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On lap 60 (of 94) in the Craftsman Truck Series race @ Talladega today ...
Jacques Villeneuve crashed & took-out 2 other trucks with him ...
Jacques Villeneuve was a DNF & was credited with 30th (of 36 entrants)
I guess being a previous openwheel champion doesn't give you a free pass on the track ! http://www.motorsportforum.com/forum...ongue-anim.gif
No, but being a lap down does.Quote:
Originally Posted by RaceFanStan
Only IF you are the "Lucky Dawg" ... http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...ink/orn/00.gif
JV made up for his wrecking in the CTS event. He wisely went to the back to not mess up anyone's race, and slowly was working forward and staying out of trouble. At one point he had trouble with the radio and was blackflagged. Then he had a little loose adventure and scraped the wall, but managed to keep going, and at the very end, made sure he stayed out of the way. He was all about learning, and he learned a lot and still got a 21st. Lots of good drivers had cars turn hard right or hard left for no reason (Labonte still doesn't know why the 43 got away from him, and he is a VERY good driver, the COT has its quirks at this speed I guess) and get into wrecks, yet JV stayed clean and didn't rile anyone up. Third NASCAR event in, he is learning. This year is all bout figureing out what this is all about, and BDR should be running him in ARCA, Busch and CTS if they can swing it. He needs the seat time, but in the end, he will do just fine.....
Actually, I doubt that JV will ever be competitive enough to make the Chase. He will always be somewhere between 15 and 25 in the points in his Nascar career. He is not a young gun and his best days are behind him. Of course though his fans will claim that he is learning and "wait until next year". :)
Muggle, no...but until he is not racing a vehicle with rookie stripes on it, cut the guy some slack. Also, in NASCAR, old guys win more often than any other form of racing, and Jacques is just a few years older than Jeffy Gordon, so I would hardly say his best days are that far in the rear view mirror.Quote:
Originally Posted by muggle not
As for his future success, the man will be fighting to get near the chase likely. Unlike some JV fans, I am under no illusions to what he may or may not do. I think like most good drivers who show up in NASCAR in mid career, they have times where they do well, but for the most part, it will be hit and miss. NASCAR has too much depth and is too unique for a guy in mid-career from another series to just jump in and challenge for a championship. He may win a race, he may run up front on occasion, but without a top team and good schooling, he will likely not see the Chase. JPM I think has done better than people expected, but again, he is in the 10 to 20 area in the points most of the time....and I think that is JV's fate as well.
Odds on favorite to will the title this season would have to be Jeff Gordon. Jeff is 4 months younger than Jacques. Age tells us nothing other than ones ages.Quote:
Originally Posted by muggle not
Best days are behind him? So far, yes. To suggest that he has no future opportunities for success would have to be nothing more than your humble opinion.
I am a JV fan and yes, I have no doubt he is as capable of winning a championship as any driver in the series and much more capable than most. And his age has nothing to do with it.
I'm also a fan of Tony Stewart. He's 1 month younger than JV. He's also more than capable of winning another title in spite of his age. But I'd wager that once JV gets a handle on the whole deal, he'll be a better bet if his team is up to it. JV is a smarter and less tempermental racer than Tony, imho.
Dale E Sr. won at 43yo
Dale J won at 43yo
DW won at 38yo
Cale Yarborough won at 38yo
Richard Petty won at 42yo
Harry Gant was winning races at age 54 but he was racing NASCAR stock cars from the age of 33.
In this situation stock car experience has more impact than age. Jeff has been racing NASCAR stock cars since he was 18 and Tony since he was 25. That's where the major difference lies. They have also been in premier rides. BDR is not even close to premier.
I'm sure JV will eventually figure it out. Whether he will win races or not is another story.
Gordon was racing since he was 5. by the time he wonned a championship he has 19 years of racing behind him :eek:
Hmmmmmmmmmm, if memory serves many contenders had engine failure or crashed @ Talladega ...
any driver that finished the race @ Talladega managed to survive through the carnage ...
it didn't neccessarily take talent, it took a good drafting partner & some good luck to make it to the finish ...
the drivers can go back to "real" racing @ Charlotte. :D :up: