Phoenix grumbling shows how spoiled NASCAR fans have become
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Ryan McGee, ESPN Senior Writer
It has been a few days since the checkered flag waved over Christopher Bell‘s victory at Phoenix International Raceway. From my social media timelines to my email inbox to that guy at the gym who always corners me by the water fountain (you know who you are), the post-PIR refrain has remained the same.
“Hey, man, that race sucked; didn’t it suck?”
After so many days stuck on racing reaction repeat, my refined response has landed squarely in one place, and it has been steered there after spending those days in constant communication with those who were behind the wheel for that race and those who prepared the cars that those drivers wheeled in that race. In fact, let’s let one those racers speak for me, via a text I received Tuesday afternoon.
“Damn, McGee, everybody got spoiled, didn’t they?”
Yes, Mr. NASCAR Racer who asked to remain anonymous, they did become spoiled. As did I. As did perhaps even the racers themselves. After all, this 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season opened with three consecutive crazy, unpredictable, nail-chewing finishes.
First, came a Daytona 500 that ended under yellow, but the field was so tight and convoluted that even the timing of that yellow came into question, as William Byron edged a field that was wrecking wildly just inches off his rear bumper. One week later, Daniel Suarez came out in front of a three-wide door-to-door-to-door photo finish with defending series champ Ryan Blaney and all-time legend Kyle Busch, winning by a tissue paper margin of .003 seconds, the third-closest finish recorded since NASCAR went to electronic timing and scoring 31 years ago. Even the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, never a bastion of memorable end-of-race moments, produced a Mission: Impossible-ish countdown of drama, as Kyle Larson, who looked as though he would stink up the show early, was forced to fend off Tyler Reddick, ultimately blocking his way to a .441-second win.
See? Spoiled rotten.
It wasn’t our fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault. It was awesome. An entire month of awesome. But it was also like when you hit your favorite steakhouse buffet. Everything is so delicious, and on the surface, it seems as though that eating ecstasy will last forever. But no matter how delectable that steak and fried chicken and chocolate fountain might be, you know deep down that the end is always near. At some point, you’re going to end up hitting a bad batch of mac and cheese. Then again, is it actually bad, or was everything that came before it so amazing that your taste buds’ expectation level has exceeded reality? No matter what came next, it wasn’t going to be enough, even if Gordon Ramsay and Wolfgang Puck were suddenly back there in the kitchen of the Golden Corral.
“Did people see what Bell actually did? He went by me like he was driving for Red Bull!”
No, they didn’t, second anonymous texting NASCAR driver. Honestly, does anyone ever see what Bell does? I mean, he has almost won the past two championships and no one realizes it … but that’s another column for another day. What he did Sunday was take the race’s final green flag sitting 21st with 90 laps remaining and then sliced his way through the field to seize the lead with 40 laps to go. He won by a whopping 5.465 seconds.
Boring? Sure, by 2024 standards, it was boring. On my press box pal Jeff Gluck’s tell-all “Was it a good race?” poll, it scored a 40.2%, compared to 76.1 for Daytona, 77.8 for Vegas and 94.8 for Atlanta (the latter is the fourth-best score since he started compiling his numbers seven years ago).
But the reality is that by Phoenix standards, it was not a bad race. If you are old enough to have watched pretty much every Cup race at PIR since 1988, and I am, then you know that it was actually pretty standard PIR stuff. And if you want to really get real with all of this, then you have to also be willing to admit that a race with 10 lead changes among 6 drivers balanced with 6 caution flags for 40 of 312 laps — 13% of the race — feels like a description that you could copy/paste into the vast majority of Cup Series races run in the 1990s and 2000s. And race fans of the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s would have looked at those numbers and believed that they had just witnessed one of the most thrilling events of the season.
Again, we have become a little bit spoiled. And to be clear, that’s OK. It is not our fault. Because for all of the consistent fan complaints about stage racing and still-new short track packages, those rules and regulations have also led to or are the result of giving us fans more of what we were screaming for more of not so long ago: race days electrified by more restarts and a schedule packed with more short tracks.
“You know, they can’t all be the 1979 Daytona 500 or the end of the movie ‘Cars.'”
