Another race at Bristol…another 500 laps of close racing in the books…and another win for Kyle Busch. Once again, the younger Busch brother DOMINATED a race which saw less beating and banging than the average fan expected. FOX commentator Mike Joy painted the picture of Bristol by describing it as “the world’s fastest conveyor belt.” It was definitely a quick race, but Bristol today is not the same as the “typical Bristol” we saw.
It seems pretty much that Kyle Busch can be put in the pool to win ANY race. FOX’s announcers are always prepared to talk about him, and it seems like they never run out of facts about him. We know everything about Busch except his shoe size! Nevertheless, love him or hate him, FOX pointed out that Kyle will indeed win a bunch of championships during his career.
You would think for Bristol there would be a lot of temper tantrums and finger pointing, but it was overall a clean race. Then the end brought some drama. FOX color announcer Darrell Waltrip noticed that Kyle Busch’s teammate’s engine had blown, forcing the caution flag to fly. Check out the quick camerawork in the following Youtube clip:
The only real peeve I had about this broadcast was the lack of coverage on Carl Edwards. Yes, he ran in the middle of the field all day, but no one seemed to know why! 43 cars and 43 drivers should equal 43 different stories for raceday. We heard a lot about Ryan Newman, who was trying everything to stay in the top 35 in owner’s points. FOX’s announcers and producers knew that several drivers were on the bubble, including rookie Joey Logano. They didn’t emphasize it a ton, but enough to keep the viewers aware of the situation.
Overall, I rate the broadcast an 8 out of 10. All of the camera shots were incredible, and they created a superior atmosphere…we felt like we were truly there! Bristol holds more than 170,000 people, and it’s only a half mile racetrack! Amazing panoramic shots and excellent decisions by the director regarding shot selection made the broadcast full of variety. Any time NASCAR takes to the short tracks, the races are unpredictable: it’s not always “follow the leader”, but FOX and the crew can be commended for keeping up with everything: 15 second laps go by in a heartbeat, and it takes a bunch of alert crewmembers to follow all the action.
Next weekend is more of the same…MARTINSVILLE! It’s a half mile track shaped like a paperclip, and I anticipate FOX will give major coverage to Jimmie Johnson (last year’s winner), Jeff Gordon (last year’s runner-up), and Denny Hamlin, who finished 2nd at Bristol last week and has won at Martinsville before! Watch out for more quick action from the cameras, as the action here is quick also! Prerace begins at 1:30 on FOX Sunday, March 29th!
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