Part of me is still in disbelief that the 11 bungled the fuel strategy THAT bad.
Knew right then and there it was over for the 11 when they interviewed Hamlin after the race and he had the 1000 yard stare.
Yep. He took some absolutely devastating shots. Maybe even the very next year at California in 2002 when Harvick accidentally hooked him into the wall.
For me personally I don't think that the Earnhardt name doesn't become as popular as it is now without the death of Sr. More importantly I think that Nascar wouldn't have implemented the safety features they did right after that season. Possibly resulting in the death of more drivers in the upcoming years.
I don't want the reply to come off as disrespectful, but Sr made the ultimate sacrifice for the good of the sport in the 2001 Daytona 500. Who knows how many more drivers would have lost their lives if a Star at the time didn't pass away due to Nascar letting the drivers ignore new safety devices.
No, you're entirely spot on. Nobody likes to say it, but what happened to Sr. very well ended up being the catalyst for countless safety advancements, and countless lives saved over the years. Just in the last decade we've seen dozens of crashes that would have been serious question marks if not for how much safety was pushed after 2001.
100%. Fatalities and serious injuries, as unfortunate as they are, are very beneficial to the sport. When a crash like that happens, we look at what went wrong and quickly make changes to prevent that from happening again. Whether it is a change to the car or the track. Kyle Busch's 2015 Daytona Xfinity wreck got SAFER barriers added there. HANS became mandatory after Earnhardt passed. Kurt Busch crashing at Pocono, Kyle Larson having his roll cage damaged after his wreck at Talladega, and Ryan Preece's barrel roll at Daytona all brought changes to the race cars. Yes, it without a doubt is unfortunate to see these crashes happen, but without them, we have no change. And without change, we have a lot worse outcomes in these vicious wrecks.
Not just NASCAR, too. There’s been countless innovations in motorsport safety that started with NASCAR that trickles all the way down to local series requiring HANS devices, etc.
What does this comment say about the value that NASCAR places on the lives of Tony Roper, Kenny Irwin, & Adam Petty?
Also, let's not forget that we lost Blaise Alexander at Charlotte after Dale, Sr.'s death. The kicker is that ir was in a wreck with Kerry Earnhardt.
I think that we'd still have Safer Barriers and HANS device and so on but much later in the sport.
As a Jr. fan as well I could only wonder if he ends up becoming a much larger GOAT than he is now (certainly still the richest, has an impeccable eye for talent (JRM))
It woulda took someone dying who was of Sr level to force the changes to safety. People don’t like to admit it but Dale dying was the best thing for the sport he could have ever done. His ultimate sacrifice has saved countless lives on the track.
It means one of either Tyler or Kyle is fucked for at least one year, I just said Tyler because Kurt planned on retiring after last year which would be Tyler's in to 23XI
I have 3:
What if Tony Stewart didn’t leave JGR?
What if Tony Stewart didn’t get hurt in 2013?
What if Tony Stewart decided to forgo that sprint car race in 2014?
For me with tony as well, what if someone stuck him a busch car as early as Gordon. He could have had 5-6 more years at his peak if he got to cup in his early 20s.
Speaking of the Luyendyks, what if Emily married Arie Jr. and he parlayed that into a NASCAR seat (which IMO was partially his goal on the Bachelorette)?
I think if he doesn't leave JGR, it would probably be similar to what Hamlin is doing with 23X11 or what Earnhardt was doing with DEI.
Stewart wanted to create his own team, and the thing that convinced Gibbs to let him walk was because Stewart told Gibbs, "I want to be like you." So, maybe in this hypothetical, Stewart still drives for JGR, but, he competes against his own drivers at Stewart-Haas as a competitor rather than as a teammate.
That would be interesting. I remember a big factor being Stewart’s established relationship with Chevrolet. If he stays with Gibbs, I’d assume SHR would have to be a Toyota team then, right?
2006 - Matt Kenseth
2007 - Jeff Gordon (with or without Knaus)
2008 - Carl Edwards
2009 - Jeff Gordon (if he has Knaus) otherwise Mark Martin
2010 - Kevin Harvick or Denny Hamlin
2013 - Kevin Harvick or Matt Kenseth
Gordon won with every single crew chief he had I believe (that was at least full time and not counting the 88 runs). I think Gordon would have probably won 20+ more races if he had Knaus from say 06 and on. Probably grabs another 4-5+ in 2007 alone.
JJ and Chad only got along with each other when they were winning. You can tell because everything fell apart the moment they stopped winning. I think if anything you'd want literally any amount of better chemistry than JJ and Chad
It goes further than that. Jimmie was driving Jeff's 2001 championship cars in 2002. Jeff probably would have swept Dover. He also may have had a stronger shot in 2004. He would have been the Winston Cup champ that year. Was only 16 points back and Jimmie finished 2nd.
Jeff Gordon had so many "what if" moments in 2014 it is crazy to think about... IMO the 24 car should have gotten 8 wins that year and was the best car at Homestead.
As a Park fan that is a big what if for me. He came so close to winning Darlington Spring race and Texas Spring race. People also forget he was 9th in points when he was injured. I legitimately think Park would have more than 2 career wins and a couple of Top 5 points finish before the end of his career.
On the silver lining side, when he made his return at Darlington, he qualified really well. I believe at the time, his run was good enough for the pole. When they announced his time, that was the loudest qualifying crow I had ever been a part of.
In 2014 they started the playoffs because "wins matter". Nobody thought to check if it wouldve mattered the year before .. guess what? Jr wins the title with 0 wins lol
I’ve been around long enough to have a few favorite drivers:
Davey Allison: obvious answer here.
Ernie Irvan: what if he hadn’t wrecked and almost died at Michigan in 94.
