Bill Fleischman: Tips to improve NASCAR

WITH THE interminable NASCAR season winding down, and Jimmie Johnson about to be crowned King James IV, please consider some suggestions to improve NASCAR:

* The season is too long. February to mid-November is almost year-round. The Chase should end before the World Series. By mid- or late October, drivers and crews are weary and NASCAR is competing for attention with baseball playoffs, the NFL and college football.

* Some racetracks with two races should lose one. Crowds at California and Michigan are far from sellouts. NASCAR expanded to California with Hollywood stars in its eyes. For whatever reasons, Californians haven't taken to NASCAR. Eventually, a couple of other two-race tracks might have to lose one.

* The points leader after 26 races should get more reward. Heading into Richmond, the final race before the 10-race Chase, Tony Stewart held a 237-point lead over Jeff Gordon. When points for the Chase were reconfigured, drivers were awarded 10 points extra for each victory, putting Stewart second, 10 points behind Mark Martin.

Stewart should have had some advantage entering the Chase. I'd still award 10 points for each win, but perhaps give the leader after 26 races an extra 30 points.

NASCAR launched the Chase to create more suspense for the season's final 10 races. Thanks to three-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson, the recent Chases have been as exciting as a Buffalo-Cleveland NFL game.

Jamie McMurray's win at Talladega last Sunday is a reminder that non-Chasers can win races in the Chase. The wins by Chase outsiders - 2004: Joe Nemechek, Kansas; Greg Biffle, Homestead; 2005: Dale Jarrett, Talladega; Jeff Gordon, Martinsville; Kyle Busch, Phoenix; 2006: Tony Stewart, Kansas, Atlanta and Texas; Brian Vickers, Talladega; Greg Biffle, Homestead; 2007: Greg Biffle, Kansas; 2008: no wins by non-Chasers; 2009: Jamie McMurray, Talladega.

Since each season's top racers are in the Chase, it makes sense that they should win most of those races.

Jeff Burton, 17th in the standings, is realistic about this season when no Richard Childress Racing team made the Chase.

"We don't deserve to be in [the Chase]," he said. "That's the harsh reality."

IndyCar star Danica Patrick is close to a 2-year deal with JR Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Nationwide Series team, ESPN.com reported.

Sources told the Web site the deal could be completed in a week or so. She would drive about 10 to 12 races a year, while continuing with IndyCar racing, as well, the report said.

After Ryan Newman's No. 39 Chevrolet went airborne and landed on its roof at Talladega Sunday, rescue crews needed more than 10 minutes to pry him from the car. He was unhurt, but angry.

"Drivers used to be able to respect each other and race around each other," he said. "Richard Petty, David Pearson, Bobby Allison and all those guys have always done that. I don't think NASCAR thinks much of us anymore. The more rules, the more NASCAR is telling us how to drive the cars, the less we can race."

Incredibly, before the race mercifully ended, Mark Martin's car also flipped. How many crashes, perhaps involving serious injuries to drivers, will it take before NASCAR decides the risks of racing at Talladega under the current rules aren't worth the rewards? *

Send e-mail to fleiscb@phillynews.com.