Home : A Yankee's Guide To NASCAR :Busch Grand NationalNationwide Insurance has signed a seven-year deal to become the title sponsor of NASCAR's No. 2 series beginning in 2008. Nationwide replaces Anheuser-Busch, which has sponsored the second-tier Busch Series for 26 seasons. The series will be called the NASCAR Nationwide Series.
During the 1970s, NASCAR's Late Model Sportsman cars drew huge crowds all over the Southeast as racing fans came to watch veteran racers such as Sam Ard, Sonny Hutchens and Jack Ingram duel with upcoming stars such as Dale Earnhardt, Geoff Bodine and the late Butch Lindley. In 1982, NASCAR decided to consolidate the Late Model Sportsman cars that had been the feature division all along the East Coast into a touring division that would one day grow into the second-most popular form of motorsports in the United States. The NASCAR Busch Series, which was then known as the NASCAR Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series, ran its first race at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 13, 1982 with Earnhardt taking the victory. By the time the 29-race, first-year schedule was completed, Ingram had nipped Ard for the title. The first season saw 14 different winners, which established a pattern that has continued through the present day. Among the other drivers on the circuit that first year were Dale Jarrett and Geoff Bodine.
So what had been a loosely organized short-track series became a touring series. In the first decade, the Busch cars raced primarily on the same tracks that they had raced on when they were the Late Model Sportsman. Tracks 1/2-mile or under, like Asheville, NC; Langley, VA; Martinsville, VA; Orange County, NC; Richmond, VA; along with Hickory, NC; Bristol, TN; and South Boston, VA identified the Busch Series as a short track series. And its early stars were short track drivers. Veterans from Late Models Sportsman such as Tommy Houston and Tommy Ellis dominated the series in the early years.
In 1984, Anheuser-Busch switched the series sponsorship to the Busch brand and it became the Busch Late Model Sportsman. In 1985 the series became known as the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series. The name would later be modified in 1995 to the NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Division, and, officially, the Busch Series beginning in 2002. The series has been one of constant growth and expansion. As prize money and prestige reach unprecedented levels for the NASCAR Busch Series, the geographical makeup of the NASCAR Busch Series schedule has also taken the series into unchartered waters. Until 1997, the NASCAR Busch Series had never run an event west of the Mississippi River. While the series has maintained many of its weekly short track roots with races still being held in South Boston and Richmond, Va.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; and Nashville, Tenn.; the series has also found its way to the superspeedways of Talladega and Michigan and has ventured into new areas such as as South Florida, Milwaukee and New Hampshire.
In the 1990s the Busch Series remade itself to be more of a reflection of the Winston Cup Series. With races on superspeedway's being added to the schedule (NHIS, Nazareth, Las Vegas, Michigan, Atlanta, Talladega, Texas), the short tracks began to disappear from the schedule. Many say that it is the change to these new tracks that has created the opportunity for younger drivers to gain the valuable exposure, as well as the experience that they need to move up to Winston Cup. In 1991 there were fifteen Busch Series races on tracks under one mile. In 1998 there were only nine. As the sport grows something has to give; the trend away from the short tracks seems inevitable in the near future.
But while they can't offer the glamour, the crowds or the purses of the bigger tracks, the short tracks will always have an important role in racing. Nearly every big-time driver got started on the short tracks. The short tracks are where drivers gain the knowledge of how to race. Short tracks offer the fans the sense of closeness to the action and to the drivers that has all but disappeared at the big tracks. While the superspeedway performances like Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s win at Texas are no longer a big surprise, the short tracks still have the ability to create surprise. Surprise is what excites sports fans and generates interest and enthusiasm. Where else but on a short track could we witness the impressive debut of a future star, such as Casey Atwood's pole and runner-up finish at Nashville earlier this year? On the other hand, last year's Hickory BGN race saw 55-year-old Dick Trickle score his first Busch Series win. And fans still talk about Dale Shaw nearly pulling off the win last year at South Boston in a fierce contest with Randy LaJoie.
The relationship between the Busch circuit and Winston Cup isn't like anything else in sport. The Busch Series runs more short tracks over shorter distances and the Winston Cup series tends to concentrate on tracks greater than a mile in length with longer distances. The Busch Series has picked up a few more of the Cup tracks in the last few years and the Busch race is often sort of the warm up act when run at the same track with their races being shorter and requireing less fuel and fewer pit stops than the Cup events. Which is essentially the only difference in the format or rules of each event. But unlike any other sport, the guys from the big league are always showing up in the Busch races.
Suppose you're playing Triple-A baseball, but on a particular night, the opposing team has Greg Maddux pitching, Ken Griffey Jr. in center field and Mark McGwire at first base. Or imagine that you're playing golf on the Nike Tour, but in a certain tournament, Tiger Woods, Greg Norman and Tom Lehman also are entered. Such is the plight faced constantly by the ambitious drivers in NASCAR's Busch Grand National series. Most Busch drivers are trying to build enough notoriety to land a job on stock-car racing's primary circuit, the star-studded Winston Cup series. Others have lost Winston Cup jobs and are toiling their way back to the Big Time. Still others already have done their best racing but are hanging on for the sheer enjoyment of the sport or perhaps entertaining faint hope that the glory days will return.
