Monday, September 16, 2013

Rule makers, breakers and other manipulators

The Pacific 12 is admitting that the officials messed up at the end of the Wisconsin - Arizona State game last Saturday, most likely costing Wisconsin the win.

It's nice that they spoke up about the errors, but disheartening that the loss will stand.

The Badger players are looking at the whole thing with a "what's done is done" attitude as they prepare to face Purdue next week. One can only hope this doesn't derail their season.

Questionable officiating seems to be more the norm than the exception lately. Then there is NASCAR, in a league of its own when it comes to strange decision making by the rules maker. I've not delved deeply into the details, but apparently NASCAR penalized some teams at the end of the final race before the Race to the Cup, for making deals to set finishing positions in the race.

Well, duh. NASCAR chooses now to make a public case of this? This kind of thing has gone on for years. What's different now?

Fan favorite Jeff Gordon did not make the Chase because of the way that race ended. With all the rulings and other brouhaha because of the "cheating", NASCAR made the decision to add two more cars to the ten car Chase.

The twelfth entry just happens to be Jeff Gordon.

This rather reinforces something I've thought for many years: the fix is permanently "in" for NASCAR. They put on a great show, but it is truly just that - a show.

Eh. At least incompetent officiating and inexplicable rules bending/changing give the fans a reason to yell at the television.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Gordon is the *13th* entry. 12 Drivers already made it in.

You know I'm a huge Nascar fan, but this has me more than pissed, both because of what the teams did and Nascar's flub reaction.

Diane said...

My bad. But I thought they added 2 drivers?

I suppose in the "any advertising is good advertising" line of thought, this is a win. But uneven rules application and high handed rules abandonment by the officials just isn't good for anyone in the long run.

Unknown said...

They added Gordon as a "sorry you got screwed."

They removed Martin Truex Jr, becuae it was his teammate, Bowyer, that spun, and put Ryan Newman in, as Newman was leading the race at the time of the spin.