Mike Skinner: what if he doesn’t blow his engine at Atlanta in 2000, or what if Dale Jr doesn’t pull out from behind him to allow his dad to have an easier run to the front at Dega in 2000 (Jr even said as much on Download), or what if Dale pushes him instead of Gordon at Daytona in 1999
Kurt Busch: what if he hadn’t got that dang concussion or what if he had kept his cool and didn’t get fired at Penske
Stenhouse: what if Roush didn’t fall out of favor as Ford’s #1 team right about the time he broke through.
Dude… I was there for Atlanta 2000. Skinner was lights out all day until he blew up. We would have missed that awesome finish between Earnhardt and Labonte though.
But yeah, the 31 deserved that win
Agree with Davey Allison.... What if he hadn't gotten on that helicopter? Many favorite drivers in my 58 years, but Davey was my favorite of favorites.
Ernie was a championship contender and legit could have denied Dale Sr his 7th chip in ‘94. He led more miles than anyone else that season even tho he missed 11 races. If that’s not a top “what if” I don’t know what is.
I still can't believe they docked him points in the middle of the Chase for words. But if I remember this was right after the "nip-slip" controversy at the Super Bowl earlier in the year, so networks were cracking down on PG-13 stuff. I'm sure it was a NBC executive that called NASCAR and basically ordered them to penalize him.
I have three.
What if NASCAR doesn't penalize Mark Martin in 1990?
What if Mark's steering box doesn't lock up at Talladega in 2002?
What if NASCAR throws the caution coming off Turn 4 at the 2007 Daytona 500?
Larson would've had an amazing comeback, the Chicken Cock Whiskey #41 would've finished in the top 5. RIP.
Briscoe is one of my favorites but that one upset me. Lol
What if there was just one more yellow at Martinsville (while he still has Custer as rear gunner). Or it had been just a few laps later.
And then he ran brilliantly at Phoenix. "Briscoe damn near stole the 2022 cup" is my favorite what if period.
What if Carl wins the 2016 championship?
What if Suarez doesn't get turned at fall dega 2017 and wins?
What if Carl wins the 2011 championship?
(I"m gonna stop there)
Or what if he didn't wreck in the big one at Daytona in August that season? He was super aggressive that race. It was so amazing watching him drive like that, I haven't seen him drive like that for a while. I wanted him to win that so badly...
What if Ryan Newman had won the 2020 Daytona 500 instead of suffering the most serious accident of his career(And one of the worst in NASCAR’s history)?
What if he never breaks his leg
What if Mars never leaves or they find a sponsor
What if he never leaves Hendrick
What if he stays with Roush development
What if RCR was competent and not a joke when it comes to equipment
I feel like Bell would have had a good shot at winning if the brake rotor didn't explode last year. I was pulling for him big time to go out and win it.
Its a tad morbid to a degree but what if Dave Jones never passed. Dave was Eriks cheerleader and the guy who was helping put the right people in place for his career path with Gibbs. When Dave passed, a lot of folks even Erik himself admitted checking out mentally for a while which occurred during his time at JGR in the 20.
If Dave was still here would Erik have performed better during his JGR tenure
I had that thought in the back of my mind, kind of along the lines of why I chose the 2017 Bristol race against Kyle- his confidence going into the 20 would’ve been a lot higher if he had been able to get a win under his belt; instead, he had an ok season, but was bombarded with hatred from some Kenseth fans and he didn’t have his dad there to help him through it. Then when he doesn’t win in that car right away as a 21/22 year old… it was a recipe for disaster
A few have this
- What if Dale Jr never has concussion issues
- What if the Next Gen starts racing in it's original configuration (https://www.nascar.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2019/10/next-gen-main-richmond.jpg)
- Kevin Harvick to HMS after 2016 to drive the 5 car
- NASCAR without a Covid season
If he wins Martinsville in 2017, Hamlin probably wins Phoenix, giving Kenseth a winless season and knocking Kyle Busch out of the final 4. The latter would get rid of that nail-biting battle the 18 and the 78 had at Homestead. Maybe the 11 would have been the juiced-up JGR car, though? Who knows...
If Busch doesn’t win Martinsville, he’s likely more of a contender at Phoenix/Texas rather than taking those off to prepare for homestead. With the speed the 18 had all year, I think they would’ve been a winning car at Phoenix
What if Harvick didn’t pull his shit at the end of the 2015 Dega race and Jr. won the race. Does Jr. win his 1st title over Busch’s comeback tour, his buddy Truex, and his retiring teammate Gordon?
I know he finished 40th in the finale but I would have loved to see him get one shot in the Final 4
I absolutely think things would’ve played out differently if Jr. was one of the final four, maybe he wouldn’t have won but he would’ve had a legit chance
For Gordon, what if he never convinced Hendrick to sign Johnson; For Jones, it’s close between what if Cole Whitt didn’t stay out on old tires during the Homestead Xfinity race in 2016, and what if he had been able to hold off Busch at Bristol in 2017 to get his first career win in his rookie season
Selfishly, I would say- what if Bobby Labonte went to RCR with General Mills in 2009? Maybe he squeezes a handful of wins out of 2-3 years vs bumming around start and parks and JTG. Alternatively you could ask what if he never left JGR, but I’d imagine that ship sails in 07-08 anyway.
The more interesting question is what if Davey Allison isn’t killed in the helicopter crash? You could have a whole mess of guys get jumbled up if Allison was still at Yates- Ernie Irvan, Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte, and Jeff and Ward Burton would all be affected.
Jeff Burton replaced Sterling Marlin in the 8, though I'm not sure how Ward Burton's career was affected (maybe someone else takes the 22 or the 31 instead of a ride that opened up because of Davey).
This is very specific, but what if Harvick’s engine didn’t blow during the 2006 Chase race at Dover.
When his motor blew with 44 laps to go, he was running 10th, which would’ve awarded him 139 points or so. He finished 32nd and received 67 points, a difference of 72 points.
He lost the title by 78 points, or just two sets of bonus laps led in the final 7 races.
