NHRA re: The Incident (1 Viewer)

[ironpony]

Here is A link to a pretty good article that Bobby Bennett did about it.

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so Jiliana Salinas should of let Andrew win and if not Andrew, Matt and if not Matt, Jerry therefore she would not have her first and probably only Wally.

PS she should of raced the hobbyist, Steve Johnson, heads up ?

 

[Ramjet]

If Steve was not well off financially exactly none of this would be said. Sad but predictable.

Slashing a big truck tire is no easy feat, you are not generally gonna be able to do that with the knife in your pocket.

Absolutely - Someone may have cut one, but it is almost impossible to "slash" a 10 ply tire and it would make a whole lot of noise. Beside that - like some one said if it happened at the Fair Ground security is pretty good. Also - The biggest downside to "Sponsors" is that it has turned racers into a bunch of snowflakes. If there is an incident and it isn't made into a big deal - so what. The people that say they would never go to a NHRA race wouldn't go any way, its just an excuse. Before "Sponsors" I can remember having someone hit me in the fist with their nose and as anyone can see my nose isn't all that straight either all these years later. It pretty much evens its self out. The easiest solution is to not film it, but it brings "DRAMA" so everyone has to have an opinion.

 

[Huge]

so Jiliana Salinas should of let Andrew win and if not Andrew, Matt and if not Matt, Jerry therefore she would not have her first and probably only Wally.

PS she should of raced the hobbyist, Steve Johnson, heads up ?

I don't understand why you would ask me that question. I have never said anything about the race it's self. I just put a link up to an article at Comp Plus. But, the answer to your question would be no.

 

[Nunz]

I personally feel that the reaction, or shall I say over reaction from this scuffle has been entirely overblown. Nobody knows what caused Steve to get physical with Cameron as there is no audio of what was being said to one another. The NHRA has apparently told both drivers to keep what was said between the two of them to themselves. For all we know Cameron made a remark that would have made anyone of us smack the guy. We simply don't know.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending Steve's actions. He should have kept his cool and been more mature and professional about the incident. Steve seems to have a little bit of a history of being a hot head and that's in his DNA and his competitive side is aggressive. I would assume that once he cooled down he realized that he made a mistake, was embarrassed by his actions and he took little time to come out and make a public apology.

I'm sure that most, if not all of you have been in a similar situation where you over reacted based on someone else's actions and lost your cool. I know I'm not perfect and back in my racing days I have certainly over reacted and not kept my cool on a few occasions. Just imagine the pressure that Steve was under. A championship is in the balance, a few days earlier you loose a close family friend, you feel like another driver did you wrong on the starting line and you have tons of emotion and adrenaline pumping through your veins after making a 300+ mph pass. Kind of a tough situation to hold it all back don't ya think.

We are all humans and we are an imperfect species. Steve is human and made a mistake. He apologized on several occasions. And just remember, most of us have all been bitching over the years on these very message boards about how boring and PC the drivers are. Now you got some real drama and guess what. You all go and jump on the PC band wagon.

There ya go. I agree with your post Chris, but nonetheless it'll take a bit for this thread to quiet down. I'd bet if Steve was an underfunded privateer like Cameron, he wouldn't be getting hated on anywhere near as much. Not saying what he did was not absolutely wrong, but at the end of the day, it was a mistake. That's it.

 

[glofria]

I personally feel that the reaction, or shall I say over reaction from this scuffle has been entirely overblown. Nobody knows what caused Steve to get physical with Cameron as there is no audio of what was being said to one another. The NHRA has apparently told both drivers to keep what was said between the two of them to themselves. For all we know Cameron made a remark that would have made anyone of us smack the guy. We simply don't know.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending Steve's actions. He should have kept his cool and been more mature and professional about the incident. Steve seems to have a little bit of a history of being a hot head and that's in his DNA and his competitive side is aggressive. I would assume that once he cooled down he realized that he made a mistake, was embarrassed by his actions and he took little time to come out and make a public apology.

