By David G. Firestone
Hello and welcome back to The Driver Suit Blog. I took a spring break vacation last week, as I needed a break. As I come back, let’s talk some news stories before I discuss Thermal.
First, is an IndyCar story. I praised the move from NBC to FOX as a smart move. NBC is a spent force, in terms of sports coverage, and FOX is much more dedicated. But there are some growing pains. For example, the in-car cameras had graphics on the sides, whicn covered logos that sponsors paid for. For the race at Thermal, these were adjusted, and the issue was mostly fixed.
Now we discuss the Hendrick Motorsports/Hooters lawsuit. The suit was settled recently. According to Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass:
“Hooters has agreed to pay $900K to Hendrick Motorsports, according to court records. HMS had originally sued Hooters for $1.705 million plus interest for what it had not paid for 2024 sponsorship for Chase Elliiott ($1.75M deal; team had announced three primaries plus associate).”
The original lawsuit saw Hendrick suing Hooters for $1.705 million for unpaid sponsorship dues for the 2024 season. Well, the downfall of Hooters continues, and, let’s be honest, their time has past. They aren’t the powerhouse in the chicken wing market, and their over sexaulized waitresses are as in vogue as evening newspapers. I’m glad they are going away. Wingstop and Buffalo Wild Wings are much better anyway.
Now we get to the suspensions in the wake of the Las Vegas race. A total of six suspensions were handed out, and while four of them are expected, two came out of the blue. Specifically the suspensions of Josiah Wright, and Corbin Sklener. According to Spors Illustrated.com:
“Josiah Wright, and Corbin Sklener were both issued indefinite suspensions from NASCAR due to violations of the substance abuse policy.
Wright had been the Rear Changer on Brad Keselowski’s No. 6 RFK Racing pit crew this season, while Sklener had been the Jack Man on the No. 74 Mike Harmon Racing team in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.”
It remains to be seen what exactly they were popped for, be it recreational drugs or performance enhancing drugs. However, it’s very well known that teams and crew members are given very specific rules and guidelines on what is legal and what isn’t legal. There is no middle of the road here. It’s the same as other sports as well as other jobs. Rules are rules, and I’m glad they are being enforced.
Now, we switch to wrestling. My, how the mighty have fallen. Alberto El Patron, AKA Alberto Del Rio, AKA Dos Caras Jr. has fallen. He was the WWE Champion, the WWE Word Champion (different title than WWE Champion) twice, the US Champion twice, he won Money In The Bank and the 2011 Royal Rumble. But after he left WWE, he just kept getting into trouble, be it personal or legal. He went from being at the top to wrestling in front of indie wrestling crowds.
Well, he won’t be wrestling in Tijuana for a while. According to Cageside Seats:
“Last Friday (March 14) at an AAA show in Tijuana, Alberto El Patron wrestled El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr.
At some point during El Patron’s victory, fans at Auditorio de Tijuana were said to be throwing coins at the former Alberto Del Rio. He went into the stands to confront someone in particular, but is unable to reach them and throws a chair in their direction. Another chair is thrown at El Patron from a different spot in the crowd, and connects. He then gets a few drinks thrown at him while officials get him out of the seats.
Several accounts of the night include mention of a woman needing to be taken to the hospital after the incident.
The commission which oversees wrestling in Tijuana issued a statement suspending El Patron from wrestling in the city for 180 days.
The ban only applies in Tijuana, so it’s unlikely to impact any plans AAA has for their top titleholder. Viper points out that the company isn’t scheduled for any major shows in the Baja California metropolis right now.”
Look, I’ve said this before. I encourage every wrestling fan to go to the matches, cheer the babyfaces, boo the heels, and have fun. Do not touch the wrestlers, do not throw things at the wrestlers, do not try and jump the rail, and, above all, respect the wrestlers, and their rights to privacy. I’m not going out on a limb when I say that throwing coins at wrestlers is a terrible idea.
Granted, Alberto was also in the wrong. Given his history, it’s hard to feel bad for him, but, in all honesty, the bear was poked. I’m not defending what he did, as he threw what moral high ground he had out the window, but you can’t argue he wasn’t provoked. I’m a big fan of not giving people the rope they need to hang you with, and that’s what some fans did. The fans who threw coins were wrong, and Alberto was wrong for attacking.
Now, I discuss my thoughts on the IndyCar Thremal race. First off, let’s get the technical issues out of the way. FOX had issues broadcasting from Thermal, and so much of what was supposed to be the IndyCar race was a simulcast of the NASCAR Cup Series race. While I might normally complain, I didn’t have to watch as much of the Thermal race.
I noticed something about Thermal, which makes me hate it more. It’s an amazingly empty track. Most road or street courses have large grandstands and paddocks. This at least gives the track a look that all racing fans are used to. With Thermal, this is not the case. It’s amazing how empty the track is, and how amateur it looks. I’ve never seen a more empty race track in my life.
The empty look really doesn’t help the aura of the event. The racing was fine, nothing really to write home about, and they at least changed the name of the event to The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix. Realistically, it’s difficult to justify this venure for future IndyCar events. They tried, it didn’t work, let’s try something else. Now granted, I felt the same thing last year, but they renewed, so we’ll see.
Sources Cited:
The Driver Suit Blog 