Columnist Ron Kantowski: NASCAR driver Waltrip makes his point about them

Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2004 | 10:55 a.m.

Ron Kantowski is a Las Vegas Sun sports writer. Reach him at ron@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4088.

It was hard to tell what was louder at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Monday: The roar of the engines during the annual NASCAR Nextel Cup open test or the buzz created by the sanctioning body's decision to revamp its points system and method of determining a champion.

Hoping to bolster TV ratings and create more interest in stock car racing after the NFL kicks off in September, NASCAR last week announced sweeping changes that essentially will have the first 26 races of the season setting a field of 10 drivers (plus potential wild cards) who will decide the championship amongst themselves during the final 10 races, while the other cars try to stay out of their way.

The new format has been likened to an NFL-style playoff. But the majority of NASCAR fans and many of its drivers believe the sanctioning body has fumbled the ball in an attempt to create even more interest in the series.

Notice I said "many" drivers. But not Michael Waltrip.

The defending Daytona 500 winner, who has long marched to the beat of his own drummer anyway, is one of the few Nextel Cup drivers who doesn't have a single beef with the revised system, with the possible exception of the way it was portrayed by the media.

"I think the reporting of the proposed changes was inaccurate, and it was unfair for fans to base their reactions upon the way the changes were reported," said Waltrip, who was last seen doing a rain dance in the pit lane at Daytona 11 months ago. "To say it is a playoff system or totally redoing the point system, that's just not true.

"A lot of people have been coming up to me and say 'What do you think of the point system?' But if I would try to explain it in a way they could understand, they would look at me like a deer in the headlights."

Waltrip didn't give a small group of reporters in the garage area the Bambi version, either. But he said to trust him, that we would love the new system come the fall.

"It's gonna be cool," he said. "It's gonna be good for the fans, good for the media. And what's good for the fans and media will ultimately be good for the drivers and teams.

"I just believe it's the right thing to do. Reset things after Richmond, and you'll have 10 or 12 guys racing for the championship. You guys have a lot more to talk about, a lot more interesting storylines to follow."

Many fans have compared the new system to the Bowl Championship Series, saying it might not achieve the result it set out to do and could create additional problems, such as the relationships between the teams and their sponsors. Some have questioned whether a sponsor would want to pony up money for a 36-race season when two-thirds of the field will be eliminated from title contention after just two-thirds of the season.

Waltrip doesn't see a problem there, either.

"No, because I'm not going to go to my sponsor and say 'Well, I doubt if we can get to the Top 10,' " he said. "Everybody in this garage has sold their team to their sponsors with the assumption, hope and effort that they're going to win.

"If you could put 43 football teams on the same field and have one winner come out on top, you wouldn't have a need for a BCS. We race each other every weekend. We're not spread out all over the country every weekend, with one team taking on Oklahoma and another team taking on UTEP."

Well, until Waltrip used "Oklahoma" and "UTEP" in the same sentence, he nearly had me.

Busch's league

One of the big stories Monday was that Kyle Busch took some of his first laps at speed in a Nextel Cup car -- and nobody booed him.

Of course, Kyle was running around in circles on his hometown track. Plus, he's only Kurt Busch's kid brother, not his evil twin. Last year, Kurt Busch somehow became the scourge of NASCAR fans by getting into a hissy fit with fellow driver Jimmy Spencer.

As if that was the first time anybody had a problem with Jimmy Spencer.

Didn't matter. The elder Busch was booed as if he was Boog Powell whereever he went. Kyle Busch, who has signed to drive the No. 84 Carquest Chevy fielded by Hendrick Motorsports in seven races in 2004, said he hopes fans won't paint him with the same brush as his brother.

"It's just one of these deals where yeah, I'm his brother, but Kurt's Kurt and I'm Kyle," said the younger Busch, 18, who had he not graduated ahead of his class at Durango High would have had to first outrun the truant officers on Monday.

"Of course, I love my brother. But you can always learn things from your siblings."

Around the paddock

Although no official times are being kept at this year's NASCAR test, railbirds reported that Jeff Gordon's new haircut set an unofficial track record during a weekend publicity tour. Opting for a new look, Gordon got a "No. 1" (clipper) cut a few days after the NASCAR awards banquet in December and it's still in the process of growing out. In the meantime, Gordon's closely cropped pate will probably save him a couple of tenths per lap due to reduced drag.

A crowd estimated at 15,000 was on hand for Monday's test -- or so it appeared.

A generation ago, NASCAR drivers would have had trouble finding the television talk shows with rabbit ears on a clear night. But today's Nextel Cup drivers have become multi-media stars, with more late-night work than a pizza delivery man.

For instance, after they are through testing here, Michael Waltrip and Jeff Gordon will head to Los Angeles, to appear on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" (Waltrip) and the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno" (Gordon) on Wednesday and Thursday. And between practice laps, reigning series champion Matt Kenseth took time out to film an upcoming "Beyond the Glory" episode for Fox, with the first floor of the infield media center serving as the studio.