Yes, third anonymous racer/texter, we do know that, but we also refuse to accept it. Call it the curse of the highlight era of sports, the hex of being able to call up the finishes of the all-time classics on our pocket computer search engines. The neverending mythology of the greatest finishes in stock car racing history is a gift. However, it also creates a lifetime of unreasonable checkered flag wishes and dreams.
There’s a reason that the Daytona 500s of 1976 and ’79 and the Firecracker 400s of 1976 and ’84 are so revered, and it goes beyond their obvious greatness. They also benefited from the fact that they contrasted so incredibly against all of the other races of that era at Daytona that everyone has since forgotten. Why? Because the overwhelming majority of them — heck, the overwhelming majority of those very races leading up to those day-saving finishes — would have been lucky to have scored a 40.2% on the Gluck scale.
“I have been fortunate to have been a part of some amazing finishes,” racer-turned-commentator Jeff “The Mayor” Burton said to me last year at Daytona, immediately bringing to my mind his side-by-side .051-second victory over Jeff Gordon at Richmond in 1998. “But then, when you went back and didn’t have that same finish, re-creating a once-in-a-lifetime finish, people were like, ‘Well, what happened? That was boring!’ Living up to those moments all the time, that’s impossible.”
The next stop on the schedule has long been the mountaintop of impossible expectations, the bull ring carved into the actual mountains of East Tennessee. Bristol Motor Speedway has brought us Dale Earnhardt vs. Terry Labonte, Episodes I and II, aka “Terry’s Wrecked Win” and the “Rattle His Cage” race. It has also gifted us with wrecks and fights and water bottles bounced off of Hall of Fame faces. But when every single race wasn’t able to match up with that greatest hits highlight reel, what had been NASCAR’s arguably most beloved racetrack suffered from an inexplicable identity crisis. The fabled ticket wait-list vanished. The track was reconfigured, repaved and even covered with red clay.
Many have attempted to explain it, from legendary racing promoters to university economists, but the reason is simple. It’s because every race didn’t end like Dale and Terry in ’95 and ’99.
The good news is that Bristol’s perception has finally and rightfully been restored in recent years. The better news is that we have this problem at all. That’s because you can’t become spoiled unless there was a lot of awesome that happened to spoil you in the first place. Fans didn’t have this issue back in the day. It was quite the opposite. They were numbed by spending so many of their Sunday afternoons watching races they’d already forgotten about by Monday morning, as cars won races not by fractions of seconds but by multiple laps.
So, sure, call us spoiled. I’ll take that, complaining about being bored every now and then instead of most the time, over what I grew up with, which was going to sleep for the middle 250 laps and then watching Dale Jarrett or Jeff Gordon do what Christopher Bell just did, but 30 times a year.
Hang on, I have another text from another driver who wants the final word.
“All we can do is drive our asses off and what happens is what happens. Hopefully, that’s enough for everyone.”
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Greg Wyshynski
NEWARK, N.J. — Zeev Buium was the Minnesota Wild‘s defenseman of the future until they made him the centerpiece of the Quinn Hughes trade last Friday, shipping the 20-year-old in a package to the Vancouver Canucks for their star captain.
Buium said he doesn’t feel he was misled about his status with the Wild before the trade.
“I don’t think anything they told me was a lie. I really don’t,” Buium said Sunday after the Canucks’ 2-1 road victory over the New Jersey Devils. “[Wild GM] Bill Guerin is an unbelievable person. He’s such a smart guy. He wants to try and win now, and that’s a move he thought was best for the team. At the end of the day, you have to do what’s best for the team.”
Buium was traded to Vancouver along with center Marco Rossi, winger Liam Ohgren and a 2026 first-round pick for Hughes, the 26-year-old Norris Trophy winner who is considered one of the best defensemen in hockey. Hughes had 432 points in 459 games heading into Sunday’s action and was the leading scorer on Vancouver (23 points in 26 games) before Friday’s blockbuster trade.
Buium had two points in his debut with the Canucks, both on the power play. He earned an assist on Jake DeBrusk‘s opening goal and then was credited with his fourth goal of the season when his pass deflected off the stick of Devils defenseman Brenden Dillon.
He was drafted 12th overall in 2024 by the Wild and was an offensive dynamo with the University of Denver for two seasons (98 points in 83 games). He had 14 points in 31 games as a rookie this season before the trade.
