Sports Quote of the Day:
"In the end, it's extra effort that separates a winner from second place. But winning takes a lot more of that, too. It starts with complete command of the fundamentals. Then it takes desire, determination, discipline, and self-sacrifice. And finally, it takes a great deal of love, fairness and respect for your fellow man. Put all these together, and even if you don't win, how can you lose?" ~ Jesse Owens, Olympics Track Star
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The top of the list includes Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa. Patrick Sharp is coming off another great playoff series, and Bryan Bickell and Dave Bolland have come up with big postseason goals in the past.
The Chicago Blackhawks have waves of talented lines, making them a difficult matchup for any team. Months after Nicklas Lidstrom retired, they pose quite the challenge for the Detroit Red Wings.
When one of the NHL's biggest rivalries resumes in the playoffs on Wednesday night, there will be a lot of talk about the play of goalies Corey Crawford of Chicago and Jimmy Howard of Detroit. The Blackhawks are going to have to find a way to shut down the Detroit trio of Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen.
But Chicago's deep group of forwards against Detroit's refurbished defense could go a long way to deciding the 16th postseason series between the proud Original Six franchises.
''There's going to be a test there for them,'' Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. ''We just try to keep making progress. We've had good growth on our team all year long and it has to continue to happen.''
Detroit lost decades of experience when Lidstrom announced his retirement a year ago. The seven-time Norris Trophy winner helped the Red Wings to four Stanley Cups and is among the best defensemen to ever play the game.
Lidstrom's absence left a giant hole in front of Howard, but Detroit then decided to trade Brad Stuart to San Jose in June because he made it clear that he wanted to be closer to his family. Down Lidstrom and Stuart, the Red Wings had to rely on a mix of young and unproven defensemen to provide key minutes.
Due in part to the evolving lines in the back, Detroit's annual appearance in the playoffs was in jeopardy until it won the last four games of the regular season to secure the seventh spot in the West and extend the longest active postseason streak in major professional sports to 22 straight seasons.
''They got better as the season went on, and they got better as the playoffs went on,'' Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. ''They always play a really responsible team game and I think their whole team game helps their defense as well.''
While the Red Wings squeaked past the Ducks in the first round of the postseason, Chicago rolled over Minnesota in five games. Eight players had at least one goal and 15 recorded at least one point as the Blackhawks outscored the Wild 17-7, including an 8-1 margin over the final two nights.
It was a continuation of the regular season for Chicago, which finished second to Pittsburgh with 149 goals while rolling to the Presidents' Trophy and home-ice advantage for as long as it's around in the NHL playoffs.
''I think we know it's going to be a tough series,'' Zetterberg said. ''They played well all regular season. They took care of Minnesota pretty quick and they've been resting for a few days. It's going to be a challenge for us, for sure, but the same way, if we play the way we want and do all the little things right, we have a chance.''
The series opener against Detroit will be the first game for Chicago since it closed out Minnesota with a 5-1 victory on Thursday. The Blackhawks used all that time to rest, but it also allowed Quenneville to take a look at a couple different line combinations - providing even more material for Detroit to consider.
Bolland is healthy again after he missed the first-round series with a lower-body injury, and he is expected to center Chicago's third line. Quenneville also said Michal Handzus is fine after he missed two days of practice. Viktor Stalberg, one of the fastest skaters on the team, has been working outside of the top four lines in practice, so his role against Detroit is up in the air.
''I really don't have anything to say about it,'' Stalberg said. ''Ask Q.''
Asked about what Stalberg can do to get back in the lineup, Quenneville responded:
''Stay ready, stay ready. Nobody said he's out of the lineup, but keep yourself, make decisions tough on us.''
Stalberg had nine goals and 14 assists in 47 games this season, then had a big assist and a plus-2 rating while playing all five games in the first round against Minnesota.
It's quite a luxury for Quenneville to consider leaving him off the top four lines, but such is life for the Blackhawks this season.
It's also quite the problem for Detroit.
''It should be a fun series,'' said Kane, who led the team with 55 points this season. ''We're really looking forward to the challenge.''
How 'bout them Chicago Bulls? Decimated by illnesses and injuries, The Bulls were slapped around again Monday. It seems the end is near but let's make this a positive situation. Give it all we've got and get ready for a serious run when everyone comes back healthy next year. I'm not giving up but I believe the best is yet to come for the Bulls. Bulls-Heat Preview.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? The Blackhawks have been off for a week and are chomping at the bit to get going tonight. Red Wings-Blackhawks Preview. Let's go Hawks!!!
