Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Spencer: ‘To hell with gentlemen’s agreement’

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at [email protected] or (702) 259-4089.

Jimmy Spencer doesn't fault Robby Gordon for his controversial pass under caution of teammate Kevin Harvick in last week's NASCAR Winston Cup race in Sonoma, Calif.

Since the 1980s, NASCAR drivers have observed an unwritten gentlemen's agreement that you don't pass for position once the yellow flag has been displayed. NASCAR president Mike Helton stated in the drivers' meeting before Sunday's race that "there is no gentlemen's agreement; we figured that out a couple races ago."

Spencer said times have changed and there is too much at stake for drivers, team owners and sponsors for drivers not to take advantage of any situation to win a race -- as Gordon did Sunday.

"Passing under the caution is a bad deal but on the other side of it, you can gain a spot -- you can win a race because of it," Spencer said. "You win a Winston Cup race and you're set, your sponsor is set for the rest of the year. The pressure is off.

"I think the pressure of the sport has caused drivers to say, 'I agree, there is a gentlemen's agreement.' (Then) we put our helmet on, we get in the car and say 'To hell with the gentlemen's agreement.' We try to gain everything we can."

And that means racing hard until you have taken the yellow flag, Spencer added.

"I think the reason why there isn't (a gentlemen's agreement is) the drivers -- me included -- we're constantly getting pressure from the media and from our crew members to stay on top of the wheel," Spencer said.

"When I first started in this sport, when you drove real, real hard, you'd always get in trouble and not finish races. Today, the equipment, the engines, the cars, the tires, the braking systems are so advanced over where they were 10 years ago that you have to drive as hard as you can once they drop the green flag to the checkered."

Under NASCAR's written rules, a driver officially hasn't taken the caution flag until he has driven under it and still is allowed to race under green-flag conditions until he has passed the start/finish line. Under the gentlemen's agreement, drivers who are on the lead lap typically slow and hold their positions as soon as the yellow is displayed.

Ken Schrader said it is time for NASCAR to make the gentlemen's agreement official.

"I understand why the gentlemen's agreement is in place, but I wonder if it hasn't outlived itself," he said. "Do we really need something like that or is it not time to take it one step further? Every other rule we have is in black and white in the rulebook, so why not this one? I just think we need to take this to that point.

"These teams, these drivers, can adjust to just about anything. A lot of times, it's just knowing what the rule is. Lay it out and we'll abide by it."

Until it is put in writing, at least one driver said he would consider doing just what Gordon did to win Sunday's race.

"I don't blame Robby for what he did," Spencer said. "He ended up winning the race and I credit him for it. We can all point fingers at him and stuff like that, but always put the shoe on the other side. If Jeff Gordon could have done it, he would have done it.

"To me, yeah, I would do it if I got the opportunity."

Franchitti elected to have back surgery and will miss the final 10 races of the season.

Herta filled in for Franchitti at the Bombardier 500 on June 7 at Texas Motor Speedway and finished fifth in his IndyCar Series debut. Herta, 33, had two victories and seven poles in eight seasons in the CART Champ Car World Series.

Busch and Roush Racing teammate Matt Kenseth are featured on one cover of the Winston Cup midseason special issue while Dale Earnhardt Inc. teammates Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip are featured on another cover.

Both editions feature two cut-out trading cards depicting Jeff Gordon's and Earnhardt Jr.'s cars and a two-sided pullout poster with a photograph of Earnhardt Jr. on one side and Gordon on the other.

Christian Fittipaldi, who has been driving the No. 43 since John Andretti was fired, will move to the No. 44 Bugles-sponsored Dodge for the race.

Hmiel, 23, is 11th in the Busch Series standings and has two five top-10 finishes this season in 16 races.

The UAW-DaimlerChrysler 500 drew a 6.9 rating (the percentage of all TV households in the U.S. that tuned into the program), with approximately 7,368,000 households watching the race. The season-opening Daytona 500 received a 9.8 rating and was viewed in more than 10.4 million households.

NBC and TNT will televise the remainder of the Winston Cup schedule, beginning with the July 5 Pepsi 400.

The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame will include a 3,000-square-foot exhibit that eventually will expanded to a 15,000-square-foot gallery that will feature the vehicles and driver stories from the world of off-road motor sports.

The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame was informally established in January 1978 to recognize the early pioneers of off-road racing.

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