("News" and Notes is taking a brief hiatus so that we* can bring you this multi-week tournament. *--yeah, it's still just me)
While the best in Nascar are competing for wins, there's teams who are just happy to notch a top-25. They are the independents, the start-ups, the guys trying to become the next Germain Racing or Furniture Row Motorsports. So where's THEIR coverage? Where's THEIR mispronounced drivers' names by Darrell Waltrip? Where's THEIR sponsors that people have actually heard of? Well, they're…not here. But here's the next best thing: A bracket-style tournament!!!
Here's the rules:
--12 teams--all of which have attempted all eight races so far this season--will compete in a single-elimination head-to-head tournament over the next four weeks, with the top four teams entered earning byes for the first round (this week).
--First Round is this weekend at Richmond. The Quarterfinals are next week at Talladega. The Semifinals are after that in Kansas. Finally, the Finals will take place in the Sprint Showdown.
--Seeding is done by the team's current place in the Owners' Points.
--It's pretty easy to win--simply finish ahead of your competition for that week.
--Points are accrued by the team itself, not by the driver (in case multiple drivers come into play--Circle Sport, I'm looking in YOUR direction).
--The winner wins a trophy provided by Spade Racing (note--winner must contact me through Facebook, and must not simply be asking if my refrigerator is running).
Here's the first-round match-ups for this week:
BYES: 1. 51 (Justin Allgaier), 2. 38 (David Gilliland), 3. 36 (Reed Sorenson), 4. 40 (Landon Cassill)
5. 34 (David Ragan) vs. 12. 83 (Ryan Truex)
6. 26 (Cole Whitt) vs. 11. 33 (David Stremme)
7. 7 (Michael Annett) vs. 10. 32 (Travis Kvapil/Terry Labonte)
8. 23 (Alex Bowman) vs. 9. 98 (Josh Wise)
(Note that the 66 team is ineligible due to its affiliation with MWR, and the 30 team is ineligible as it will effectively shut down after this week).
May the best team win!!!