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The top of the list includes Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa. Patrick Sharp is coming off another great playoff series, and Bryan Bickell and Dave Bolland have come up with big postseason goals in the past.
The Chicago Blackhawks have waves of talented lines, making them a difficult matchup for any team. Months after Nicklas Lidstrom retired, they pose quite the challenge for the Detroit Red Wings.
When one of the NHL's biggest rivalries resumes in the playoffs on Wednesday night, there will be a lot of talk about the play of goalies Corey Crawford of Chicago and Jimmy Howard of Detroit. The Blackhawks are going to have to find a way to shut down the Detroit trio of Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen.
But Chicago's deep group of forwards against Detroit's refurbished defense could go a long way to deciding the 16th postseason series between the proud Original Six franchises.
''There's going to be a test there for them,'' Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. ''We just try to keep making progress. We've had good growth on our team all year long and it has to continue to happen.''
Detroit lost decades of experience when Lidstrom announced his retirement a year ago. The seven-time Norris Trophy winner helped the Red Wings to four Stanley Cups and is among the best defensemen to ever play the game.
Lidstrom's absence left a giant hole in front of Howard, but Detroit then decided to trade Brad Stuart to San Jose in June because he made it clear that he wanted to be closer to his family. Down Lidstrom and Stuart, the Red Wings had to rely on a mix of young and unproven defensemen to provide key minutes.
Due in part to the evolving lines in the back, Detroit's annual appearance in the playoffs was in jeopardy until it won the last four games of the regular season to secure the seventh spot in the West and extend the longest active postseason streak in major professional sports to 22 straight seasons.
''They got better as the season went on, and they got better as the playoffs went on,'' Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. ''They always play a really responsible team game and I think their whole team game helps their defense as well.''
While the Red Wings squeaked past the Ducks in the first round of the postseason, Chicago rolled over Minnesota in five games. Eight players had at least one goal and 15 recorded at least one point as the Blackhawks outscored the Wild 17-7, including an 8-1 margin over the final two nights.
It was a continuation of the regular season for Chicago, which finished second to Pittsburgh with 149 goals while rolling to the Presidents' Trophy and home-ice advantage for as long as it's around in the NHL playoffs.
''I think we know it's going to be a tough series,'' Zetterberg said. ''They played well all regular season. They took care of Minnesota pretty quick and they've been resting for a few days. It's going to be a challenge for us, for sure, but the same way, if we play the way we want and do all the little things right, we have a chance.''
The series opener against Detroit will be the first game for Chicago since it closed out Minnesota with a 5-1 victory on Thursday. The Blackhawks used all that time to rest, but it also allowed Quenneville to take a look at a couple different line combinations - providing even more material for Detroit to consider.
Bolland is healthy again after he missed the first-round series with a lower-body injury, and he is expected to center Chicago's third line. Quenneville also said Michal Handzus is fine after he missed two days of practice. Viktor Stalberg, one of the fastest skaters on the team, has been working outside of the top four lines in practice, so his role against Detroit is up in the air.
''I really don't have anything to say about it,'' Stalberg said. ''Ask Q.''
Asked about what Stalberg can do to get back in the lineup, Quenneville responded:
''Stay ready, stay ready. Nobody said he's out of the lineup, but keep yourself, make decisions tough on us.''
Stalberg had nine goals and 14 assists in 47 games this season, then had a big assist and a plus-2 rating while playing all five games in the first round against Minnesota.
It's quite a luxury for Quenneville to consider leaving him off the top four lines, but such is life for the Blackhawks this season.
It's also quite the problem for Detroit.
''It should be a fun series,'' said Kane, who led the team with 55 points this season. ''We're really looking forward to the challenge.''
How 'bout them Chicago Bulls? Decimated by illnesses and injuries, The Bulls were slapped around again Monday. It seems the end is near but let's make this a positive situation. Give it all we've got and get ready for a serious run when everyone comes back healthy next year. I'm not giving up but I believe the best is yet to come for the Bulls. Bulls-Heat Preview.
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Dwyane Wade is limping around in obvious pain. LeBron James' shooting percentage is down. Shane Battier and Ray Allen have struggled to get anything going from 3-point range.