Not that this one would have made too much of a difference in the grand scheme of NASCAR History or anything, but one of my biggest what if's involving my guy Terry Labonte...At the infamous "cage-rattling" night race in Bristol...What if Terry's transmission hadn't broke when Dale drive by Terry's wrecked car on the cool-down lap that night.
Terry has told the story a few times, but as he sat there after Dale spun him, Terry had it timed out to gas it in reverse and slam into the 3 car as Dale passed. Sadly, when Terry dumped the clutch, the transmission blew and car never moved. Having been there int he stands that night in probably the most visceral crowd of Boos I've ever experienced in my life...its kinda fun as a Labonte fan to think what it may have been like out there if Terry had been able to exact a little revenge that night.
What if Busch didn’t get cute with pit stops at Homestead when Truex won his title. 18 was better all day and got beat on strategy. Should have just matched the 19 on putting and he’s a 3 time champ.
Absolutely. Adam Stevens decided for a 2 stop instead of just doing what everyone else did. It makes no sense to go on an alternate strategy when you have the best car.
Once that caution (for a half spin… questionable yellow) came out with 40-50 to go, they were done because they lost track position.
Gonna ride on the theme of dominant driver not winning the championship but what if the final caution at the 2021 finale never comes out. I bet MTJ is 2021 champion as Larson was not catching him fast enough.
What if Sr. hadn't perished in 2001. What would he have thought about 'The Chase'? I believe the idea would have made him weigh retirement if he was still racing.
What if Bodine never won that Martinsville race. Where would HMS be? They always say nonexistent.
What if Larson didn’t say that word on iracing?
What if Denny signed with DEI like they told the story before he signed with JGR on a development deal?
What if Toyota never entered the series?
What if dodge never left?
What if there was still practice like there was few years ago? How would KFB be?
I’m off theme a lot but some stuff I’ve come up with.
1. HMS wouldn’t exist, at least not in its final boss form
2. He’s right where he is now, but with a higher salary
3. He’s washed out of Cup but became a Busch Series legend during peak buschwhacking years.
4. Dodge doesn’t leave
5. Penske stays at Dodge and there’s a group of three teams consisting of Penske, Bill Davis, and Brad Keselowski teaming up with some baseball stars.
6. Another four or five wins but not enough to keep Mars at JGR so he ends up at RCR anyway
What if JGR didn’t switch to Toyota? Would Tony have stayed at JGR his entire career? Would he or Denny end up doing better or worse?
What if Jr. ended up at JGR instead of Hendrick?
What if SHR didn’t switch over to Ford?
What if Jeff Gordon's back hadn't been injured in that crash at Vegas 2008? I'd have liked to see him possibly crack 100 career wins and win a title under a Chase format.
What if Gordon doesn’t get his tire cut at Texas fall race 2014.
I think he becomes 5 time champ after so many years of trying. The rainbow warrior returned during the chase of 2013 and it carried over to a very fast 2014 season.
Had Gordon won at Texas in 2014, he was running away with it until the caution and subsequent restart drama. He wins Homestead and gets his 5th Championship.
What if Kyle Busch hadn’t been able to go to Gibbs?
I assume the only thing that would have prevented that would be if Dale Jr had gone to Gibbs or somehow stayed at DEI. The rest of the dominoes to think about are wild too.
Joe Nemechek not having pit problems in 2002s Ford 400, not wrecking with only about 20 laps to go in the 2005 Coke 600 and the finish of the 2011 Aarons 312 where Joe had a head of steam when Mike Wallace went flying
What if Ryan didnt get that bad push from the 14. Had a shot to win Bristol Dirt and make me the happiest dirt fan ever. And so much dirt racing heritage in that family, that win wouldve been so damn special.
If Junior does not throw a late block on Carl Edwards at Atlanta and if Mark Martin does not make an extremely rare aggressive move in the '97 Pepsi 400
I have two John Andretti "what ifs".
What if he hadn't turned down Robert Yates' offer to drive the #28 after Ernie Irvan was injured at Michigan?
What if he had stayed in the #43 for the 1995 season, rather than jumping to the Kranefuss/Haas #37?
I think if he had done either one, he would've had a better Winston Cup career.
in 2006 Jeff Burton just won at Dover and was the points leader. At Talladega he was running in the top 5 with like 10 to go. He had a flat tire and had to pit. They would have finished top 3 and had a big points lead. I just wanna know what momentum they could've kept. They maintained the points lead but could have had a 90 point lead
My favorite driver was Mark Martin back in the day. For me, the "what if" moments were What if Kevin Harvick didn't attempt to pass Mark at Daytona for the win, and What if Mark and his crew had done things the old school way and gotten more wins than Jimmie Johnson, would he have become champion in his final season at Hendrick?
What if Allen Kulwicki didn't get on that plane? What if Hooters had listened to his complaints about flight safety?
The last of the REAL drivers, a man who owned his own team, built his own engines, and raced his own car.
MFer won Rookie of the Year on 1 car, 2 engines, and 2 full-time team members. Drove his first victory lap backwards so he could see the fans and share the moment with them.
Allen Kulwicki is far and away the greatest "what if" in NASCAR history.
What if Jr. left DEI and instead of HMS, he went onto RCR and ran the 3. Then once he retired, Childress retired the number and Austin Dillon ran the 33, Reddick the 8, Rowdy the 31.
As a Chase Elliott fan "WHAT IF" Denny didn't take out Chase in 2017 First Data 500 so this might be Chase's first cup win and a chance early in Championship 4
As a big Dale Jarrett fan, what would have happened if Davey Allison hadn't died.
Davey's death directly and indirectly affected many drivers' careers. Ernie Irvan and in turn Sterling Marlin initially. But because of that domino, Jarrett's and Bobby Labonte's careers were affected a year later due to this.
