The Sports Frog

Swamp resident journalist Brontoburglar stays true to his word and hits us up with some NASCAR noise...

With the Big Three automakers groveling at the feet of Congress, I admit that the fate of NASCAR popped into my head when thinking about the proposed bailout. But I also must admit that I think about NASCAR over 100 times a day. So if you didn't think about it, don't feel bad. I'm weird.

The future of the Big Three does have an impact on NASCAR. That impact, though, comes mainly off the racetrack.

Yes, it's true that Jimmie Johnson, the back-to-back-to-back Sprint Cup Champion, drives Chevrolets. But as much as Chris Shays is a RINO at a gathering of the Alabama Republicans Club, Johnson's car is a CINO. The Impala that Jimmie drives isn't even close to the Impala that you can buy at your friendly, bankrupt, dying-to-sell-you-a-car Chevrolet dealer. In fact, it's no different than the Toyota Camry that Kyle Busch drives, except for that ungodly symbol that is the Toyota logo on the front of Busch's car.

Sacrilege? Hardly.

NASCAR's attempt to level the playing field by introducing matching body styles is a blessing in disguise if the Big Three were to go under. And since each team builds their cars in house, or buys their cars from someone who builds them in house, the automakers' influence is fairly limited outside of cash flow. Yes, no cash is certainly a problem, but it's not a crippling problem. Testing would simply cease, like it has now, and research and development would have to be much more calculated and precise. The kinks in the new car would still need to be figured out, but to most fans, if not all of them, the racing on the track wouldn't be much different.

Most fans would notice the conspicuous absence of the big three's advertising dollars. But don't worry, NASCAR as an entity is on pretty solid footing. They have more than enough money to run the sport on their own in the short term. Much like Mr. Burns from the Simpsons, they don't want to use their own money, using their tried and true theory that "the sport is bigger than the drivers." Very true, which is why the sport isn't going anywhere.

The best part about that headline? Somewhere in this country, there's someone reading The Sports Frog who thought to himself "What the hell, son...an American from the South wins damn near every NASCAR race!"

Suffice it to say there aren't too many good 'ole boys with the name Juan Carlos Montoya, however.

I'm not much of a racin' fan, but it doesn't seem very surprising that one of the few NASCAR races to feature right turns was won by a guy who cut his teeth on another circuit.

Still, my dream of thousands of rednecks suffering simultaneous seizures will not be complete until a foreign driver wins a NASCAR race in a Toyota. Preferably a race run in Mexico City. Until that day, my friends, I continue to have a dream.