Tony Rizzuti Blog: Rants and Rumblings from Talladega

Paula Creamer

My favorite athlete Paula Creamer won the LPGA event at Half Moon Bay, California (home of Mavericks) on Sunday. My wife called to tell me my "girlfriend" won. Like I didn't know...

Back to the blog! After a nice week of rest, I am back blogging with you on tonyrizzuti.com.

Talladega...I just got back to Charlotte from Birmingham. It is funny when you get to the terminal every week and the flight is 95% NASCAR media or sponsors. Its like a reunion every Monday morning. "How was your race? Fine, how was your's". And then when the gate attendant calls for US Airways status members to board and the entire gate gets up..classic. Today the attendant repeated herself as if we all misunderstood. Note to those working the gate, we travel 36 weekends a year. We are all preferred!

As for the race, I guess NASCAR got it right giving Stewart the victory. I didn't think so at first, because Jimmie Johnson had said via the radio during HotPass that they were told if you can see the flagstand, coming to the checkered, everything was legal. That statement apparently came from NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Posten following the Daytona Truck Series race. I really like Mr. Posten. He is one of my favorite people in the sport and if he said that in February, then that is how it was explained to him. However, Jim Hunter of NASCAR, who trumps Ramsey in these matters, says that was never the case. To be honest, it really doesn't matter. If Tony had known that it would have been legal to go below the yellow line, he would have never left that open for Regan Smith. So I think Tony wins in that scenario.

Now, Regan Smith admitted he could have wrecked Stewart for the win. Good choice not to Mr. Smith. Brian Vickers popularity hasn't recovered since his run in at Talladega that led to the win. Now that one involved Junior, but still, he would have been hammered by fans and media. My only thought is that NASCAR shouldn't have penalized Smith back to 18th. I think he should have been droppped back to second. Again, coming to the checkered, the fine doesn't fit the crime.

I thought the crowd was good considering the economy and the gas crisis in the Southeast. I was able to find gas this morning by the airport, but only regular. Near my home in South Charlotte, nothing, zip, nada. My wife has to use premium and is down to 50 miles to empty. Looks like I am landlocked this week. I have a feeling my truck will be in her control. By the way, I have a bad feeling that if you look up empty stands in the dictionary after next Saturday night, you will see a photo of Lowe's Motor Speedway. I hope not, but...

It was interesting doing HotPass this week. We had a great lineup with Doug Rice in the booth and TV Tim Deroin (High Home camera for the Red Sox) producing. I missed my usual crew of John (find my families names on the 88 car) Morris and T-Bone Tony (yes, sir Mr. Perry) Marshall, but Timmy did a great job with the show. I really like working with Doug. I think we have the best chemistry together. He is a real pro and a great guy. With that said, covering a driver riding in the back single file can get a bit trying. I thought we did a good job of keeping the show entertaining. I hated seeing our guy Carl in the crash at the end. He admitted fault, but its a shame because he had a great car. One I think could have won the race.

Bob Dillner snaked me on the interview with Carl which didn't leave me, my producer, or Randy Fuller of Roush-Fenway very happy. But thats how it goes in the trenches. A little communication goes a long way though. When we switched to Jimmie at the end, I got that interview first. I worked with ESPN's Mike Massaro and we agreed to let me go first. Bob was there as well and we both made him wait. Its NASCAR's policy to have live TV go before taped shows. With the Jimmy interview it worked.

Something else that works...Dreamland BBQ in Birmingham. It was so good after the race. We had a combination of ribs, sausage, chicken, mac n cheese, beans, and potato salad. I drank a Yuengling (great Pennyslvania beer). And banana pudding to die for. A woman sitting next to us, asked me about my DirecTV HotPass logo on my shirt. Tim says we are with a TV network and covered the NASCAR race. She asked me if I was a Grip or Key Grip. I told her I was a fluffer. Three tables within earshot busted out laughing. I think I missed my calling. AS A COMEDIAN...I know what you were thinking...

Speaking of humor... I don't do a lot of lists but here were some of the highlights from our broadcast with a comment or two that bring it all full circle.

* Doug Rice - "Carl Edwards is the lead surfer in this wave of cars" - Doug knows I'm a surfing guy and tossed me a bone. I followed with "If this is surfing, than the site is Waimea Bay on the North Show of Oahu and the waves are 60 foot and growing" Later in the race, Carl fell to the back, but the three wide-racing continued up front. I brought back the surfing analogy with "Up front the field is being spit out the tube at Teahpou in Tahiti..back here we're riding ripples at Sebastian Inlet." Nobody watching except Kelly Slater and the Iron's brothers got it, but I said it anyway. (If you just wondered who Slater and Iron's are, you didn't get it either).

* Carl came over the radio after the wreck on the front stretch and said "I didn't hit anything, but I smell grass". I wanted so badly to say, "yep, so did everyone in the infield last night" But I thought better of it. (In fact, I'm laughing again at the pot reference I held back on). I then tried to get Tim Derion to bring us out of commercial with "That Smell" by Skynard. Again a no go.

* We showed a shot of a wagon in the grass in turn two that had a satellite dish attached to it and the people were watching the race on DirecTV. It was a red wagon, with big off road tires and a dish! You know me, I can't resist. "If your red wagon in the infield at Talladega has a satellite dish attached to it...you might be a redneck! - So far, no hate mail. I'm glad I resisted calling it a typical Alabama family room. I'm kidding!!! Honk, honk, wink, wink. I'm a funny guy. Look I was born in Arkansas, start... jokes...now.

* When Jeff Gordon came back out of the garage, 30 plus laps down, Doug said his chances of winning were long gone. I got in my only Dodgers reference of the show with "Doug, would you say his chances are the same as the Chicago Cubs against my Dodgers?" - Doug - "Tony that series is over and the Cubs lost" - Me, "Exactly my point". Anyone have game one or two tickets in Philly?

* More drivers came back out and Doug listed them all and how many laps they were down. I so wanted to say, "And David Pearson has emerged from the garage area 22 years down." - I know it wasn't funny then either.

* And finally...This one from the What you didn't see on HotPass that really happened file. At the end of my pre-race interview with Carl Edwards, I spewed this brilliant comment - "That's Carl Edwards and we will be riding with him all afterloon long on HotPass." After what?? Loon? Thanks for the edit Tim and Dane!!!

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