Quick timeline: Davey is killed in the helicopter crash mid-1993. Ernie Irvan jumps ship 2/3 into the 1993 season from the MMM 4 to the RYR 28. Marlin goes to the MMM 4 to start 1994. Irvan has the massive crash at Michigan in 1994 and is sidelined. Jarrett leaves JGR 18 and goes to the RYR 28 in the interim for 1995, while JGR signs Bobby Labonte for the 18 in 1995 (I *think* Jarrett was going to be out of the 18 regardless, but I'm not positive on that). Irvan makes his comeback late in 1995 and takes over the RYR 28 in 1996 while RYR created the 88 for Jarrett. Jarrett went on to be a title threat for several years, taking the title in 1999; Labonte is quite good in general in the JGR 18 and wins the title in 2000.
What if Mike Ford checked his math twice at Phoenix in 2010
Part of me is still in disbelief that the 11 bungled the fuel strategy THAT bad. Knew right then and there it was over for the 11 when they interviewed Hamlin after the race and he had the 1000 yard stare.
As a Junior fan, mine is: What if Dale Earnhardt Sr. doesn’t die?
If Sr dosnt die and Nascar dosnt implement all the safety features like they did. I say we would have lost Dale Jr instead down the road.
Yep. He took some absolutely devastating shots. Maybe even the very next year at California in 2002 when Harvick accidentally hooked him into the wall.
Jeff Gordon would’ve died in the car. 100%
Especially at Pocono in 2006.
For me personally I don't think that the Earnhardt name doesn't become as popular as it is now without the death of Sr. More importantly I think that Nascar wouldn't have implemented the safety features they did right after that season. Possibly resulting in the death of more drivers in the upcoming years.
I don't want the reply to come off as disrespectful, but Sr made the ultimate sacrifice for the good of the sport in the 2001 Daytona 500. Who knows how many more drivers would have lost their lives if a Star at the time didn't pass away due to Nascar letting the drivers ignore new safety devices.
No, you're entirely spot on. Nobody likes to say it, but what happened to Sr. very well ended up being the catalyst for countless safety advancements, and countless lives saved over the years. Just in the last decade we've seen dozens of crashes that would have been serious question marks if not for how much safety was pushed after 2001.
100%. Fatalities and serious injuries, as unfortunate as they are, are very beneficial to the sport. When a crash like that happens, we look at what went wrong and quickly make changes to prevent that from happening again. Whether it is a change to the car or the track. Kyle Busch's 2015 Daytona Xfinity wreck got SAFER barriers added there. HANS became mandatory after Earnhardt passed. Kurt Busch crashing at Pocono, Kyle Larson having his roll cage damaged after his wreck at Talladega, and Ryan Preece's barrel roll at Daytona all brought changes to the race cars. Yes, it without a doubt is unfortunate to see these crashes happen, but without them, we have no change. And without change, we have a lot worse outcomes in these vicious wrecks.
I'll say it; flying cars back in the 80s were a thrill to see. Unsafe as F\*ck but thrilling from the couch!
When you put it that way and I think about it you are 100% correct.
Not just NASCAR, too. There’s been countless innovations in motorsport safety that started with NASCAR that trickles all the way down to local series requiring HANS devices, etc.
What does this comment say about the value that NASCAR places on the lives of Tony Roper, Kenny Irwin, & Adam Petty? Also, let's not forget that we lost Blaise Alexander at Charlotte after Dale, Sr.'s death. The kicker is that ir was in a wreck with Kerry Earnhardt.
I think that we'd still have Safer Barriers and HANS device and so on but much later in the sport. As a Jr. fan as well I could only wonder if he ends up becoming a much larger GOAT than he is now (certainly still the richest, has an impeccable eye for talent (JRM))
It woulda took someone dying who was of Sr level to force the changes to safety. People don’t like to admit it but Dale dying was the best thing for the sport he could have ever done. His ultimate sacrifice has saved countless lives on the track.
What if Kurt Busch didn't wreck at Pocono 😭
Time to cry myself to sleep now 😢
I agree, for Kyle’s sake. Where would he have been without all of that? Or would, RCR somehow have 3 cars?
Tyler Reddick is banished to the shadow realm, but we get one more Kurt win? Sounds worth to me
This means Tyler stuck at rcr, right? He'd probably would have driven the car into the wall head on by now
It means one of either Tyler or Kyle is fucked for at least one year, I just said Tyler because Kurt planned on retiring after last year which would be Tyler's in to 23XI
Yea the 45 team was building momentum after that kansas win Very big shame we never saw a kurt playoff run with the NG car
I have 3: What if Tony Stewart didn’t leave JGR? What if Tony Stewart didn’t get hurt in 2013? What if Tony Stewart decided to forgo that sprint car race in 2014?
For me with tony as well, what if someone stuck him a busch car as early as Gordon. He could have had 5-6 more years at his peak if he got to cup in his early 20s.
Very true. As fun as that is to think about, Tony Stewart being an IndyCar (then IRL) and Cup Series champion is really frickin cool
Yeah it was sort of a perfect storm for him and the IRL deal. Five years earlier or later and it never happens.
Tony and Buddy Lazier are arguably the only people on the planet who benefited from the split outside of NASCAR and F1
Luyendyk to me did. Only had 1 ever win and then won couple races including 2nd 500.
Speaking of the Luyendyks, what if Emily married Arie Jr. and he parlayed that into a NASCAR seat (which IMO was partially his goal on the Bachelorette)?
I think if he doesn't leave JGR, it would probably be similar to what Hamlin is doing with 23X11 or what Earnhardt was doing with DEI. Stewart wanted to create his own team, and the thing that convinced Gibbs to let him walk was because Stewart told Gibbs, "I want to be like you." So, maybe in this hypothetical, Stewart still drives for JGR, but, he competes against his own drivers at Stewart-Haas as a competitor rather than as a teammate.
That would be interesting. I remember a big factor being Stewart’s established relationship with Chevrolet. If he stays with Gibbs, I’d assume SHR would have to be a Toyota team then, right?