The Eastern Conference semifinals have been far from perfect for the Miami Heat.
And the reigning NBA champions are now in absolute control of this series nonetheless.
Barely a week ago, there was so much talk about how the Chicago Bulls had Miami's number like no other team. That seems long forgotten now, after three straight wins - by an average of 23.3 points - have the Heat one win away from returning to the East finals. Up 3-1 in the series, the Heat will try to close out the Bulls in Game 5 at Miami on Wednesday night.
''You have to have a high-character team,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said Tuesday, a few hours after his team returned from Chicago after an 88-65 rout in Game 4 of the suddenly one-sided series. ''You have to have a team that's built strong habits ... not to take games for granted. Our guys have built up habits. They also have built up perspective that boy, these close-out games have been the toughest ones.''
When Miami gets a chance to finish off an opponent, it typically doesn't waste any time. Since James, Wade and Chris Bosh joined up, the Heat are 8-2 in games where they can clinch a series, winning each of their last five by double figures.
Given the way this series is going, it's not hard to envision Wednesday ending the same way.
''Got to take care of business,'' Bosh said.
The Bulls outscored the Heat in Game 1, tried to outmuscle them in Games 2 and 3, and then simply looked outmanned in Game 4. Derrick Rose has been gone all season, Kirk Hinrich hasn't played since logging 60 minutes in Chicago's triple-overtime Game 4 against Brooklyn in the opening round and Luol Deng is still dealing with the effects of a nasty bout of illness.
On Wednesday, the Bulls shot just under 26 percent, scored nine points in the third quarter and saw Nate Robinson - Chicago's best offensive weapon in these playoffs - take 12 shots and miss them all.
''Nobody said this was going to be easy,'' Robinson said. ''We're professionals for a reason. We'll go back to the drawing board and figure it out.''
They better figure it out in a hurry.
In a series where Wade - averaging just 11.3 points in the four games - has been limited by continued issues with the bone bruises in his right knee, where James' shooting is down more than 10 percent from his regular-season pace and Battier and Allen have combined to go 9 for 34 from beyond the 3-point arc, Miami has been rolling along anyway.
''You analyze what happened in the game, make your corrections, get ready for the next one. We'll just keep our focus right there,'' Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. ''I don't what them looking backwards. I don't want them looking ahead. Just lock into the game that's in front of us and concentrate on winning that game. We know we're capable.''
There are so many battles for the Bulls to face right now, all of them being of the uphill variety. No team has ever won four games at Miami in the same season, which Chicago would have to do to pull off this most improbable of comeback bids. There's the emotional toll that losing three straight games has taken, frustration over how injuries and illness depleted the roster, and it's a fair question to ask how much the Bulls might have left in their proverbial tank.
''I think we've got enough energy left,'' Bulls forward Taj Gibson said. ''We just need guys to come back and play. We've got some guys banged up. But we'll just keep playing. We'll just keep playing. There's no excuses out there.''
Added center Joakim Noah: ''We're still alive. There's still basketball to be played and we've got to fight.''
Wade is doing plenty of fighting on his own.
He was briefly sent to the bench in the second quarter of Game 4 after an inadvertent knee-to-knee collision with Chicago's Jimmy Butler caught him in one of the particularly more tender spots on the bruised joint. He returned, was scoreless for just the seventh time in a first half in his career, and finished with only six points.
The Heat have outscored the Bulls by 49 points with Wade on the floor in this series, tied with Battier for the best plus-minus on the team.
''Dwyane has proven himself as a warrior,'' Spoelstra said. ''He's helping us win.''
Wade has just 31 points in the last three games. Miami has won those games by a combined 70 points, and if they win Game 5 on Wednesday, the Heat would get possibly another full week off to allow Wade time to rest that knee.
The East finals aren't scheduled to start until May 20 or May 22.
''It's just frustrating at times, but just try to do what you can,'' Wade said. ''Sometimes it feels good, sometimes it doesn't. You can't predict it.''
Regardless of Wade's health issues, Miami is anxious to clear the Chicago hurdle.
The Bulls nearly wasted a 3-1 lead in the first round against Brooklyn, advancing by winning a Game 7 on the road. And Spoelstra is leery of giving Chicago any glimmer of hope.
''We have to go in with the mindset to really approach this with desperation and urgency,'' Spoelstra said. ''You don't want to give this team second life. They're far too dangerous for that type of mentality because they just continue to grind and they compete and we know that. We respect that.''