Guerin called Buium a “special kid and a special human,” but he indicated that the Wild’s bid for Hughes was only successful because Buium was a part of it.
“I love that kid, but you have to give something to get something,” Guerin said.
Buium didn’t take the trade personally, but he said he’ll use it as motivation.
“I don’t think it’s [Guerin] saying, ‘You’re not good enough’ or ‘We don’t believe in you.’ But I think he sees me needing to develop a little bit more,” Buium said. “I think it works out for both teams. I’m going to do my best to show the Canucks that they made a good trade. Hopefully, I can turn into a player like that.”
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Mark Schlabach
Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who led the No. 1 Hoosiers to a perfect 13-0 record and their first Big Ten title since 1967, captured the 91st Heisman Trophy on Saturday night.
Mendoza beat out quarterbacks Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt) and Julian Sayin (Ohio State) and running back Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame) to take home the trophy during a ceremony in New York.
Mendoza, who played two seasons at California before joining the Hoosiers this season, completed 71.5% of his pass attempts for 2,980 yards with 39 total touchdowns.
He was only the second Heisman Trophy finalist from Indiana. Running back Anthony Thompson was runner-up to Houston quarterback Andre Ware in one of the closest votes in 1989.
With Mendoza, Pavia and Love expected to move on to the NFL after this season, who are the top returning Heisman Trophy candidates for 2026?
In compiling the list of potential candidates, I projected that quarterbacks John Mateer (Oklahoma), Ty Simpson (Alabama) and Dante Moore (Oregon); receivers Carnell Tate (Ohio State), Zachariah Branch (Georgia) and Makai Lemon (USC); and running back Emmett Johnson (Nebraska) will turn pro (along with the aforementioned finalists from this year).
Here is a look at some of the top potential contenders (in no particular order):
2025 stats: 80 catches, 1,086 receiving yards, 12 total touchdowns
Smith’s highlight reel of acrobatic, one-handed catches continues to grow, and he arguably has been the best player in college football this season. He was the fastest Buckeyes player to reach career marks of 2,000 receiving yards (24 games), 100 catches (20) and 25 touchdown receptions (25).
2025 stats: 78.4% completion pct, 3,323 passing yards, 31 touchdowns, 6 interceptions
Sayin might have captured the Heisman Trophy this season if Ohio State’s offense hadn’t flopped in its 13-10 loss to Indiana in the Big Ten championship game. In his first season as a starter, Sayin is on pace to break the NCAA single-season pass completion record of 77.4%, set by Oregon’s Bo Nix in 2023.
2025 stats: 70.7% completion pct, 2,691 passing yards, 442 rushing yards, 31 total touchdowns
In his first full season as Georgia’s starting quarterback, Stockton helped guide the Bulldogs to a 12-1 record and SEC title. His legs and right arm were a big reason the Bulldogs averaged 31.9 points, despite enduring myriad injuries on the offensive line. Stockton was at his best when the game was on the line — he completed 86% of his passes with 11 touchdowns and one interception in the fourth quarter against ranked opponents.
2025 stats: 84 receptions, 970 receiving yards, 7 receiving touchdowns
Toney’s teammates call him “Baby Jesus,” and the true freshman delivered in a big way in his first season with the No. 10 Hurricanes. He ranks sixth in the FBS with 84 catches and had 1,328 all-purpose yards. Toney even threw for two scores. Not bad for an 18-year-old who would be a senior in high school if he hadn’t reclassified to the class of 2025.
2025 stats: 61.4% completion pct, 2,942 passing yards, 32 total touchdowns
Even after all the hand-wringing about Manning being overrated at the start of the season, the former five-star recruit ended up putting together a good campaign, throwing for 2,942 yards with 24 touchdowns. The No. 13 Longhorns need to find some offensive linemen (he was sacked 23 times) and receivers to help him in 2026.
2025 stats: 65.5% completion pct, 3,016 passing yards, 24 total touchdowns
Ole Miss officials have submitted a waiver to the NCAA on Chambliss’ behalf for another season of eligibility. He played his first three seasons at Division II Ferris State before transferring to Ole Miss this year. He was named SEC Newcomer of the Year after taking over the starting job in the third game of the season.