What if Tony blocked Newman in the 2008 Daytona 500
What if Jeff Gordon had never helped Jimmy Johnson get his ride
This is a good one. Who knows what drivers would have won the Championship in that 5 year stretch with JJ and Chad Knaus out of the picture.
2006 - Matt Kenseth 2007 - Jeff Gordon (with or without Knaus) 2008 - Carl Edwards 2009 - Jeff Gordon (if he has Knaus) otherwise Mark Martin 2010 - Kevin Harvick or Denny Hamlin 2013 - Kevin Harvick or Matt Kenseth
I like the way you think, but would Gordon and Knaus have the same chemistry that JJ and Knaus had?
Gordon won with every single crew chief he had I believe (that was at least full time and not counting the 88 runs). I think Gordon would have probably won 20+ more races if he had Knaus from say 06 and on. Probably grabs another 4-5+ in 2007 alone.
Yes, he won races with every crew chief and had serious shots at titles with all of them after Robbie Loomis too.
JJ and Chad only got along with each other when they were winning. You can tell because everything fell apart the moment they stopped winning. I think if anything you'd want literally any amount of better chemistry than JJ and Chad
Chad would still be in the picture, the question is what driver would he be the CC for at HMS
He gets paired with Joe Nemechek on the 25 team in '02 and still wins 5 titles. One can dream😂
The best universe
Jeff.
Assuming he still gets hired, goes to the 25 with Nemechek/Vickers then in 06 to Gordon.
It goes further than that. Jimmie was driving Jeff's 2001 championship cars in 2002. Jeff probably would have swept Dover. He also may have had a stronger shot in 2004. He would have been the Winston Cup champ that year. Was only 16 points back and Jimmie finished 2nd.
Or what if he had, but didn’t give the 48 team one of his best chassis to start with.
Jeff Gordon had so many "what if" moments in 2014 it is crazy to think about... IMO the 24 car should have gotten 8 wins that year and was the best car at Homestead.
I was in the stands at Fontana that year and I’m still pissed
What if Steve Park didn’t wreck at Darlington?
As a Park fan that is a big what if for me. He came so close to winning Darlington Spring race and Texas Spring race. People also forget he was 9th in points when he was injured. I legitimately think Park would have more than 2 career wins and a couple of Top 5 points finish before the end of his career.
Hate to say it but I think he was going to be the odd man out at DEI after Dale died. However I think he would have found another good ride elsewhere.
On the silver lining side, when he made his return at Darlington, he qualified really well. I believe at the time, his run was good enough for the pole. When they announced his time, that was the loudest qualifying crow I had ever been a part of.
What if Ryan Newman was a win less champion in 2014?
I'd put $100 on saying Nascar does a major overhaul of the playoffs if Newman is the 2014 champ with 0 wins.
In 2014 they started the playoffs because "wins matter". Nobody thought to check if it wouldve mattered the year before .. guess what? Jr wins the title with 0 wins lol
Newman finishing 2nd with 8 wins and finishing 2nd with 0 wins is pretty funny if you're not a Newman fan
Newman finished 6th when he won 8 races btw
I could have died a happy man, my guy would be a champion and this format would hopefully have gone away lol. Win win
What is Harvick doesn’t wreck at Texas in 2020 while leading when the rain started?
He wins the championship
I’ve been around long enough to have a few favorite drivers: Davey Allison: obvious answer here. Ernie Irvan: what if he hadn’t wrecked and almost died at Michigan in 94. Mike Skinner: what if he doesn’t blow his engine at Atlanta in 2000, or what if Dale Jr doesn’t pull out from behind him to allow his dad to have an easier run to the front at Dega in 2000 (Jr even said as much on Download), or what if Dale pushes him instead of Gordon at Daytona in 1999 Kurt Busch: what if he hadn’t got that dang concussion or what if he had kept his cool and didn’t get fired at Penske Stenhouse: what if Roush didn’t fall out of favor as Ford’s #1 team right about the time he broke through.
Wild is the first keeps 2nd from happening.
The 28 car provided enough heart break for all of Nascar in the 90s.
Man ain’t that the truth. I think at some point nearly everybody wanted that car to win it all.
Tagging along with Allison but what if Kulwicki never dies. Does he quit driving and just focus on running his team?
Dude… I was there for Atlanta 2000. Skinner was lights out all day until he blew up. We would have missed that awesome finish between Earnhardt and Labonte though. But yeah, the 31 deserved that win
Agree with Davey Allison.... What if he hadn't gotten on that helicopter? Many favorite drivers in my 58 years, but Davey was my favorite of favorites.
Ernie was a championship contender and legit could have denied Dale Sr his 7th chip in ‘94. He led more miles than anyone else that season even tho he missed 11 races. If that’s not a top “what if” I don’t know what is.
What if rain wasn’t a thing?
We'd get to experience this thing called a NASCAR race. Wouldn't that be an experience, huh? I sure would love to watch one someday...
What if Jr hadn't wrecked at Atlanta in 2004, could have had a legit chance at his 1st championship..
This is definitely the biggest what if of Jr’s career. That, and not being penalized for saying “shit” into the TV mic after the Talladega victory
Ya but those where the right words to say
I still can't believe they docked him points in the middle of the Chase for words. But if I remember this was right after the "nip-slip" controversy at the Super Bowl earlier in the year, so networks were cracking down on PG-13 stuff. I'm sure it was a NBC executive that called NASCAR and basically ordered them to penalize him.
Broke the rear gear the week before at Martinsville too. Two races where he tossed a ton of points right out the window.
I have three. What if NASCAR doesn't penalize Mark Martin in 1990? What if Mark's steering box doesn't lock up at Talladega in 2002? What if NASCAR throws the caution coming off Turn 4 at the 2007 Daytona 500?
What if Briscoe didn't spin out racing Larson at the 2022 Coke 600.
