Cheating rears its ugly head

Last week when I commented on the current NASCAR "cheating," situation, little did I know that there would be a major development almost immediately.

Busch driver Johnny Sauter got the NASCAR equivalent of the death penalty at Texas after last weekend's race, receiving a disqualification (loss of all points and money) for an oversized carburetor. It was as if he hadn't even been there. All drivers behind Sauter's 14th place finishing spot were moved up one position for calculation of points and purse money. In addition Sauter's crew chief, Joe Shear Jr. was suspended for four races and placed on probation until the end of the year.

"This post-race inspection in finding the carburetor illegal falls in that category of 'blatant,'" said NASCAR VP of Communications Jim Hunter. "I don't want to speculate on whether we would take away a victory, but if something is obviously designed to improve the performance of the car, we will do whatever we need to do."

The Charlotte Observer reported that a NASCAR inspector, one Woody Neese, was fired as a result of the Sauter incident. NASCAR did not comment on the details of Neese's termination. If one were a conspiracy theorist, one could look back on a number of "miraculous" wins over the past few seasons and suspect that Mr. Neese or some other inspector might have had some involvement. Some of the NASCAR winning scenarios, especially in the Cup series, have seemed just a little too perfect.

Is there hope on the horizon for reconciliation between the Indy Racing League (IRL) and Champ Car (CART)? Racing's elder statesman Mario Andretti seems to think so, and is twisting arms and spreading charm behind the scenes trying to make it happen.

Whether Mario can get the big egos on either side to compromise is another story. A meeting between IRL mogul Tony George and CART president Dick Eidswick last week was pretty much a dud from all reports. Open-wheel maven Robin Miller discussed the situation with Dave Despain and Tommy Kendall on Wind Tunnel last Sunday night, and the consensus was that nothing would happen, even though a common chassis/engine package for 2007 would probably be a really good idea.

With the IRL moving into road racing, I'm afraid that the thinning fan base will become even more diluted. So if you prefer big time racing other than stock cars, you were born about 20 years too late.

The big drawback of appearing on Sundays is that due to deadlines I can't comment on the weekend's racing until the following week. For instance, as I write this I have no idea who won last night's Nextel Cup race at Phoenix, let alone who won at Reno-Fernley Raceway. The good news is that I'm going to be announcing races at Reno-Fernley this season, so I'll be able to have race reports in Monday's Nevada Appeal, letting you know how your favorite local dirt-track drivers did. Dave Price and Rhonda Costa-Landers will be sharing reporting duties at Champion Speedway this season, and Monday's Appeal will also provide those results starting next week.

A great deal is bandied about these days about family feuds - Oprah, Dr. Phil, Montel, Jerry Springer - all feature these families arguing about who did what to whom and why. One of the things they don't cover is something I'm afraid is going to be the next big family issue - race fan rage.

I mean, what do you do when your sister thinks Tony Stewart is the bomb, and your dad can't stand him? How about Roush-Ganassi conflict in your family? I know whereof I speak, because my daughter-in-law can't stand Jeff Gordon. Now as a Motorsports professional I try to remain as impartial as possible, but I have to admit to a certain amount of bias based on my experience with various drivers.

Anyway, this thing has become an issue (I hesitate to say feud) between the two of us, where I tease her with Gordon items and she viciously attacks me with Dale Earnhardt paraphernalia. Friday night for my birthday (you don't need to know which one) she gave me a CD of the Dale Earnhardt movie "3." What do you think I can get for it on EBay?