But, at the same time, we still see the bumping and banging in short-track racing at Richmond that we've always seen."
Others argue that championship contenders put a premium on protecting their position. There's far too much at stake: a multimillion payoff for the survival of a 10-race Chase that begins next weekend in Loudon, N.H. and ends at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 18.
The 12-driver Chase field is virtually set as qualifying begins today. Dale Earnhardt Jr. still has a mathematical chance of surpassing Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch or Kevin Harvick - albeit a slim chance.
"Richmond is a track where some people are playing defense and trying to protect their position in the Chase," Bowyer said. "However, some teams will be going all out.
"The race isn't stale by any means. But there's a lot of different agendas going on out there, and it's not worth crashing and going for those 10 [bonus] points [for winning]. You have to be careful in how you value those 10 points. Are they worth giving up the Chase for?"
For Junior, it's worth everything.
"I'm going to race as hard as I can to win, and it wouldn't matter if I was in the Chase or not," said Earnhardt, who could miss the postseason for the second time in three years.
Said Turner: "They all want to get those bonus points. I really think that's going to change the atmosphere on Saturday night. You are going to see a lot more guys pushing harder and harder, and they won't be as cautious this time."
Carl Edwards admits getting into the Chase factors into how aggressive some will drive. However, he said that won't translate into a boring race when the green flag drops for the nationally televised race.
"You only have a few guys in the Chase race at this point," said Edwards, who cemented his playoff spot with a win at Bristol two weeks ago. "There's nothing you can do to make the Richmond race boring. It's always an exciting race. There is a lot on the line. There's a lot of pressure, and it causes some guys to be a little conservative."
"I'm locked into the Chase, and I'm going to go after it as hard as I can," said Edwards, fourth in the points behind leader Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin. "I think it's going to be an exciting night for the fans."
This, of course, is a homecoming for several Virginians - South Boston's Jeff Burton and Ward Burton, Sadler and Hamlin, a former Chesterfield resident. Chesapeake's Ricky Rudd pulled out with an injured shoulder sustained in a crash last Sunday at California Speedway.
All are quick to defend their adopted racetrack. No other short track, they agree, offers the same old-school excitement.
"When you buy tickets you ought to see an exciting race," Rudd said. "The No. 1 priority is to make sure the sport is exciting. What built the sport - and Richmond - was side-by-side racing with guys holding nothing back."
Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president of competition, expects nonstop action.
"I think going into Richmond, as durable as [the Car of Tomorrow] has been and as aggressive as the drivers can get with it, I think you're going to see one of the better races of the year," Pemberton said.
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