I'm sure that most, if not all of you have been in a similar situation where you over reacted based on someone else's actions and lost your cool. I know I'm not perfect and back in my racing days I have certainly over reacted and not kept my cool on a few occasions. Just imagine the pressure that Steve was under. A championship is in the balance, a few days earlier you loose a close family friend, you feel like another driver did you wrong on the starting line and you have tons of emotion and adrenaline pumping through your veins after making a 300+ mph pass. Kind of a tough situation to hold it all back don't ya think.

We are all humans and we are an imperfect species. Steve is human and made a mistake. He apologized on several occasions. And just remember, most of us have all been bitching over the years on these very message boards about how boring and PC the drivers are. Now you got some real drama and guess what. You all go and jump on the PC band wagon.

Fair enough, let's go off what we did hear and see.

It was clear that Torrance was already agitated with Ferre before they met as witnessed by Torrance's comments to the girl with the mike. Whatever was said by Ferre, his body language does not show aggression or any threatening gestures unlike Torrance. Ferre stepped to the side as to disengage and that's when the open hand came to the face.

If Torrance pushed Ferre chest or shoulder, it's not such a big deal. The fact that Torrance went for Ferre's face makes this a big deal.

 

[ironpony]

I don't understand why you would ask me that question. I have never said anything about the race it's self. I just put a link up to an article at Comp Plus. But, the answer to your question would be no.

Wasn't directed at you Eugene, sorry. I was replying to to the article you linked.

 

[Pete]

I personally feel that the reaction, or shall I say over reaction from this scuffle has been entirely overblown. Nobody knows what caused Steve to get physical with Cameron as there is no audio of what was being said to one another. The NHRA has apparently told both drivers to keep what was said between the two of them to themselves. For all we know Cameron made a remark that would have made anyone of us smack the guy. We simply don't know.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending Steve's actions. He should have kept his cool and been more mature and professional about the incident. Steve seems to have a little bit of a history of being a hot head and that's in his DNA and his competitive side is aggressive. I would assume that once he cooled down he realized that he made a mistake, was embarrassed by his actions and he took little time to come out and make a public apology.

I'm sure that most, if not all of you have been in a similar situation where you over reacted based on someone else's actions and lost your cool. I know I'm not perfect and back in my racing days I have certainly over reacted and not kept my cool on a few occasions. Just imagine the pressure that Steve was under. A championship is in the balance, a few days earlier you loose a close family friend, you feel like another driver did you wrong on the starting line and you have tons of emotion and adrenaline pumping through your veins after making a 300+ mph pass. Kind of a tough situation to hold it all back don't ya think.

We are all humans and we are an imperfect species. Steve is human and made a mistake. He apologized on several occasions. And just remember, most of us have all been bitching over the years on these very message boards about how boring and PC the drivers are. Now you got some real drama and guess what. You all go and jump on the PC band wagon.

Perfectly said Chris! I wasn't there, but by his actions prior, Steve looked like he was trying to get past it professionally. I'm sure something was said the wrong way and he popped. I don't think any of us can say how we'd act if in the same situation.

 

[glofria]

This what Torrance must have been thinking. LOL

 

[TR]

Perfectly said Chris! I wasn't there, but by his actions prior, Steve looked like he was trying to get past it professionally. I'm sure something was said the wrong way and he popped. I don't think any of us can say how we'd act if in the same situation.

You must have been watching something different than what happened, Steve was mad when he got out of the car, clearly agitated, confronted Ferre then smacked him, absolutely nothing professional about that, unless your a professional thug. Again it makes no difference what Ferre said or didn't say, that was an assault, quit trying to sugar coat it. Of all the posts on all social media it's about 99 to 1 against Steve.

Rick

 

[z28]

Steve is usually amped up after a run. He likes to stir the pot. Hopefully he learned a lesson on what not to do.