O'Neill hopes Goldencents finishes in money.
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NFL Roundup: Tuesday, 05/14/2013.
By The Sports Xchange
Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy has been sued for assault after an alleged incident on a "party bus" in December 2012, according to CourthouseNews.com.
Filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the lawsuit seeks more than $50,000 in damages for assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, and negligence.
"The allegations against LeSean McCoy are completely, unequivocally false," a representative for McCoy said in a statement. "There are no criminal charges pending and no probable cause was ever found. This is sadly an attempt to extract money and LeSean will vigorously defend any attempt to collect money through a personal injury claim."
McCoy allegedly rented the vehicle for a trip from Philadelphia to New York City. The plaintiff, a female suing under the "Jane Roe," claims McCoy and/or his bodyguard struck her in the face, held her down and poured a drink over her, and ejected her from the bus.
---Former Dallas Cowboys running back Felix Jones signed with the Philadelphia Eagles and participated in Tuesday's practice.
Jones was signed and wide receiver Marvin McNutt was released to create a roster spot. McNutt, a 6-foot-2 receiver out of Iowa, entered the NFL with the Eagles last season and played in four games but had zero catches.
Jones, a first-round pick in 2008, agreed to a one-year deal to join LeSean McCoy and Bryce Brown in a talented backfield. Jones will compete for the third running back spot and a return role with Chris Polk, who was undrafted out of Washington in 2012.
---Former running back Chuck Muncie, a three-time All-Pro, has died at the age of 60 from a heart attack.
A star at the University of California, Muncie finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting as a senior, then was the third overall pick by the New Orleans Saints in the 1976 NFL draft. He was traded to the San Chargers during the 1980 season.
In nine seasons, Muncie rushed for 6,702 yards and 71 touchdowns. In 2009, he was chosen as one of the 50 greatest Chargers of All Time. His career ended in 1984 when he was suspended by NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle for the rest of that season following a positive test for cocaine after the first regular-season game.
---Plans for the $980 million Vikings Stadium in downtown Minneapolis will not include a retractable roof, but a majority of the top of the building is see-through thanks to a transparent membrane that gives the appearance of a large windows to allow views of the city skyline.
The roof will have an exaggerated slope to abate concerns about snow building up, an issue that helped put the Metrodome out of commission on more than one occasion. The advanced architecture implementation was used in the plans for the Beijing Olympics "Water Cube" structure in 2008.
The 65,000-seat stadium is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2016 season at the current Metrodome site.
---Free agent safety Charles Woodson is scheduled to meet with the Denver Broncos on Wednesday, the first positive sign the 15-year veteran has seen since being released three months ago.
Woodson was released by the Green Bay Packers in February and, other than a visit to the San Francisco 49ers, hasn't attracted much interest. The 1997 Heisman Trophy winner could be reunited with that year's runner-up, Peyton Manning.
---Former NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb plans to officially retire in September as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, he said on his NBC Sports Radio show Monday night.
No announcement has come from the Eagles, but McNabb said it could happen in Week 3, when his former head coach, Andy Reid, returns to Philadelphia with the Kansas City Chiefs.
---Titus Young's father, Richard, told two Detroit newspapers Monday that his son needs help because he suffers from a mental health disorder.
Titus Young was arrested Friday in California for the third time in a week for allegedly breaking into a house. Less than a week earlier, he was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, then later in the same for trying to retrieve his car from a tow yard.
Richard Young told The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press that he and Titus had coffee earlier Friday and the former Detroit Lions receiver appeared happy. Then later, Titus told his father that he was going to his car for his cell phone and drove off.
"His mind is not capable enough to go out and deal with society because of this situation," Richard Young said.
---Fullback Jason Schepler signed a contract with the San Francisco 49ers after taking advantage of his weekend tryout with the NFC champions.
Schepler started 26 games for Northern Illinois and caught 14 career passes. He's likely to shift into a combo blocking role to help fill the void left when tight end Delanie Walker, also a standout special teams player and a solid blocker on the edge, signed with the Tennessee Titans as a free agent.
---The Minnesota Vikings announced that they've agreed to deals with fourth-round pick Gerald Hodges seventh-round picks Michael Mauti and Everett Dawkins.
