Maybe NASCAR has learned from open wheel mistakes....

[mrrebel36]

This was a comment said by Matt kenseth about NASCAR attempts to limit owners car counts in the future.

"I think [NASCAR] wants to make sure [the teams] don't get any bigger," Kenseth said. "And I think they're probably a little worried about some of the other manufacturers coming in and how they do things.

The only manufacturers coming in is Toyota and the rumor mill has said Honda as a possibility. Looks like NASCAR has seen what the Jap manufacturers will do to win at any cost.....I do not know how this can hurt the manufacturers coming in, but at least NASCAR is trying to setup a system to prevent what happened in open wheel (which was the over spending by Toyota and Honda (although Honda is not yet officially in NASCAR yet).

Check NASCAR.com for the quote.

[Truth Detector]

Toyota needs {blank} more than {blank} needs Toyota.

True of Nascar.

Not true of either IRL or Champ Cars.

[ptistheboss]

Looks like NASCAR has seen what the Jap manufacturers will do to win at any cost

Uhm, yah. You should probably say Japanese in the future. Jap is a racist term.

[Lee Roy]

Toyota has not been able to dominate and control Formula One.

[Gomer Simpson]

Toyota needs {blank} more than {blank} needs Toyota.

True of Nascar.

Not true of either IRL or Champ Cars.

Very true but they will do their best to change that over the next couple of years. Toyota will buy up all of the best teams. Ford and Chevy will have to start spending a lot more money to stay competitive. This does have the potential to get out of their hands.

[Gomer Simpson]

Uhm, yah. You should probably say Japanese in the future. Jap is a racist term.

This is something that drives me crazy. Jap is not a racist term. Insensitive, inappropriate and prejudiced for sure. If you use a term that is slanders a nation you are a bigot, not neccessarily a racist. Japan is a country, not a race. "Japanese" is a nationality, not every citizen of Japan is oriental. If I said "I don't like Canadians" would you call me a racist? A racist is a bigot but a bigot is not neccessarily a racist.

One is not better than the other, that's not the point I'm trying to make. It is a technicality I know, but it bugs me.

And I do like Canadians, btw.

[Z28]

We now return to our regularly scheduled racing discussion.

NASCAR sees the potential for too few car owners having too large a percentage of the field. The NASCAR position has always been that car owners are independant entrants the word that has come up very quietly in the past couple of years is franchise. car owners complain that they have a great deal invested like race shops, equipment, personel in competing in NASCAR and they are providing the show. Should they decide that they don't wish to or cannot compete all they can do is sell their real estate and equipment but show no reward for the years of service or reputation they have built in thier team.

Long time owners like Junie Donlevy and Bud Moore closed their teams and got nothing for 40+ years they spent building the sport and NASCAR. Bobby Allison after his injuries only recently emerged from backruptcy. All while NASCAR grew and continues to make a fortune.

Roush, Yates, Hendrick know NASCAR is all about family but not their families so there could come a day when as car owners they try to force the NASCAR hand. Factor in Toyota and maybe Honda and their way of racing partnered with those car owners and it could be a battle. NASCAR wants to head that off by limiting the power of the potential threat they face now rather than wait for a larger real one to face them.

[rjohnson999]

All of which argues for these racing teams getting involved in other forms of the sport to "diversify" their holdings. There's an even older lesson to be learned here that is within the auto industry, but outside racing. One of the things that hastened VW's fall from the top of the import pile was the strict enforcement of exclusive dealerships. When VW sales slipped, many chose to dump the franchise outright for something else. This added to the downward spiral. Those dealers who had managed to get other franchises while keeping the VW stores, tended to keep their VW franchise.

Of course, today we are seeing the corporatization of the retail automobile industry and an increase in the power of dealers vis a vis the manufacturers.

Oh, an BTW, Roger Penske controls one of the largest publicly traded retail dealer organizations (United Auto Group) while Rick Hendrick owns the largest privately held group. Coinkydink? I don't think so.

We now return to our regularly scheduled racing discussion.

NASCAR sees the potential for too few car owners having too large a percentage of the field. The NASCAR position has always been that car owners are independant entrants the word that has come up very quietly in the past couple of years is franchise. car owners complain that they have a great deal invested like race shops, equipment, personel in competing in NASCAR and they are providing the show. Should they decide that they don't wish to or cannot compete all they can do is sell their real estate and equipment but show no reward for the years of service or reputation they have built in thier team.

Long time owners like Junie Donlevy and Bud Moore closed their teams and got nothing for 40+ years they spent building the sport and NASCAR. Bobby Allison after his injuries only recently emerged from backruptcy. All while NASCAR grew and continues to make a fortune.

Roush, Yates, Hendrick know NASCAR is all about family but not their families so there could come a day when as car owners they try to force the NASCAR hand. Factor in Toyota and maybe Honda and their way of racing partnered with those car owners and it could be a battle. NASCAR wants to head that off by limiting the power of the potential threat they face now rather than wait for a larger real one to face them.

[Craigar1]

This is something that drives me crazy. Jap is not a racist term. Insensitive, inappropriate and prejudiced for sure. If you use a term that is slanders a nation you are a bigot, not neccessarily a racist. Japan is a country, not a race. "Japanese" is a nationality, not every citizen of Japan is oriental. If I said "I don't like Canadians" would you call me a racist? A racist is a bigot but a bigot is not neccessarily a racist.

One is not better than the other, that's not the point I'm trying to make. It is a technicality I know, but it bugs me.

And I do like Canadians, btw.

I always thought of it as similar to calling a British Subject a 'Brit,' for short. But 'Jap' is a no-no now.

[Lee Roy]

I always thought of it as similar to calling a British Subject a 'Brit,' for short. But 'Jap' is a no-no now.

Probably has to do with the way it was used during and shortly after WW II. When people used the term "Jap" it was as if they were spitting and they generally were not saying anything pleasant about the Japanese.

When people use the the term "Brit" it is almost always used in a positive and friendly way.

The history of how these types of terms are used tends to color how we perceive them when we hear them.

[Craigar1]

'Nip' for Nipponese is probably similar to 'Jap' And the same with 'Aussie' for an Australian similar to the 'Brit.'

Story:

My brother and I were in a little shop in England, without either of us saying a thing, the shopkeeper identified us as Americans.

"Yanks, eh?" he says.

"Is it that obvious?" my brother asked.

"It's like you 'ad oosa tatooed on yer for'ead," he replied.

At the time it got me thinking, I don't even bat an eye at 'Yank,' maybe a lot of this is if YOU decide to let it bother you.

PS: Did we decide if Frog is OK for Francophiles?