Defending NASCAR Nationwide Championship Series driver, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, had the audacity to actually win the Nationwide race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway yesterday. Did he not read the script? Get the memo? Nationwide races aren’t supposed to be won by young, up and coming drivers who run in the series all year long – they are supposed to be won by NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers looking for a little more practice time (or in some cases, glory)!

How dare he upset the apple cart by winning a race in his own series. No doubt TV execs were complaining to NASCAR officials within minutes of the checkered flag. Stenhouse Jr is, however, a repeat offender having won 2 (yes, two!) of the 34 races in 2011 while on his way to the crown…

Seriously? 2 out of 34 races? How are these young guys supposed to show off their talent and more importantly, attract sponsorship when their races are a constant blitz of showboating Cup drivers? Yes, NASCAR made it so they don’t score any points but something way more drastic needs to be done about the Buschwhackers – and soon.

I like the number 3. Limit the number of Cup drivers in each race to 3 and the number of starts a Cup driver can make in Nationwide races to 3. It would make their guest appearances more special and it would leave plenty of room for the young guns to shine.

– MCZF1