Hodges, who began his career at Penn State as a safety, could enter camp in a competition for the starting weak-side linebacker slot, especially if the Vikings move Erin Henderson to middle linebacker instead of signing a veteran.
---The Cincinnati Bengals signed guard Tanner Hawkinson of Kansas, their fifth-round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft.
The Bengals have now signed six of their 10 selections from the 2013 draft. Hawkinson joins linebacker Sean Porter of Texas A&M, halfback Rex Burkhead of Nebraska, wide receiver Cobi Hamilton of Arkansas, offensive tackle Reid Fragel of Ohio State and center T.J. Johnson of South Carolina as signees from the 2013 draft class.
---The Buffalo Bills claimed tight end Mickey Shuler off waivers from the Oakland Raiders on Tuesday.
Shuler has bounced around the NFL since he was drafted in the seventh round by the Minnesota Vikings in 2010 out of Penn State. He played for the Vikings and the Miami Dolphins in his rookie season, returned the Vikings in 2011 after he was released by the Cincinnati Bengals and then spent the final 11 weeks of the 2012 season on the Raiders' practice squad.
In another roster move, the Bills waived injured wide receiver Kevin Norrell.
---The annual NFL Hall of Fame game matching the Miami Dolphins against the Dallas Cowboys is set for 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, Aug. 4, the league announced Tuesday.
Dates and starting times for all 65 NFL preseason games also were released. The preseason schedule was previously announced on April 4.
The Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, will be telecast by NBC. It is one of 11 national broadcasts during the preseason that will air on CBS, ESPN, FOX or NBC. The NFL Network also will carry live broadcasts during the four weeks of the exhibition season.
---The New York Jets claimed free-agent wide receiver Marcus Davis off waivers from the New York Giants and released wide receiver Antavious Wilson on Tuesday.
Davis was released by the Giants on Sunday after the team's rookie minicamp. He was undrafted out of Virginia Tech. Wilson also was passed over in the 2013 draft and signed with the Jets as a free agent.
Hall of Fame election, induction to get a review.
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Sources: MLB instant replay hits critical phase at owners' meetings.
By Jeff Passan
Instant replay is not a cure-all to the incompetence of umpires who forget rules, the uselessness of those who butcher calls and the hubris of those who delight in confronting and ejecting players and managers because they can. It is a salve, something on which Major League Baseball can use as proof that slowly it's targeting officiating issues and irradiating them.
For now, it is on the owners to do their part. During what is expected to be a fairly uneventful set of owners' meetings in New York on Wednesday and Thursday, replay will meet another important juncture, according to sources: Receiving support, approval and, most vital, funding from ownership.
This is not the fait accompli it should be. Replay is terribly divisive because it offers so many possibilities. Some owners want a full-blown, replay-everything system.
Others prefer it with challenge flags or believe it should stay how it is. And there are even holdouts who would just as soon not have any whatsoever. Getting 30 people worth a combined tens of billions of dollars to agree on anything takes consensus-builders extraordinaire, and that's the role Atlanta Braves president John Schuerholz and MLB executive vice president Joe Torre must play.
They will front a meeting Wednesday with the league's executive council, a powerful group of owners who then will take the discussion points back to the full group of owners to consider solutions for implementation by the 2014 season. The two most important issues are intertwined with one another: What sort of replay is best for the sport, and how much will it cost?
Idealistically, owners will embrace the widest possible breadth of replay for what it offers: an antidote to umpiring fallibility and the ability to get the greatest number of calls right. Surely the question will arise about why they should invest tens of millions of dollars in replay when the current system produced the Angel Hernandez home run fiasco of last week, to which the answer will be: Angel Hernandez is exactly why we need replay. And every head will nod.
The financial figure, by the way, is no drop in the bucket. The final cost will depend on how much replay gets implemented. If it does what it should – a full replay hub in New York, with high-speed transmission of multiple camera angles that allow the centralized officials to render unbiased judgments on the umpires' calls that they themselves cannot – the tab will run well into eight figures. Should MLB contract out any proprietary technology to build what it wants rather than retrofitting another company's systems, that only will add to the cost.
Replay proponents should sell that cost to the owners this way: The league wants to ensure human error does not ultimately aid and abet sporting injustice. For $2 million or $3 million per team to start, replay can ensure baseball gets it right almost every time.
