The Torch Has Been Passed

After this year’s Knoxville Nationals on Saturday night in the press conference I asked Brian Brown if he felt that maybe a torch has been passed to a new generation of drivers with Steve, Sammy, and Danny not making the A-Main this year. Brian answered the question with a no, and that he was grateful for them helping make the sport what it is. When Schatz answered the question he said those drivers are still some of the best in the business, but the competition level is better than ever, almost eluding to the fact that they were victims of the tough format and bad breaks.

Doug Auld used this topic in his new editorial in Sprint Car & Midget Magazine this month (you're welcome for that topic of conversation). It seemed like Auld also defended that those drivers are some of the best and threw out some stats of how they’re all still winning races. I get that point. They are still some of the best drivers in the business, no doubt. The point I was eluding too is that the torch was passed "at Knoxville." I'm not looking at anything else other than previous events at Knoxville.

Maybe Steve and Sammy were victims of circumstances on their qualifying nights with narrow tracks and mechanical problems, but they are not victims of the Nationals format, and had their chances to race their way in and didn't. And with the trained eye I have in the stands, they just weren't fast enough is why.

What Auld fails to mention is that all drivers had a second chance to make it into the Saturday A-Main on Friday night. Sammy declined that opportunity and elected to start seventh in the B-main Saturday. And all drivers had a third shot on Saturday night to advance through the B-Main, but they didn’t.

On Friday night Steve Kinser qualified 10th and Lasoski timed 21st. Kinser finished third in his heat and won his B-Main while Lasoski won his heat. In the Friday A-Main Kinser started 15th and finished 9th in the A, while Lasoski started 10th and finished 15th.

On Saturday night in the B-Main Sammy started 6th and finished 5th. Kinser started 15th and finished 10th. Lasoski advanced from the C-Main, started 22nd in the B and finished 17th. Those guys just didn't get it done.

I’m going to argue that the torch has indeed been passed.

1.) Lasoski: He failed to qualify for the Nationals for the third consecutive year.

2.) Sammy: I was surprised Sammy didn’t race his way in Saturday in the B-Main. No disrespect to Brian Paulus or Jason Sides, they had great runs this year, but Sammy let them get by and missed out on the party. It was shocking considering a lot of people (including me) had Sammy pegged as the favorite to win the whole thing. Sammy should have been able to race his way in but didn’t.

3.) Kinser: He has been on a decline in recent years finishing outside the top ten the three previous years in 12th in 2009, 22nd in 2010, and 16th in 2011. The King hasn’t won a race at Knoxville since April of 2005. All signs were pointing south that his reign of dominance is over AT Knoxville and I had to force myself to put him in the top 24 of my pre-nationals power rankings.

This is all subjective to opinion as far as a torch being passed. I feel that it has been passed to Donny Schatz. Schatz won’t ever admit that, he is humble and smart enough to know he can't say that, but trust me it’s been passed.

Who will be Donny’s rival? That's the question I have. Opperman had Weld. Lasoski has McCarl. Kinser had Sammy. It was looing like it would be Jason Meyers. Will it be Saldana, Dollanksy, Madsen, Sides, Kraig, Darrah… who? Or is Schatz in a league of his own? He is after all on pace to win as many Nationals as the King as they both won their sixth Nationals at 34 years of age. Let the debate continue.