The NHRA DRAH-MAH continues
Tempers Flare at the US Nationals (It won't let me embed, I have to direct link)
The best TL;DR I've seen yet:
"Pedregon: Force cheats and he should be ashamed of himself.
Force: I’m not going to play that game."
from THIS article
The commentators really didn't help either. Maybe I'm wrong, but aren't they supposed to stay neutral? One went OFF for a lonnnggg time about how John was SO cheating, blah blah blah. Despite the fact that the NHRA officials cleared him of conclusive proof of cheating. Maybe it's just me but I thought the commentators were supposed to elaborate about the situations, not go on and on with their own opinion condemning one person or another for like 20 minutes.
I can't help but love the "He was my friend-- he ain't my friend no more" bit and the "You're just mad because my kid kicked your ass." It's too funny.
Pedregon calling himself a 'little guy' is completely BS though. Take one look at his camp & alliances. Not. Even. Close. He was found and brought up as new talent in the JFR teams. Talk about ungrateful.
I'll admit to not being a Pedregon fan-- after meeting them both, they were very standoffish and egotistical. On the other hand, whenever I've met anyone from the John Force teams- John, Ashley, Robert... they've been nothing but nice. Even when you could tell they were tired or had a bad day they were quiet, subdued, but not outright rude. (Clay Millican and Antron Brown are the same way, and I love them both.)
That said, I agree that John probably didn't try very hard to win so that Robert could. Anyone in his situation, including the Pedregons would, and it's completely hypocritical to for him to act innocent. Is it kinda lame? Yep. Does it go on ALL the time in all sorts of sports, including other motorsports & conventional sports? You bet. Has anyone ever said a thing about it until now? Nope.
I can get that he's mad because his brother lost. Hell, anyone in his position would be pissed. And If he really wanted to 'make the truth be known' in the right way, you don't go about it that way. You go to the officials, who can do something about it, and you don't stand there screaming that people are getting screwed UR DOIN IT RONG T-PED.
The biggest irony of the whole thing? It wasn't Tony affected by it, it was his BROTHER, Cruz.... Who acted 100x more maturely about the situation.
Hopefully his immature behavior loses him fans and sponsors. Acting like a spoiled brat is inexcusable. Especially on a national telecast of the most important race of the year, where your sport is under a HUGE spotlight.
I hope both he and John get fined/in trouble for their ridiculous behavior at the top end of the track-- it was not OK at all, as well as they put themselves and the other people around them in danger. That should not be tolerated in general, much less in an area with large, fast moving vehicles, hot equipment and people moving back and forth. Settle it on your own and don't endanger everyone else in the process. NOT OK.
And considering how swiftly and sharply they fined & supsended a Pro Stock Motorcycle guy last week for 'drug testing procedure noncompliance - not producing a sample within the 24-hour winndow' they damn better do something about this.
I'm very disappointed, cause I was always proud that the NHRA didn't have a bunch of bellyaching drama queens who treated each other like asshats like NASCAR and practically every other sport out there. (another reason I hate NASCAR) So much for that. Guess we gotta hope for no more repeats, but I'm pretty sure this isn't going to settle down anytime soon.
On lighter news for that race:
Hector Arana won-- he's awesome and has been doing it all BY HIMSELF for the last 15 years. Good on him.
Ashley Force Hood, (John's eldest daughter & extremely talented racer in her own right) became the FIRST WOMAN IN NHRA HISTORY to win Indy in a Pro Funny Car and the FIRST WOMAN to win in 2 different car classes! Bravo. Way to pave the way for more women and inspire younger generations.
The best TL;DR I've seen yet:
"Pedregon: Force cheats and he should be ashamed of himself.
Force: I’m not going to play that game."
from THIS article
The commentators really didn't help either. Maybe I'm wrong, but aren't they supposed to stay neutral? One went OFF for a lonnnggg time about how John was SO cheating, blah blah blah. Despite the fact that the NHRA officials cleared him of conclusive proof of cheating. Maybe it's just me but I thought the commentators were supposed to elaborate about the situations, not go on and on with their own opinion condemning one person or another for like 20 minutes.
I can't help but love the "He was my friend-- he ain't my friend no more" bit and the "You're just mad because my kid kicked your ass." It's too funny.
Pedregon calling himself a 'little guy' is completely BS though. Take one look at his camp & alliances. Not. Even. Close. He was found and brought up as new talent in the JFR teams. Talk about ungrateful.
I'll admit to not being a Pedregon fan-- after meeting them both, they were very standoffish and egotistical. On the other hand, whenever I've met anyone from the John Force teams- John, Ashley, Robert... they've been nothing but nice. Even when you could tell they were tired or had a bad day they were quiet, subdued, but not outright rude. (Clay Millican and Antron Brown are the same way, and I love them both.)
That said, I agree that John probably didn't try very hard to win so that Robert could. Anyone in his situation, including the Pedregons would, and it's completely hypocritical to for him to act innocent. Is it kinda lame? Yep. Does it go on ALL the time in all sorts of sports, including other motorsports & conventional sports? You bet. Has anyone ever said a thing about it until now? Nope.
I can get that he's mad because his brother lost. Hell, anyone in his position would be pissed. And If he really wanted to 'make the truth be known' in the right way, you don't go about it that way. You go to the officials, who can do something about it, and you don't stand there screaming that people are getting screwed UR DOIN IT RONG T-PED.
The biggest irony of the whole thing? It wasn't Tony affected by it, it was his BROTHER, Cruz.... Who acted 100x more maturely about the situation.
Hopefully his immature behavior loses him fans and sponsors. Acting like a spoiled brat is inexcusable. Especially on a national telecast of the most important race of the year, where your sport is under a HUGE spotlight.
I hope both he and John get fined/in trouble for their ridiculous behavior at the top end of the track-- it was not OK at all, as well as they put themselves and the other people around them in danger. That should not be tolerated in general, much less in an area with large, fast moving vehicles, hot equipment and people moving back and forth. Settle it on your own and don't endanger everyone else in the process. NOT OK.
And considering how swiftly and sharply they fined & supsended a Pro Stock Motorcycle guy last week for 'drug testing procedure noncompliance - not producing a sample within the 24-hour winndow' they damn better do something about this.
I'm very disappointed, cause I was always proud that the NHRA didn't have a bunch of bellyaching drama queens who treated each other like asshats like NASCAR and practically every other sport out there. (another reason I hate NASCAR) So much for that. Guess we gotta hope for no more repeats, but I'm pretty sure this isn't going to settle down anytime soon.
On lighter news for that race:
Hector Arana won-- he's awesome and has been doing it all BY HIMSELF for the last 15 years. Good on him.
Ashley Force Hood, (John's eldest daughter & extremely talented racer in her own right) became the FIRST WOMAN IN NHRA HISTORY to win Indy in a Pro Funny Car and the FIRST WOMAN to win in 2 different car classes! Bravo. Way to pave the way for more women and inspire younger generations.