I Haven't Decided Yet, but Dale Jr. May be the Reason why Golf could be More of a Sport than Nascar

I've never really been into Nascar. Not to say I haven't tried, I did watch Daytona this year and it was entertaining. At the end. F1 races I can do. There something about Chevys racing Fords racing Dodges that really doesn't do much for me. A Ferrari racing a McClaren? That's a different story.

Now, I do kind of understand this "team" concept of racing. Ricky Bobby helped do that for us...but apparently Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch didn't see Talladega Nights.

Jeff Gordon is a great racecar driver. Love him or hate him, mostly the latter, that can't be disputed. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is an average racecar driver given his performance the past few years. Love him or hate him, mostly the former, that can't be disputed. Dale Earnhardt Sr. was probably the greatest American racecar driver in history. Love him, and no one hates him, that cannot be disputed.

Where am I going with all this? Jr's current agreement to race with Hendrick Motorsports this year is the biggest free agent signing since A-Rod to the Rangers. Alex Rodriguez, regardless of what the press, fans, or I say has been the best baseball player of the past 10 years. His stats prove it. He isn't proven in the post season. However, he gets his teams to the playoffs. Hopefully, for the sake of humanity, he never delivers in the playoffs.

The Texas Rangers signed A-Rod for his talent and skills. The Yankees traded for those same attributes.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is by far Nascar's most popular driver. You can't drive anywhere in the South without seeing the 8 in the back of a pickup truck. His red Budweiser car is the most recognizable vehicle on the track. He's also won 2 races in his last 87 starts. Jeff Gordon has won 10 times in those 87 races...Jimmie Johnson has 13.

What am I getting at you may ask? It shows you what Nascar really is...it's about the money. Not that most sports aren't (as far as I'm concerned the Florida Marlins are the best franchise in sports, but we won't go there) but in most sports, the most popular athlete is semi-synonymous with winning. Jr. has done little of that...but his fan base doesn't care. This may say a lot about the loyalty of fans in Nascar, which is to be commended, however, money is based on performance and Jr. has not performed in the past 3 seasons.

But the sponsors keep paying the big bucks for this guy. So Jr. becomes the most valuable racecar driver in the world and he doesn't even have to win. That'd be like the Boston Red Sox saying, "Hey Manny, you don't have to hit today. Thanks." Or the Yankees telling Roger Clemens, "Hey, don't come to the park today." Wait a minute...

Sports are based on winning. Maybe with his new team, Dale Jr. will find some of his old magic. Maybe he won't. Either way, he's getting wealthier by the day. But so too is Nascar and Mr. Hendrick. So what is this event we call Nascar? Is it really a sport? Is it a game? From what it looks to me, Nascar is run by the consumers and major corporations. I'd call it a business before anything else.