Whatever the case, these racers confront the unique prospect of having to compete with the best in the game: Virtually every BGN lineup is dotted with Winston Cup regulars. And on weekends when a Cup race isn't scheduled, even more of the top dogs show up. Some drivers, like Ken Schrader, can't seem to get enough racing and still make it a point to get to the short tracks where they made their reputations. Stars like Darrell Waltrip, Bill Elliott, Rusty Wallace and Dale Earnhardt all enjoy making some extra spending money on a night off by making appearances at local tracks across the country.
But the most popular form of non-Winston Cup recreation is the Busch Grand National series, featuring smaller, less powerful stock cars. Some drivers participate for sponsor exposure or to test track conditions for the next day's Winston Cup race. But most do it for fun. Michael Waltrip said, "It's a great experience. It's easier to win in Grand National. I say that because I've won. At any Winston Cup race, you've got at least 30 tough teams. At major Grand Nationals, about half the field is made up of those same tough drivers. The difference, I think is that the Grand National cars are more equal than those on the big circuit." And then there's Dick Trickle (You wouldn't want to see a 55 year old man get rusty would you?), who falls into a category of his own. This is friendly competition, but a rivalry nonetheless: The Busch drivers feel that they are enriching their stock by outrunning the Cup regulars. And the Cup crew, in turn, doesn't like to be shown up by the "minor-leaguers."
The Busch Series is hardly second rate, originally named the NASCAR Sportsman (1950-1967). Then it became the NASCAR Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series (1968-1981). Then the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series, or officially the NASCAR Busch Series, Grand National Division. More informally, it's the Busch series, or merely BGN.
Whatever it's called ... just what is it? Attendance in 1983 (no figures are available for the '82 season) averaged 8,400 over 35 events. It has increased steadily since then: Last year, 1,665,700 spectators watched 26 races, an average of about 64,000. The television audience for Busch races last year topped 50 million. As the series has grown, some of NASCAR's biggest stars have enjoyed incredible success in the NASCAR Busch Series. Along with Earnhardt's consistency during the circuit's early days, current NASCAR stars like Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte and Jeff Burton cut their racing teeth in the NASCAR Busch Series. Current NASCAR Winston Cup regulars Bobby Labonte (1991), Joe Nemechek (1992), Steve Grissom (1993), David Green (1994) and Johnny Benson(1995) have all claimed NASCAR Busch Series titles. Nemechek, Benson, Jeff Gordon, Ricky Craven, Kenny Wallace and Steve Park have all been NASCAR Busch Series Rookies of the Year as well.
Bill France, NASCAR president and founder said, "Over the years, this series has served an important role within NASCAR. It has helped bring NASCAR racing for the first time to such places as Indianapolis, Milwaukee, New Hampshire, Miami, Las Vegas and St. Louis. This series definitely has found its place in American motorsports." As the series has experienced its biggest growth spurt over the last few years, new stars have started to emerge that will carry NASCAR into the 21st Century. The likes of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Elliott Sadler and Tony Stewart are the wave of NASCAR's future, and they have helped propel the NASCAR Busch Series to unprecedented heights, onto the national scene and into the consciousness of racing fans everywhere.
Busch Cars Versus Winston Cup Cars. What's The Difference?Very little. But for someone new to NASCAR ... it isn't easy to tell the difference between the Busch cars that race on Saturday ... and the Winston Cup cars that hit the road Sunday. Yeah, they look like their Winston Cup cousins and now they are closer than ever, but they ARE different. NASCAR Busch Series cars are their own breed of cat and, even with only a few differences, they are a distinctive car found nowhere else in NASCAR. The way I explain it is it's kind of like having a tame pussy cat or a tiger by the tail. I mean the cup cars just ... that extra weight, that extra power, that extra speed ... and the competition is really great up there too. Not saying it isn't great here ... but it is another level. Busch racing is a great stepping stone because you run all the same tracks, you get used to the speedways, it's still a drivers stepping stone for Winston Cup.
Depending on whom you talk to, the biggest difference is the wheelbase. Busch cars are 5-inches shorter in wheelbase than Winston Cup cars. Spec wise, that means Busch Series cars are 105 inches and Winston Cup cars are 110. Just for reference, NASCAR Craftsman Trucks measure in at 112 inches. That slight change affects the bodywork, aerodynamics, downforce, handling, gearing and even the driving style of these cars.
How builders make up that 5-inch difference varies and is either split between the front and rear or taken solely out of the back of the car. If it's split, usually it's 2 inches in the front and three in the rear. The difference in that split is very slight, says Dan Rang, shop supervisor of Herzog Motorsports, which builds the No. 92 Excedrin Busch Series car driven by Jimmie Johnson. "You could put two cars side-by-side and your average eye wouldn't be able to see a difference," says Rang.