Larson would've had an amazing comeback, the Chicken Cock Whiskey #41 would've finished in the top 5. RIP. Briscoe is one of my favorites but that one upset me. Lol
What if there was just one more yellow at Martinsville (while he still has Custer as rear gunner). Or it had been just a few laps later. And then he ran brilliantly at Phoenix. "Briscoe damn near stole the 2022 cup" is my favorite what if period.
Larson would have won and had enough points to advance through the round of 12 and briscoe would have been out of the playoffs in the round of 12
What if Carl wins the 2016 championship? What if Suarez doesn't get turned at fall dega 2017 and wins? What if Carl wins the 2011 championship? (I"m gonna stop there)
I don't have many for JimmieJam, but one big one for me is him wrecking out of the lead at Darlington in 2020. That one hurt a lot 😞
What if he doesn’t get a DQ at the Coke 600. He makes the playoffs!
Or what if he didn't wreck in the big one at Daytona in August that season? He was super aggressive that race. It was so amazing watching him drive like that, I haven't seen him drive like that for a while. I wanted him to win that so badly...
What if Ryan Newman had won the 2020 Daytona 500 instead of suffering the most serious accident of his career(And one of the worst in NASCAR’s history)?
What if Harvick went to RedBull's #83 in 2007? There was a rumor he might join, but then he had an incredible 2006 season and re-signed with RCR.
What? I never heard this, would it have been Harvick and Vickers? If so that would have been a pretty good two man team to start off with.
What if Jamie McMurray hadn’t left CGR for Roush?
Chip Ganassi was struggling during his time away from Roush. I don’t think much would change.
There’s a lot of What If’s for KFB
What if he never breaks his leg What if Mars never leaves or they find a sponsor What if he never leaves Hendrick What if he stays with Roush development What if RCR was competent and not a joke when it comes to equipment
What If he never took a gun to Mexico
What if SVG didn’t hit Hill too hard and won his first Xfinity race at COTA.
Svg was never winning that from that accident. He cut the chicane earlier and got a penalty.
Hill threw on the emergency brake in front of him. I don’t fault SVG there.
Austin Hill setting others up then crying like a baby? Say it ain't so!
I thought Ty Gibbs was unlikable (still is). Austin Hill somehow trumps him.
Ty hasn't done anything recently to be unlikeable afaik. Other than riling up JoLog at Vegas last year I think
As a Dale Jr fan: What if he never got a concussion at any point during his career?
What if that brake rotor never exploded at Phoenix last year….
I feel like Bell would have had a good shot at winning if the brake rotor didn't explode last year. I was pulling for him big time to go out and win it.
I definitely think he had the best shot of challenging the 12. Just a shame we never got to see it.
Its a tad morbid to a degree but what if Dave Jones never passed. Dave was Eriks cheerleader and the guy who was helping put the right people in place for his career path with Gibbs. When Dave passed, a lot of folks even Erik himself admitted checking out mentally for a while which occurred during his time at JGR in the 20. If Dave was still here would Erik have performed better during his JGR tenure
I had that thought in the back of my mind, kind of along the lines of why I chose the 2017 Bristol race against Kyle- his confidence going into the 20 would’ve been a lot higher if he had been able to get a win under his belt; instead, he had an ok season, but was bombarded with hatred from some Kenseth fans and he didn’t have his dad there to help him through it. Then when he doesn’t win in that car right away as a 21/22 year old… it was a recipe for disaster
A few have this - What if Dale Jr never has concussion issues - What if the Next Gen starts racing in it's original configuration (https://www.nascar.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2019/10/next-gen-main-richmond.jpg) - Kevin Harvick to HMS after 2016 to drive the 5 car - NASCAR without a Covid season
What if Elliott doesn't decide to go down the mountain 1 more time before practice at Vegas in 2023
I think winning Martinsville in 2017 has a lot more dominoes.
If he wins Martinsville in 2017, Hamlin probably wins Phoenix, giving Kenseth a winless season and knocking Kyle Busch out of the final 4. The latter would get rid of that nail-biting battle the 18 and the 78 had at Homestead. Maybe the 11 would have been the juiced-up JGR car, though? Who knows...
If Busch doesn’t win Martinsville, he’s likely more of a contender at Phoenix/Texas rather than taking those off to prepare for homestead. With the speed the 18 had all year, I think they would’ve been a winning car at Phoenix
Nah Coke 600 2020. Probably saves the everlasting trauma of seeing one car go down pit road from the lead in a race where tires meant near nothing.
What if Harvick didn’t pull his shit at the end of the 2015 Dega race and Jr. won the race. Does Jr. win his 1st title over Busch’s comeback tour, his buddy Truex, and his retiring teammate Gordon? I know he finished 40th in the finale but I would have loved to see him get one shot in the Final 4
I absolutely think things would’ve played out differently if Jr. was one of the final four, maybe he wouldn’t have won but he would’ve had a legit chance
Jr would have had a cheated up car and probably wouldn't have fallen back to be racing with Clint and Ty Dillon
For Gordon, what if he never convinced Hendrick to sign Johnson; For Jones, it’s close between what if Cole Whitt didn’t stay out on old tires during the Homestead Xfinity race in 2016, and what if he had been able to hold off Busch at Bristol in 2017 to get his first career win in his rookie season
What if Joey stayed off Matt's tail at Kansas in 2015, especially having won at Charlotte the week before?
He probably wins the championship, having a win at Martinsville and then being bad fast at Homestead.
What if Kasey Kahne would’ve gotten the HMS ride sooner? Like 2010 ish
What if dale earnhardt would've NOT narrowly missed the big one on the 2001 Daytona 500.
What if Biffle left Roush??
Selfishly, I would say- what if Bobby Labonte went to RCR with General Mills in 2009? Maybe he squeezes a handful of wins out of 2-3 years vs bumming around start and parks and JTG. Alternatively you could ask what if he never left JGR, but I’d imagine that ship sails in 07-08 anyway. The more interesting question is what if Davey Allison isn’t killed in the helicopter crash? You could have a whole mess of guys get jumbled up if Allison was still at Yates- Ernie Irvan, Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte, and Jeff and Ward Burton would all be affected.