 

[Tom Slick]

Rick,

I'm definitely not trying to sugar coat anything that went on this past Sunday, or condone what Steve did. What am saying is that there are two sides to every story and none of us keyboard warriors know the nitty gritty of what was actually said between the two racers. My original post was to provide more of an open minded view point as to why possibly Steve reacted the way that he did. I stated that Steve does appear at times to be a bit of a hot head and it's probably in his nature to be a fighter knowing what he's personally gone through. Heck, he may just be a huge A-Hole for all I know. But I'm trying to give him the benefit of doubt knowing how things can escalate and sometimes we as imperfect humans can over react. Heck, seeing how Cameron seemed to smirk at Steve before Steve popped him, Cameron may have told Steve to go F!@# himself and his mama, so Steve popped him. People loose their cool everyday in this world and make mistakes. Pretty sure many of us have had a moment in our lives when things got heated and we snapped, whether at a race track, at home or other. But for us it wasn't captured on camera and blasted all over the interwebs for everyone to get their panties in a wad over.

Unfortunately in this PC culture that we live in today it's frowned upon for a couple of dudes to have a disagreement and throw a couple of blows with out the word "assault" and police and lawsuits, etc. getting thrown into the mix. Again, I don't condone violence, but sometimes boys will be boys and a black eye is the result of them sorting out their differences.

Okay, I'm sure I'm going to get beat up (pun intended) for this post, so flame away fellas!

 

[TR]

Rick,

I'm definitely not trying to sugar coat anything that went on this past Sunday, or condone what Steve did. What am saying is that there are two sides to every story and none of us keyboard warriors know the nitty gritty of what was actually said between the two racers. My original post was to provide more of an open minded view point as to why possibly Steve reacted the way that he did. I stated that Steve does appear at times to be a bit of a hot head and it's probably in his nature to be a fighter knowing what he's personally gone through. Heck, he may just be a huge A-Hole for all I know. But I'm trying to give him the benefit of doubt knowing how things can escalate and sometimes we as imperfect humans can over react. Heck, seeing how Cameron seemed to smirk at Steve before Steve popped him, Cameron may have told Steve to go F!@# himself and his mama, so Steve popped him. People loose their cool everyday in this world and make mistakes. Pretty sure many of us have had a moment in our lives when things got heated and we snapped, whether at a race track, at home or other. But for us it wasn't captured on camera and blasted all over the interwebs for everyone to get their panties in a wad over.

Unfortunately in this PC culture that we live in today it's frowned upon for a couple of dudes to have a disagreement and throw a couple of blows with out the word "assault" and police and lawsuits, etc. getting thrown into the mix. Again, I don't condone violence, but sometimes boys will be boys and a black eye is the result of them sorting out their differences.

Okay, I'm sure I'm going to get beat up (pun intended) for this post, so flame away fellas!

No flames Chris, everybody is entitled to their opinion.
Rick

 

[zippy]

Just curious, how many of you wanted Capps to be thrown out of the race, or suspended, or docked points, or tarred and feathered when he smacked Bazemore a few years ago?

Alan

I dont think that's the argument. Obviously, this situation looks bad for the NHRA and I feel really bad for little kids that look up to these competitors as role models and then watch them act out on their emotions like some immature teenagers. Clearly there needs to be a defined consistent rule for any altercation between competitors at the track at any ime. If Capps never was punished and Steve either, it sends the message that you can slap/punch someone without any repercussions. Im only advocating for a clear and meaningful punishment for any detrimental action on the track. Wether it be a fine, disqualification, or point deduction, something should be done to hold the racers accountable for thier actions. This is supposedly a professional class, which you would think would implicate all participants to act professionally. The fact that there isn't a defined system in place for this just shows how inept and unorganized this sanctioning body is. As in any major sport, there are clearly defined rules for such behavior, the NHRA needs to respond appropriately.

 

[none]

I dont think that's the argument. Obviously, this situation looks bad for the NHRA and I feel really bad for little kids that look up to these competitors as role models and then watch them act out on their emotions like some immature teenagers. Clearly there needs to be a defined consistent rule for any altercation between competitors at the track at any ime. If Capps never was punished and Steve either, it sends the message that you can slap/punch someone without any repercussions. Im only advocating for a clear and meaningful punishment for any detrimental action on the track. Wether it be a fine, disqualification, or point deduction, something should be done to hold the racers accountable for thier actions. This is supposedly a professional class, which you would think would implicate all participants to act professionally. The fact that there isn't a defined system in place for this just shows how inept and unorganized this sanctioning body is. As in any major sport, there are clearly defined rules for such behavior, the NHRA needs to respond appropriately.