Since these cars are closer together than ever, how can one tell them apart? One drivers indicator is the car's battery box. They are always located on the framerail behind the driver's seat. Winston Cup cars have their battery box mounted lengthwise, while Busch Series cars mount theirs across the frame. Carbs are prime horsepower areas. Less cfms means a smaller amount of fuel and results in less power created. While engine builders always keep mum about numbers, Busch Series cars generally have 14 percent, or roughly 100 hp, less than Winston Cup cars.
A few more subtle differences on Busch Series cars include sitting one ½-inch lower in overall height, a wider but shorter rear spoiler and a front valance that extends down an additional half inch for a total of 4 inches. The slightest change in any of those areas can affect the car's handling, so the driver has to adjust. The rear-end housing may be different, too, on a Busch Series car. "They (Winston Cup) are allowed to run what they call an offset rear end. We are not," Rang says. "That means one end of the axle tube is actually longer than the other. It's the actual housing and where they could put the gear in is not in the center of the rear end." That means axles are different lengths and fit in only one side of the car.
Twenty years ago, Busch Series cars started out being totally different than Winston Cup cars. In the early years of the series, they used totally different bodies on the cars. While the Winston Cup cars were using full-size bodies such as Buick Regals, Monte Carlos and Thunderbirds, the Busch Series cars were using smaller, Chevy Nova and clone Pontiac Ventura bodies. The Busch Series cars were not as refined because the bulk of the schedule was on short tracks. Most of the teams were working racers with day jobs in the early years. Engines were different, too. At one time, Buick and Ford V6 engines were the norm. Later, when the series returned to V8 motors, they were running at reduced 9:5 compression. These days, the bodies reflect Winston Cup cars with the same brands in both.
So over the years, the two classes have slowly gotten closer on equipment. Now, with most of the car's components aligning up virtually identical, production costs have dropped along with retail prices. The similarity has an added benefit because drivers have a little less to unlearn when they move from the Busch Series to Winston Cup. This similarity also invites Winston Cup teams to run limited Busch Series schedules for in-house research and development, and upcoming driver and crewmember training programs.
Does Anybody Care How The Story Ends?Carl Edwards is about to close the door on an important chapter in NASCAR history. The question is - does anybody care how the story ends? In the Busch Series Edwards has a commanding 531-point lead over second-place David Reutimann. For those paying attention, that lead is down from an unfathomable 852-point lead that Edwards held over Reutimann in July. Edwards has been limping toward the Busch championship ever since and needs to only finish 36th at TMS to clinch with two races left on the 2007 schedule.
Edwards will be the 25th and final Busch champion, as the beer company is ending its long sponsorship of NASCAR's second-tier series. Next year, Nationwide Insurance steps up and will pay for the naming rights. The change in sponsorship makes this a drivers time for NASCAR to re-evaluate, and to, perhaps, reinvent the series. Over the past few seasons, the circuit has lost not only its identity but its relevancy. Will the Nationwide Series be a developmental circuit for up-and-coming youngsters and new teams? Or will it be Cup Lite, a series of 300-mile practice sessions for Cup teams and regulars. For the past few years, the series has been both. For many Cup drivers, a Saturday outing on the Busch circuit has become like a pro-am round for a professional golfer. They get paid nicely for a no-pressure round of golf on the same course where they will play for keeps later that week.
In '07, 22 drivers have tried to compete in the majority of races on both the Busch and Cup circuits. That's just too many. While it hasn't hurt the development of many of NASCAR's top youngsters - they are the majority of the drivers doing double duty - it has virtually halted the addition of new teams to the sport. It will be interesting to see if the slang term "Buschwhackers" stays even though title sponsor, Busch, is departing. Buschwackers are Cup drivers who double dip. For a variety of reasons, Cup drivers will always want to make occasional Nationwide starts. Some will do it for the money, others for the practice. Some will do it to help out a sponsor or two race twice in their hometown. Everybody needs to realize that the double-dippers are here to stay.
In '08 the series will continue to use the same type Busch cars that it has used the past few years. The Cup Series, on the other hand, will use the Car of Tomorrow full-time. Eventually the Nationwide Series will adopt the CoT chassis, but hopefully by that season NASCAR will come up with a different way for the cars to be different. Again, different tires would be easy way to make the cars race in different manners. Rumors persist that NASCAR will implement different models on the Nationwide Series - for example, the Chevrolet Camaro, the Ford Mustang and the Dodge Challenger - by as early as '09. This would be a great move.
NASCAR needs to do whatever it takes to make the Nationwide Series affordable for teams and sponsors new to stock-car racing. The Chase has created enough excitement on the Cup level that the PGA golf tour and the NHRA drag racing series have borrowed elements, so you'd think it would be drivers enough to use in the Nationwide Series. It would definitely help create a buzz and hopefully make the circuit interesting and relevant again.
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