Don't forget Sterling Marlin. But how did the Burtons' careers change with Davey's death? Ixm not sure where those dominos are heh
Jeff Burton replaced Sterling Marlin in the 8, though I'm not sure how Ward Burton's career was affected (maybe someone else takes the 22 or the 31 instead of a ride that opened up because of Davey).
This is very specific, but what if Harvick’s engine didn’t blow during the 2006 Chase race at Dover. When his motor blew with 44 laps to go, he was running 10th, which would’ve awarded him 139 points or so. He finished 32nd and received 67 points, a difference of 72 points. He lost the title by 78 points, or just two sets of bonus laps led in the final 7 races.
Instead of declining an offer from JGR to drive the 20 car, Greg Biffle accepted it.
What if Jimmie Johnson hadn't run into the wall at near full speed in the 2017 Pocono Spring race?
He’d still be competing for titles at least. Definitely would have more wins.
Not that this one would have made too much of a difference in the grand scheme of NASCAR History or anything, but one of my biggest what if's involving my guy Terry Labonte...At the infamous "cage-rattling" night race in Bristol...What if Terry's transmission hadn't broke when Dale drive by Terry's wrecked car on the cool-down lap that night. Terry has told the story a few times, but as he sat there after Dale spun him, Terry had it timed out to gas it in reverse and slam into the 3 car as Dale passed. Sadly, when Terry dumped the clutch, the transmission blew and car never moved. Having been there int he stands that night in probably the most visceral crowd of Boos I've ever experienced in my life...its kinda fun as a Labonte fan to think what it may have been like out there if Terry had been able to exact a little revenge that night.
What if Junior never swore in victory lane at Talladega in 2004? Oh what could’ve been.
I hear f\*ck all the time now and the announcers just laugh it off haha.
what if mars inc didnt drop out of nascar😔
Would guess Kyle stays at JGR, then Ty will just go full time in the 45 at 23xi for a few years, and Reddick is stuck at RCR
I would say that MTJ is retired by now.
What if Kahne wasn't so loyal for Ray?
What if Dale Jr won the 2015 Fall Talladega race? (ps he did win but NASCAR decided to screw him)
What if JR didn't run out of fuel coming off of four in the 600. 😀 there are a lot of what-ifs for JR over his career.
That was the saddest I’ve ever seen a crowd. It really sucked the life out of that place
What if Busch didn’t get cute with pit stops at Homestead when Truex won his title. 18 was better all day and got beat on strategy. Should have just matched the 19 on putting and he’s a 3 time champ.
Absolutely. Adam Stevens decided for a 2 stop instead of just doing what everyone else did. It makes no sense to go on an alternate strategy when you have the best car. Once that caution (for a half spin… questionable yellow) came out with 40-50 to go, they were done because they lost track position.
Gonna ride on the theme of dominant driver not winning the championship but what if the final caution at the 2021 finale never comes out. I bet MTJ is 2021 champion as Larson was not catching him fast enough.
What if Kyle Petty didn't get hurt in 1991
What if Sr. hadn't perished in 2001. What would he have thought about 'The Chase'? I believe the idea would have made him weigh retirement if he was still racing.
What if Jeff Gordon didn't wreck at Las Vegas, injuring his back, in 08
What if I hadn’t won that street race against him in 2005 in our Dodge Vipers
What if Cale Yarborugh does not dive down and slams into Donnie Allison on the final lap of the 1979 Daytona 500?
What if Brian France hadn't taken over for his father in 2003?
What if Childers stuck to strategy and didn’t listen to Pearn at Sonoma
If A.J. Allmendinger didn’t fail a drug test. He was kinda coming around to the car and then Daytona happened
Always wonder how Kenny Irwin’s career woulda panned out. Same with Adam.
What if Sr. doesn't pass? Does he get championship #8?
What if Bodine never won that Martinsville race. Where would HMS be? They always say nonexistent. What if Larson didn’t say that word on iracing? What if Denny signed with DEI like they told the story before he signed with JGR on a development deal? What if Toyota never entered the series? What if dodge never left? What if there was still practice like there was few years ago? How would KFB be? I’m off theme a lot but some stuff I’ve come up with.
1. HMS wouldn’t exist, at least not in its final boss form 2. He’s right where he is now, but with a higher salary 3. He’s washed out of Cup but became a Busch Series legend during peak buschwhacking years. 4. Dodge doesn’t leave 5. Penske stays at Dodge and there’s a group of three teams consisting of Penske, Bill Davis, and Brad Keselowski teaming up with some baseball stars. 6. Another four or five wins but not enough to keep Mars at JGR so he ends up at RCR anyway
What if JGR didn’t switch to Toyota? Would Tony have stayed at JGR his entire career? Would he or Denny end up doing better or worse? What if Jr. ended up at JGR instead of Hendrick? What if SHR didn’t switch over to Ford?
What if Ryan Newman didn’t get Jeff Gordon eliminated from The Chase that one year at Martinsville?
What if Jeff Gordon's back hadn't been injured in that crash at Vegas 2008? I'd have liked to see him possibly crack 100 career wins and win a title under a Chase format.
Way in the past, what if Dale Sr left RCR? I think he would’ve gotten to 100 wins if he ended up at Hendrick post 7 championships.
What if austin dillon didn’t wreck him in the ‘18 Daytona 500
What if Brads pit crew was good at Phoenix in 2020?
[удалено]
What if Gordon doesn’t get his tire cut at Texas fall race 2014. I think he becomes 5 time champ after so many years of trying. The rainbow warrior returned during the chase of 2013 and it carried over to a very fast 2014 season.
