Pit Road / Caution Rule

[DCNascarFan]

Ok, I get the rule that let JJ move to the front during that caution. What I don't understand is why that is the rule. It was a freakin' HUGE gift, especially when the 16 and 18 were a couple of seconds behind him (and behind the leader) and were placed further back in the field.

Just seems to me that if the caution comes out when you're pitting under green, your position should be something equivalent to where you would have come out of the pits had the green stayed out (ie, further back in the field). No one was really questioning the rule on TV, so am I just missing the logic in the rule?

[racenut]

Sometimes its better to be lucky than good, and man is he lucky! Another question is would he have won that race without that gift?

[mas137]

Ok, I get the rule that let JJ move to the front during that caution. What I don't understand is why that is the rule. It was a freakin' HUGE gift, especially when the 16 and 18 were a couple of seconds behind him (and behind the leader) and were placed further back in the field.

Just seems to me that if the caution comes out when you're pitting under green, your position should be something equivalent to where you would have come out of the pits had the green stayed out (ie, further back in the field). No one was really questioning the rule on TV, so am I just missing the logic in the rule?


I hear you DCnascarfan i'm still screaming at the T.V. How do you go into the pits 6th or 7th and come out 1st and the 16 and 18 go a lap down..

[Instigator]

You should have heard my wife screaming at the TV. WOW!:lol:

[dpkimmel2001]

I think Kevin Harvick said it best.....

"Jimmie is a good friend mine, but there's no denying how lucky they are. They have a golden horseshoe stuck up their ass."

[DCNascarFan]

"Jimmie is a good friend mine, but there's no denying how lucky they are. They have a golden horseshoe stuck up their ass."

http://smilielist.com/smilies/laugh/pancarta.gifhttp://smilielist.com/smilies/laugh/pancarta.gifhttp://smilielist.com/smilies/laugh/pancarta.gif

[racechaser101]

I hear you DCnascarfan i'm still screaming at the T.V. How do you go into the pits 6th or 7th and come out 1st and the 16 and 18 go a lap down..
Jimmie did not come out of the pits in first place. He just came out still on the lead lap, then everyone on the lead lap pitted the next time around. That is how he got the lead.
The other 2 did not get out of the pits in time to stay on the lead lap and that is how they became a lap down, with just being a couple of seconds behind Jimmie.

[DCNascarFan]

I still don't like the rule, but will deny as such if it ever works for MY driver! ;)

In retrospect Burton's spotter should have told him to floor it right there at that yellow line (as long as he stayed behind the pace car). He probably could have beat Jimmie. Jimmie had to watch for speeding, but Burton could have pushed it.

[racechaser101]

I do agree that Burton could have pushed and beaten him to the line, but him and the spotter were probably not paying any attention to anyone coming down pit road. They were probably already talking about what they wanted to do on their pitstop.

[mas137]

O.K. i have another question?? i thought that when the caution flag comes out the field is frozen..so then why does it matter that the 48 car beat the 31 car to the start/finish line..

[racechaser101]

The field was frozen and Jimmie was only 5 seconds behind the leader. The race off pit road with Burton was because Burton had already gone around the track and almost passed Jimmie. If Jimmie had not pitted right then he would have stayed in the same position as when the caution came out. He gave that up when he pitted and let the rest of the field pass him.