What is the big deal with NASCAR?

Question

Personally, NASCAR is boring as hell, and the drivers always seem like arrogant, stuck-up a**holes to me. And to top it off, so many NASCAR fans are just clueless when it comes to other forms of racing! I love following Champ Cars, the IRL, and even some Formula One races every now and then, so I know how cool racing is, but I just can't get into NASCAR.

So, what's the big deal? Why do so many people find it so compelling to watch and follow? Now, I don't appreciate rude answers, and I don't want to hear how badly the IRL, Champ Cars, or Formula One suck, so if that's all you're going to say, don't waste your time. Same goes for telling me how one driver is so much better than another, because I don't really care. I just want to know why it's got such a huge following.

Answer 1

Mainstream audience coming from FOX, NBC and TNT. Also it was on CBS and ABC for a good period of time. F1 and Champ Car are usually on SPEED TV (seldom coverage on CBS) and thus don't see the large markets in the US. IRL gets ABC for certain races but are often relegated to ESPN2.

NASCAR was tremendously popular in the South originally, as you may know but throw in the national-TV rights/deals the popularity surged as well as getting the young drivers.

But NASCAR fans aren't clueless about open-wheel racing. It's an entirely different form of racing, with stock cars and open-wheel. I personally think Sebastien Bourdais would be huge over here in America especially at the road-courses. Danica Patrick, way overrated but there are guys like Hornish, Wheldon and Rice who may move to NASCAR soon.

Answer 2

I'm not saying those motorsports that you put up over there are dum. The last of them... TOTALLY ON THE CONTRARY!!!
Nascar sucks because it only runs on oval courses. And that bores the he** out of you. Seeing silly people that spin round and round hundreds of times like in a merry-go-round really squeezes every desire you have to watch it.
I have no idea what IRL is, so I'm not saying anything on this.
ChampCar does race on the same boring ovals for half the season, but at least they come back down to real racing, because the other half is on road courses.
And this gets us to our conclusion...
FORMULA ONE.
Shorter races, but with quite a lot more excitement; duels between pilots, some BANZAI overtaking maneuvers (3 examples: all three accomplished by the same pilot, Giancarlo Fisichella, at Monte Carlo, in May), fascinating technology and thrilling pitlane strategies (sometimes that's where a race is won or lost). Plus, Formula 1 uses an oval circuit only in a single race. The infamous Turn 13 and the start-finish section of the Indianapolis F1 circuit are used by pilots in the Indy 500.
I say "infamous", because accidents caused by the banked corner caused a huge controversy last year that caused 14(the Michelin-shod) of the 20 cars to retire into the pits at the end of the formation lap, leaving the other 6(Bridgestone-shod) to take their places on the grid. (In F1 the start is from a stationary grid. Not from behind the pace car.)
And probably from next year that trace of an oval will be completely erased from F1.


So this is the reason I gave: racing on STUPID oval courses.

Answer 3

Hey, I so have the numbers of a few proctologists for you. I personally think it's time you done stop sitting on your shoulders. You don't like rude answers, well guess what?? I don't like rude questions. When you are going to start a question off about my sport and criticize it's fans and it's driver's be preapared to not have such a pleasant answer. It's liek saying..hey, I think you suck monkey balls, but.. no, there is not but. You are preaching something about not being moronic to other sports..well don't show your idiocy by generalizing and steretyping.. TSK TSK.

Have you ever actually met the Nascar driver's?? Uhmm, I"m guessing not, b/c they are not stuck-up or arrogant. There are a few who are unapologetticaly cocky (but ya know what..if I made it to the top of my sport I might have to blow that tuba of my own horn.) They are pretty nice guys to get along with, and they are decent human beings.
With that being said.. fine that Nascar is not your sport, but understand that it is the sport of hundreds and thousands of people, and it's not like that for no good reason. It's an exciting sport, and is something the southern states were grown on. They are Americans that other Americans feel they can relate to. These boys grew up driving in a lot of these fan's backyards. Also, Nascar reaches out to Americans, where a lot of the open wheels have become international. Gosh, I'd hate to be a fan.and tell peopl yeah, I love this guy and can't even pronounce his damn name. Not sayin that drivers can't be foreing, but it's about relatbility. To those that do not enjoy it there is no possible way to explain what we love about it so much. To people like me, it's not a sport, it's a lifestyle and there is absolutely no way you'd understand where I come from about it. There is so much to the sport. Most people see it as an oval that driver's go around in a circle, but there is so much more to it.
Why do the fans bother you for not knowing about other sports?? That's kind of stupid. It would be like me saying man, I hate fans of IRL b/c they think Nascar drivers are cocky (*cough cough author of question cough cough*) I mean, hell, if I don't like curling as a sport I'm surely not going to follow it closely. Do you like Nascar, no, then you probably don't follow it closely. So some Nascar fans don't like IRL, or F-1..so guess what, you're right they probably dont' know much about it. DURH.
With that being said I am a die-hard Nascar fan. Do I enjoy other forms of motosports yes, but can I tell you about tehm like the back of my hand.. UHNN NOT EVEN FREAKIN' CLOSE! I don't follow them closely. Ya know, one only has so much free time, and one enjoy something without knowing every little detail.

