[Veggie Todd]

When Dale Sr. died, the sport started to die also.

[Steve_Seattle]

"When Dale Sr. died, the sport started to die also."

I think that's part of it. Today's drivers don't seem to have much personality. Richard Petty's smile could light up a room, and Earnhardt's menace could be felt a mile away. But who gets excited about Jimmie Johnson?

[Colinsky]

When Dale Sr. died, the sport started to die also.

The sport over-reacted to Dale Srs. death with Driver Safety becoming the overriding factor.

It's not that I want to see drivers injured, but half the reason to watch is to marvel at the humans who take this machinery up to the limits at the edge of catastrophe and put their own asses on the line. Now, the cars are ultra-padded bumper cars and our emotional involvement is decreasing as if the drivers are operating the cars by remote control; like death-dealing drones in Yemen, the operators are in no danger.

The main attribute today's drivers need for success today is to be bland and innocuous and not say anything that would offend anybody. They're no longer high-wire artists working without a net. Those kind of people, you had to put up with their individual quirks because they were a rare breed.

Also, these days it's not enough to win the race, you have to make sure your valve lifters are not 0.1 millimeter out of specification when they disassemble the winner's engine after the race.

[al_c]

It was dying before that, but 3’s death sped up the process.