AUTO RACING: Kenseth's victory a win for NASCAR

BY ALLEN GREGORY
BRISTOL HERALD COURIER

For the NASCAR fan, Daytona International Speedway represents the Magic Kingdom.

It’s a history-soaked 2.5-mile slice of asphalt where folks can forget their worries for a day and fulfill their happy dreams.

The latest hero to emerge from Daytona started last in the 43-car field, yet came away with the biggest dream sequence in his career. Matt Kenseth, who failed to win a single race last season, displayed his trademark calculating form en route to winning the rain-shortened Daytona 500 on Sunday in Daytona Beach, Fla.

As the rain approached midway through the race, drivers engaged in a high-speed chess match to gain position. Kenseth barely managed to weave around a wild nine-car crash with 75 laps remaining. He then led the final seven laps.

Rival drivers have long marveled at the sense of calm that Kenseth exhibits under tense circumstances. That trait was evident again Sunday.

Even some of the most experienced drivers hate the maddening nature of racing at Daytona. With their powerful engines harnessed by restrictor plates, drivers are unable to pull away from slower cars. Patience is vital, and a big dose of creativity helps.

It’s not a surprise that Kenseth is a fan of National Football League star Brett Favre. When the rush comes, Kenseth has the ability to handle the pressure and formulate a plan. For example, Kenseth has twice aced one of NASCAR’s most extreme tests: the half-mile concrete oval at Bristol Motor Speedway.

By now, even the casual follower of motorsports realizes how badly NASCAR needed an injection of happiness.

This win by one of the good guys in the sport provided that. Kenseth even shed tears of joy in a post-race interview.

After a long joyride fueled by the bucks of Fortune 500 corporations and the dreams of daredevils, major league stock car racing has hit a serious speed bump. The network television commentators continue to stress the positive, yet more than 1,000 NASCAR-related jobs have been lost during the winter.

Race shops at all levels of the sport have vanished. Operators of rootsy, small tracks are running on fumes. The need for speed comes with a hefty price tag.

Enough skepticism – or realism.

There were 57 entries for Sunday’s Daytona 500, and the saga of Kenseth and homespun Kentucky driver Jeremy Mayfield seemed yanked straight from a Disney script.

Though mercurial stars such as Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch grabbed the headlines, Mayfield qualified for the “Great American Race” with a cast of crew members recently laid off from other teams.

Meanwhile, Kenseth has never been one to generate headlines with his mouth or style of driving. Like a factory worker, he prefers to stay in the background and do his own thing.

Early in his career when he was driving in the Nationwide Series, Kenseth was basically ignored by star-seeking fans during an autograph session in downtown Bristol, Tenn.

The NASCAR landscape is not nearly as bright as the highly paid, well-behaved network television announcers would have you believe. There will be empty seats and uneven fields this season, yet the heart of this sport is still beating strong.

As unemployment lines lengthen and stress rates soar, Americans need a diversion. For 60 years, NASCAR has offered that diversion along with drama, fun and a colorful cast of heroes.

On this day, a good guy finished first and he did it his way.

It may not have been magical, but it was fun.

agregory@bristolnews.com | (276) 669-2544