Answer 4

I think the reason NASCAR has a bigger fan base is that it started in the USA and most drivers are Americans. I enjoy all forms of racing. NASCAR uses the finesse of the teams that set up the cars, the pit crews, and the driver. If one is off, the race is lost. I enjoy watching the cars passing each other and yes, the close calls. In "Open Wheel " racing the equipment is the most important aspect. I also enjoy watching dirt racing, Figure 8's and Drifting.

Answer 5

In Champ, IRL, F1 it appears how much money you can pump into the car, newest engine, newest bells and whistles. NASCAR us technology that is roughly 30 years old. Yep. Same old engine specs they had 30 years ago. The mechanics and engine techs find different ways to pump 750 horsepower out of them. The only thing that has had any radical change in NASCAR is the shape of the body. I only watch one open wheel race each year, the Indy 500.

Bang a wall with a Nextel Cup car and you'll still be in the running. Do that with an open wheel car and you're outta the race.

CHAMP, IRL and F1, in my opinion are just go-carts on steroids.

Answer 6

Rude? Aren't you being rude about Nascar?

I have a need for speed...no matter what form of racing! I personally just prefer Nascar because I feel like I know the drivers!

Honestly, I think Nascar just gets more promotion from advertisers! Everywhere you look you see Dale Jr. or Jimmie Johnson or Tony Stewart, etc. You are finally starting to see some advertisments in the stores for F1 and etc., our grocery store has a big cut out of Danica Patrick!

Answer 7

nascar is an experience. i have never been to a nascar race,(but i hope to someday) it's a different type of sport in that it is "user friendly". the fans are a big part of nascar. i have never met a driver but they seem pretty nice. i have seen videos of nascar and they have fans walking around taking pics of drivers, talking with them, getting autographs, probably more i have never seen.
the nba if filled with arrogant, stuck up ******* try getting those athletes to give you an autograph or pic or even talk with them. that might be a reason they have such a huge following, and just because i like one type of racing it doesn't mean that i'll like all of them. so yeah i'm clueless about the one's you listed, because i don't care about them

Answer 8

I think the one thing that you will find all of us say is because we love it just as much as you seem to like other forms of racing. I personally can't get into cart or F1. For me the reason that I love NASCAR is because it is racing on a more personal level. The drivers seem more like someone you could hang out and talk to because they are from small towns all over the country and they all pretty much started on hometown tracks and that is something that most race fans can relate to. I've never talked to a NASCAR fan that hasn't done the hometown track on Saturday night. when I was in Talledega I got to see 6 Cup drivers on a dirt track battling it out like they were winning a big race. They were having fun and we were having a blast watching them. I guess what it boils down to is the drivers just seem more like regular people.

Answer 9

Im a nascar fan but I do understand why you could think it is boring. At first I was to. But then after you learn the rules of nascar racing and learn the people and there crew it is alittle bit better. Also the crashes and tailgating partys are fun to. I guess people just like what they like. I mean I dont like basket ball. you run back and forth on a court throwing a ball. But the sights and sound from nascar is what works for me.

Answer 10

Personally, I don't know why people ask such dumb questions... oh wait! It's usually because they are stupid themselves! To answer this ridiculously stupid question without confusing any of our listeners... There is nothing like the sound of a stock car engine and our drivers over here at NASCAR are very easy to love. We have a huge following due to the fact that we are very marketable and our fans know talent when they see it. NASCAR is a United States past time unlike alot of the other racing scenes.
Now as to whether my answer is rude or not ask me if i care?
You obviously don't understand your own question to begin with. ANYONE who loves NASCAR is going to know immediately you are stupid!