Capps was penalized monetarily and I believe put on probation. Ed McChulloch punched a guy years ago (not Mineo) when working for Connie and I'll never forget Connie offering to pay the fine and Ed telling him, Na, it was worth it.

The point being that this happens once every 7 or 8 years but to my knowledge NHRA has always been consistent in the penalty and taking points away has never been part of it.

Alan

 

[twostep]

Here's how I see it 2 days later. I was pretty critical of Torrence; then spent some time trying to analyze his motive for the physical part of the confrontation. Everything a person does has some sort of motive, and I've determined that Ferre, though it might have been rightfully so, said the wrong thing at the wrong time and Steve just snapped. Mostly I shook my head realizing how DUMB it was. NHRA may not have a history of docking points or DQing people over trackside scuffles but they COULD have - costing CAPCO a championship and a substantial amount of money.

But we have to move on from it and so does Torrence. It's not fair to him to sit here for weeks and trash his ass to death (the tire-slashing is beyond the pale) ; it doesn't accomplish one thing other than allow people who had zero to do with it to play keyboard badass. We have to accept his apology, both at the track and at the banquet. As mature racers and drag racing enthusiasts we have to respect someone who's willing to totally own a serious mistake, despite some who feel it wasn't 100 percent genuine. NHRA will no doubt deal with it during the off-season and I see no need for them to make a spectacle out of their decision. Just get it over with and get ready to fire the next pair come February.

 

[Huge]

Aside from the inconvenience I’m sure their entire fleet is insured to the hilt, so not a financial hit, ergo the slasher didn’t accomplish much. Not good but not fatal.

The problem is the person they inconvenienced was the truck drivers that had nothing to do with the incident. They already had a long ass season and they had an awards banquet to go to on Mon and then thanks to some stupid idiot they had to deal with that mess. When something has to be fixed on these haulers you make sure it gets fixed...that's what we are paid to do. So you are correct they didn't accomplish shit.

 

[Jeff]

WHAT HAPPENS ON THE PODCAST, STAYS ON THE PODCAST | Competition Plus

Oh dear . . . Maybe it’s a wise move for Top Fuel racer Cameron Ferré not to take the advice of close buddy, sportsman-racing veteran, and “Racers in Rental Cars” podcast co-host Don O’Neal. All racers are trying to find a way to stand out among the crowd and get attention for their sponsors or...

www.competitionplus.com

Sorta makes you wonder what shot through Cameron's head before Steve decided he'd had enough.

 

[Huge]

There ya go. I agree with your post Chris, but nonetheless it'll take a bit for this thread to quiet down. I'd bet if Steve was an underfunded privateer like Cameron, he wouldn't be getting hated on anywhere near as much. Not saying what he did was not absolutely wrong, but at the end of the day, it was a mistake. That's it.

If it was Doug Kalitta this thread would have had a whole different atmosphere.

 

[Jer]

Capps was penalized monetarily and I believe put on probation. Ed McChulloch punched a guy years ago (not Mineo) when working for Connie and I'll never forget Connie offering to pay the fine and Ed telling him, Na, it was worth it.

The point being that this happens once every 7 or 8 years but to my knowledge NHRA has always been consistent in the penalty and taking points away has never been part of it.

Alan

Who did he hit?

 

[Luke Nieuwhof]

With all this talk about championship etiquette, shouldn’t a skilled driver not be phased by an opponent deep staging? I realize drivers have routines but the best drivers are also quick to adapt to anything thrown their way.
One of the great things about drag racing is that each round is its own hurdle. A championship leader isn’t only competing against the other contenders, they have to prove themselves against anyone in the other lane. Pro Stock Motorcycle was the perfect example of this - the rookie can take down a champion (or three).