NASCAR’S Super Bowl Race Kicks Off 2020 Season
By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Sports Blogger
One Super Bowl is over but another is coming up and like the first one, this one involves intense preparation, attention to detail, a bit of luck, lots of contact and the winner rising to the top when it counts the most.
This is not the NFL’s Super Bowl, of course – already won by the Kansas City Chiefs over the San Francisco 49ers – but the staged by the National Association of Stock Car Racing, or NASCAR.
Known as the Daytona 500, it is the sport’s premier race and instead of coming at the end of the season it opens the season. So why would you watch and why should you care if you’re not a racin’ fan? Here’s five reasons why you should tune into it.
Sunday, Feb. 16. It is being broadcast on Fox starting at 2:30 p.m., ET.
This is the biggest race of the season, the one that matters the most, and so drivers and teams put everything into winning this event. Just like NFL teams do for the Super Bowl.
2.) There’s Great Pre-Race Pageantry
While there is no halftime show – because there is no halftime in racing – all the pageantry happens before the drivers turn a wheel. There’s a concert (three-time GRAMMY Award winner Darius Rucker; sorry, no Shakira & Jennifer Lopez or Lady Gaga) and the driver introductions, which are way better than what the NFL does for the Super Bowl. Even on TV, you can really feel the excitement building to the call of “gentlemen, start your engines.”
3.) The Crashes/The “Big One”
Let’s face it, only the die-hards tune into see the actual racing. The appeal to the larger audience are the crashes. And Daytona can produce some spectacular ones. The bumper-to-bumper racing lap after lap at 180 mph builds anticipation into what you know is coming and one wiggle by a driver can trigger dozens of cars suddenly spinning into collisions, blue smoke pouring out of their tires. Drivers and insiders call this the “big one.” Let’s just hope nobody gets hurt.
4.) The Girls!
There’s a lot of girls in racing. I ought to know, I’ve been around a lot of them. The best chance of seeing them is before and after the race. Unfortunately, Fox and NASCAR doesn’t show enough skin during the race. And those NASCAR women, well, they like to show skin.
5.) There’s Nothing Else On TV
Seriously, what else are you going to watch? A conference basketball game? An infomercial on a local network? March Madness is a month away from now. The PGA Tour is in Los Angeles at Riviera Country Club, but you can catch the back nine after the finish of Daytona.
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