2025 stats: 1,560 rushing yards, 16 touchdowns
A transfer from Louisiana-Monroe, Hardy led the FBS with 130 rushing yards per game and was No. 2 with 1,560 total rushing yards. He had eight 100-yard games for the Tigers, including a whopping 300-yard effort with three touchdowns in a 49-27 victory against Mississippi State on Nov. 15.
2025 stats: 61.8% completion pct, 2,932 passing yards, 466 rushing yards, 31 total touchdowns
Reed announced this week that he plans to stay at Texas A&M next season, which is great news for the No. 7 Aggies. He was a threat with the ball in his hands, throwing for 2,932 yards with 25 touchdowns and running for 466 yards with six scores. His decision-making needs to continue to improve, so he can cut down on his 10 interceptions.
2025 stats: 63.6% completion pct, 3,117 passing yards, 20 total touchdowns
There’s a reason new Bears coach Tosh Lupoi took a late-night flight to Hawai’i to make sure Sagapolutele was staying at Cal. He was only the second true freshman in FBS history to pass for 200 yards or more in each of his first 11 starts. In the Bears’ late-season upsets of then-No. 21 SMU and No. 15 Louisville, Sagapolutele passed for a combined 653 yards with six touchdowns and no picks.
2025 stats: 1,279 rushing yards, 20 touchdowns
After transferring from Missouri, Lacy helped the No. 6 Rebels win 11 games in the regular season for the first time. He ranks No. 2 in the FBS with 20 rushing touchdowns and piled up 1,279 yards on the ground. Will he follow former coach Lane Kiffin to LSU or remain with the Rebels in 2026?
2025 stats: 66.2% completion pct, 3,431 passing yards, 29 total touchdowns
If Maiava returns to the No. 16 Trojans for another season, he’ll probably flourish in Lincoln Riley’s offense. This year, he threw for 3,431 yards with 23 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. He ranks No. 1 with a 91.2 total QBR. According to Pro Football Focus, he was second in the FBS with 26 big-time throws. (A big-time throw is defined as a high-difficulty, high-value pass.)
2025 stats: 1,035 rushing yards, 6 total touchdowns
Jackson became the fifth true freshman in OSU history to produce a 1,000-yard season, joining Robert Smith (1990), Maurice Clarett (2002), JK Dobbins (2017) and TreVeyon Henderson (2021). That’s good company. And, of course, he’d be the second Bo Jackson to collect a stiff-armed trophy.
2025 stats: 70.2% completion pct, 4,129 passing yards, 36 total touchdowns
Mestemaker is one of the best stories in college football. He didn’t start a single game in high school, then joined North Texas as a walk-on. This season, he led the FBS with 4,129 passing yards, helping him capture the Burlsworth Trophy as the top walk-on in the country. Will he join former Mean Green coach Eric Morris at Oklahoma State in 2026?
CJ Carr, QB, Notre Dame
2025 starts: 66.6% completion pct, 2,741 passing yards, 24 touchdowns
Fighting Irish coach Marcus Freeman entrusted Carr to lead his offense after a heated battle in preseason camp. The decision paid off, as Carr put together one of the best performances by a first-time starter in Notre Dame history. He threw for at least one touchdown in each of his first 12 starts, becoming the first Irish player to do that since Everett Golson in 2012-14. Carr’s 24 passing touchdowns are tied for the most in the first 12 starts by a Notre Dame player since 1966.
2025 stats: 70% completion pct, 2,850 passing yards, 595 rushing yards, 27 total touchdowns
Williams is one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the FBS, and his ability to run and throw was on display in the Huskies’ 38-19 victory against Rutgers on Oct. 10. He became the first player in school history to pass for at least 400 yards (400) and run for at least 100 (136) in the same game. Williams was second on the team with 595 rushing yards.
Others to watch: Sam Leavitt, QB, TBA; Cam Coleman, WR, Auburn; Brendan Sorsby, QB, Cincinnati; Josh Hoover, QB, TCU; Darian Mensah, QB, Duke; Nate Frazier, RB, Georgia; LJ Martin, RB, BYU; Bear Bachmeier, QB, BYU; LaNorris Sellers, QB, South Carolina; Bryce Underwood, QB, Michigan
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