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Dakota, I honestly agree with the IRL diehard position on drivers. I want to see more guys coming out of modifieds, sprints, and midgets. I want a lot more American (and Canadian, for that matter) TALENT on the grid. And that's where the talent here comes from because it's the accessible form of racing. Road racing just isn't viable for some kid trying to race his way up the ranks, but stock cars and midgets are.
I actually wrote a rather strong rant over in the CART forum yesterday, about the annoying undercurrent of elitism the fanbase has, as though the worst road race will always be better than the best oval race, just because it involves right-hand turns. Which is a load of carp. And it applies to the drivers too... Everyone ignores the fact that Mario learned all his skills on ovals, mostly dirt... Or that A.J. _turned_down_ a ride with Ferrari after winning LeMans... Or that Mears outpaced Piquet in his test with Brabham. Mario himself has said that a fast driver is a fast driver, no matter what he's racing. To me, that's the gospel truth, as it was even before he pointed it out.
But you need the sponsors and the owners doing their damn jobs to get rid of the damn pay drivers. Dammit, even Foyt had to pick up one of those useless Japanese pay drivers!
The sponsors are specifically why we need one series. NASCAR's got their act together, and we don't. Plain and simple. That's why they get all the sponsors, and the TEAMS can afford to pay the DRIVERS, rather than the other way around.
What a crazy idea... Hiring drivers based on MERIT.
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