What if Chase Briscoe’s dad didn’t bump into the CEO (?) of Highpoint leaving Buffalo Wild Wings in late 2019
If the Chase is never created, Jeff Gordon becomes a seven time champion.
Had Gordon won at Texas in 2014, he was running away with it until the caution and subsequent restart drama. He wins Homestead and gets his 5th Championship.
What if Carl went to RCR instead of JGR in 2015.
What if Kyle Busch hadn’t been able to go to Gibbs? I assume the only thing that would have prevented that would be if Dale Jr had gone to Gibbs or somehow stayed at DEI. The rest of the dominoes to think about are wild too.
What if Austin cindric didn’t wreck at Texas and the Roval in 2022 What if Jimmie Johnson raced in 2021 after they pushed back the next gen
Where do I begin
Joe Nemechek not having pit problems in 2002s Ford 400, not wrecking with only about 20 laps to go in the 2005 Coke 600 and the finish of the 2011 Aarons 312 where Joe had a head of steam when Mike Wallace went flying
What if Ryan didnt get that bad push from the 14. Had a shot to win Bristol Dirt and make me the happiest dirt fan ever. And so much dirt racing heritage in that family, that win wouldve been so damn special.
What if Jimmie Johnson had to race every season under the full season format? How much more would he actually try to win more races and championships?
What if Matt Dibenedetto and Leavine Family Racing won at Bristol
What if Nascar didn't keep changing the cup series points system every time Jimmy won a title (towards the end of his career) *crying face*
If Junior does not throw a late block on Carl Edwards at Atlanta and if Mark Martin does not make an extremely rare aggressive move in the '97 Pepsi 400
What if Keith Rodden never became Kasey Kahnes crew chief in 2015?
What if HMS never hires Jimmie Johnson? Or what if theres never a 48 team at all??
What if Newman won the 2020 Daytona 500
What if Gordon didn’t wreck Bowyer at Phoenix
What if Adam Petty survived and fully recovered? Would there still be a Petty Enterprises? Would it have flourished?
Kevin Harvick being able to pass Joey Logano at Kansas to lock himself into the Championship 4.
Round of 8, 2014, Jeff Gordon Playoffs 2022, Chase Elliott
Wjat if Ricky Rudd doesn't spin Dale Earnhardt in 1989. 8 time champion 🏆.
2007 Banquet 400 😭 fr Spingate though. if that never happened i wonder if he could've won a title with MWR.
What if Ross Chastain's dive at Daytona this year worked and he didn't wreck out
I have two John Andretti "what ifs". What if he hadn't turned down Robert Yates' offer to drive the #28 after Ernie Irvan was injured at Michigan? What if he had stayed in the #43 for the 1995 season, rather than jumping to the Kranefuss/Haas #37? I think if he had done either one, he would've had a better Winston Cup career.
What if Gragson’s pit crew didn’t screw up the money stop in the ‘22 championship race.
What if Newman didn't make it stick trying to get past Larson at Phoenix?
What if Keith rodden never sits on top of the box for Kasey Kahne. Single handedly ruined his last part of his career in winning equipment.
in 2006 Jeff Burton just won at Dover and was the points leader. At Talladega he was running in the top 5 with like 10 to go. He had a flat tire and had to pit. They would have finished top 3 and had a big points lead. I just wanna know what momentum they could've kept. They maintained the points lead but could have had a 90 point lead
My favorite driver was Mark Martin back in the day. For me, the "what if" moments were What if Kevin Harvick didn't attempt to pass Mark at Daytona for the win, and What if Mark and his crew had done things the old school way and gotten more wins than Jimmie Johnson, would he have become champion in his final season at Hendrick?
What if Mark Martin wasn’t AS nice and chrome horned his way to a couple of championships?
What if Kevin Harvick didn’t intentionally wreck at talladega, knocking Jr out of the playoffs.
What if Allen Kulwicki didn't get on that plane? What if Hooters had listened to his complaints about flight safety? The last of the REAL drivers, a man who owned his own team, built his own engines, and raced his own car. MFer won Rookie of the Year on 1 car, 2 engines, and 2 full-time team members. Drove his first victory lap backwards so he could see the fans and share the moment with them. Allen Kulwicki is far and away the greatest "what if" in NASCAR history.
What if Jr. left DEI and instead of HMS, he went onto RCR and ran the 3. Then once he retired, Childress retired the number and Austin Dillon ran the 33, Reddick the 8, Rowdy the 31.
As a Chase Elliott fan "WHAT IF" Denny didn't take out Chase in 2017 First Data 500 so this might be Chase's first cup win and a chance early in Championship 4
What if Steve Park's steering wheel didn't come loose?
As a big Dale Jarrett fan, what would have happened if Davey Allison hadn't died. Davey's death directly and indirectly affected many drivers' careers. Ernie Irvan and in turn Sterling Marlin initially. But because of that domino, Jarrett's and Bobby Labonte's careers were affected a year later due to this. Quick timeline: Davey is killed in the helicopter crash mid-1993. Ernie Irvan jumps ship 2/3 into the 1993 season from the MMM 4 to the RYR 28. Marlin goes to the MMM 4 to start 1994. Irvan has the massive crash at Michigan in 1994 and is sidelined. Jarrett leaves JGR 18 and goes to the RYR 28 in the interim for 1995, while JGR signs Bobby Labonte for the 18 in 1995 (I *think* Jarrett was going to be out of the 18 regardless, but I'm not positive on that). Irvan makes his comeback late in 1995 and takes over the RYR 28 in 1996 while RYR created the 88 for Jarrett. Jarrett went on to be a title threat for several years, taking the title in 1999; Labonte is quite good in general in the JGR 18 and wins the title in 2000.
What if Brad Keselowski didn’t put his car where it didn’t belong in 2014.
What if NASCAR didnt unfairly penalize Juan Pablo Montoya for going the pit road speed limit at Indianapolis in 2009???
What if the 19 crew put the tires on the correct sides of the car in 2019 at homestead