By now, race fans are well aware of the start-and-park teams who show up every week with no intention of running the entire race but who are simply there to collect money for running a few laps and quitting.
Start-And-Park Drivers Explain Why They Parked At Indy
NASCAR requires teams to declare a reason why they are out of the race, which can vary from “Engine” to “Overheating” to “Vibration” to “Handling.”
Quite often, the drivers are pretty up front about their situations. But when a representative from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway public relations department asked the drivers for quotes following their exits, not all of them may have told the entire truth.
Which, if any, were honest? Decide for yourself:
TODD BODINE, finished 37th. Official reason: Rear gear. “We had a vibration in the gearbox, and it got to rattling so bad, I had to park it.” Total laps: 52; total money: $134,675.
DAVE BLANEY, finished 41st. Official reason: Electrical. “We had a transmission problem in practice and it just kept getting worse. So we pulled it out.” Total laps: 20; total money: $134,225.
JOE NEMECHEK, finished 40th. Official reason: Vibration. “In that first-lap accident, we got into the grass. We broke the splitter and knocked the bottom end out of the radiator. We fixed those, but we picked up a vibration we couldn’t get rid of.” Total laps: 33; total money: $134,375.
MICHAEL MCDOWELL, finished 42nd. Official reason: Overheating. “I got caught up in that first-lap accident. We must have stuffed some dirt into the carburetor. We tried to clean the carburetor, but it didn’t work.” Total laps: 19; total money: $134,125.
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