The trickle-down effect of replay is an important point not harped on nearly enough. Currently, MLB tracks its umpires through large amounts of data – what percentage of balls and strikes they get right, how often they make the proper call on close plays and other vital pieces of information. Still, because of the umpires' union, the league has only so much power in using such objective measures to get rid of the worst umpires. The league announcing the two-game suspension of Fieldin Culbreth for forgetting Rule 3.05(b) in the Angels-Astros game this week was a departure from the usual in-house wrist slapping.
Replay will make the umpires significantly more accountable for their mistakes, and this is a very, very good thing. While it runs the risk of giving players even more power in the odd dynamic between them and umpires, it gets more obvious by the unwarranted ejection or umpire blowup that the curtain must be pulled on them. If replay embarrasses umpires, there is a solution: Get the damn call right.
Umpires' jobs are incredibly difficult, and most of them do an excellent job. Baseball is no different than the NFL or NBA: the search for competent officials is a top priority, and it almost never bears fruit, no matter how many camps or clinics the league offers.
The fiascos last week reminded baseball this is a real issue, not one manufactured by a public that needs something to complain about. Some of the problems will take time, which is fine. Replay cannot. It is the first step, the most important, and needs the support in principle and pocketbook of owners.
NASCAR's All-star Race is the Perfect Time for Cup Drivers to Let it All Hang Out.
No Points on the Line, and 2 Million Bucks Up for Grabs, Should Make for an Interesting Saturday Night at Charlotte.
By Matt Myftiu
COMMENTARY | There's just something special about NASCAR's all-star race.
It's not something you can describe exactly, more like a feeling. Whether you're a fan or a driver, this is a date you circle on your calendar every year as one to look forward to and count down the days until it happens.
The all-star race we're going to watch on Saturday, to the drivers, is like your parents going out of town for the weekend; meaning it presents you the perfect opportunity to have a ridiculous amount of fun with no consequences.
You can let your hair down, and not worry about a wrecked racecar hurting you in the points.
If someone makes you mad on track, you can respond right back.
If you've got a grudge against someone (Kasey Kahne, here's your chance if you see Kyle Busch), you can knock some sense into that competitor who's been ruining your past few Sundays with their on-track shenanigans.
The nighttime setup makes it even better, as things tend to be a little crazier once the sun goes down and the moon goes up. Drivers will do whatever they have to do to win, especially with a couple million bucks on the line. In addition to the million for winning the overall race, a driver who wins all five segments of the 2013 race would take home another million bucks. Not a bad bonus if you can get it, and this is a great way to discourage the sandbagging that segment winners did last year after taking a segment.
I love racing of all kinds, and the all-star race is one of the the most exciting nights of the year in all of racing. Only the truck series race coming soon on the dirt at Eldora this summer, which will be one for the history books and a ton of fun for everyone involved, is more anticipated by the fans and drivers in 2013.
Popularity contest
The fans get to play their part, too, voting in a driver who hasn't qualified for the race via winning a race, championship or a previous All-Star race.
This year, it's a safe bet that a certain someone - Her name rhymes with Panica - is going to be that someone who gets voted in. It's a popularity contest and she's pretty good at winning those.
Oddly enough, she could be a wild card in this year's event. If Danica makes the race via fan vote, she'll be in a race she really has no business being in (but you can't get mad at her for that, as that's just the way the rules are set up). She'll either pull the unthinkable and survive the mayhem that may ensue in front of her and get a solid finish. Or she'll be in the way and cause problems for the legitimate 'all-stars' competing in this event.
It could get interesting, either way.
The 'Open'
What was once known as the Winston Open (and now called the Sprint Showdown) is possibly my favorite part of the night. All the folks who haven't qualified for the all-star race battle each other down to the wire, with the top 2 finishers earning spots in the main event. This is where you'll see the guys like Juan Pablo Montoya, Aric Almirola, Dave Blaney, Jeff Burton, Landon Cassill, David Gilliland, Bobby Labonte, Jamie McMurray, Casey Mears, Paul Menard, Martin Truex Jr. and others racing their tails off just for a chance to continue their evening.
A win in this qualifier event can lead to big things, such as when Michael Waltrip won the qualifier and went on to win the all-star race back in 1996. This was years before he claimed his first win in a points-paying Cup race.
So come Saturday night, buckle up NASCAR fans, grab a cold one (or twenty) and enjoy the race. With all that money and no points on the line, there's no telling what's going to happen.
Man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car.
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