Why is a fuel mileage win not considered an *earned win?

Question

Doesn't it take the knowledge & skill of the driver & crew chief to accomplish this ? If so, why is it not considered an *earned* win?

Answer 1

I don't know.

I was always taught the first car across the finish line wins.

The second car in line is the first loser.

Did Derrick Cope get an earned win when Earnhart Sr. cut a tire, had to back off and gave the win to Cope?

Should he get an asterisk next his name that implies DOESN'T COUNT?

Answer 2

A win is a win, the only difference with fuel mileage win is that 90% of time the crew cheifs are banking on cautions and for the driver to have an egg under his foot to pull it out.  It's being at the right place at the right time.

Example, I've said many times that HMS dominance last year was a false curtain being that they were at the right places at the right times for a lot of their wins.  Casey Mears in the 600 is a good example if I remember right.

End of the day, when the drivers career is over, what matters to them is the win column and nobody remembers how they got every single one of their wins.

Answer 3

Eh. It's usually not the best car in the field just the luckiest..........but it happens. Oh well!

Mark is an idiot!

Answer 4

To me they are considered an "earned win".

An unearned win to me is a win under caution because of last lap wrecks or a rain out past the half way point.

A fuel mileage win is a well thought out plan and circumstances playing into your hands.

Answer 5

I see no difference. It's usually just a sour grapes response from a fan whose driver didn't win.

Answer 6

Earning a win can be defined in several ways.The casual fan sees the "earned" win as the driver physically winning the race with his driving ability.This is the most common view of earned win.

The casual fan does not see the race behind the race.The crew cheif confering with the emgine man or a tire specialist.These people attemting to figure out their edge in gas milage.This brain trust is making an attempt to earn a win mechanically.Earning a win with fuel milage is an earned win as the driver has to do what the crew says or run out of fuel or not have enough to reach the fuel pick up.

A win against the field is an earned win,be it fuel milage or driver ability.

Answer 7

Just about every win is an earned one (with the possible exception of Carl's win at Vegas, where he had an illegal car), they are hard to get and every one counts.  Most of the time the driver has to work especially hard to conserve enough fuel to get one.  A lot of the credit goes to the crew chief as well, for doing all the calculations in order to know if it's close enough or not.

3 STR8 N 08!!!

Answer 8

Most that say it isn't a win is because their driver & crew were out smarted by it. Yes it does take knowledge & skill from all parties to win a fuel mileage race, but it also takes a driver to get them in position for that to work.

Answer 9

ARE YOU CRAZY? or are you just alking to crazy people. Do you know how much effort and brain power went into calculating the mileage, not considered an earned win, the only way you could win a unearned race is if you payed off the competion or killed every other driver

Answer 10

People are idiots. Enough said.

Answer 11

A win is a win, the record books don't have an asterisk on fuel mileage wins. That being said there is a difference in most cases.

Most fuel mileage wins come from a gamble. Drivers and teams with little to lose will take the gamble every time while those teams in the top 12 will stop for fuel giving up a chance to win to avoid a points disaster 30 something finish.

It isn't always the best driver or smartest crew chief who wins on fuel, sometimes it's the team with the least to lose.

Answer 12

They are getting 5mpg at best, and have no pollution controls on their cars, I don't think there is a bragging right to be spoke of...  Yeah, NASCAR is working on the technical side of everything, even though they still use a carb.  You think next year we are going to see a 350 with a 4 barrel carb and strait pipes back in the S10 truck?

We have 2 gallons of gas left in the world, which driver do we give it to?

Answer 13

cause you didnt fight for it till the end.

Answer 14

a fuel mileage win is an earned win.  heck, a win where 42 cars on the track crash half-way through and only one car runs the other half to take the checkered flag is an earned win.

every one of those drivers out there earned their spots by being the best at what they do (ok, almost all of them).  people griping about jpm's win last year, and more vocally about danica's win in japan forget to take into account the fact that in order to win, those drivers had to first get into the series, then qualify, then race ALL the laps in order to be in contention to win.  

those same people also usually forget to take into account the additional  fact that nearly every driver who was ever won a race on "fuel mileage" alone could probably beat the pants off the person questioning the win while running backwards!!!

my $0.02.

ps. dale, below, although i agree in principle with your argument, isn't the fact that some drivers have "earned" their way into being able to take a chance by being so far ahead in points (or by being so far ahead in the race they can slow down, a la jimmie johnson in phoenix) *earning* the win as well?  isn't it also true that sometimes the team with the least to lose gambles and loses?  every race has its elements of luck, and some get the good luck, and some get the bad, and it generally changes from race to race...

pps. and mark, i see you are still wasting precious seconds of your life hanging in out in an area you purport to hate, instead of working on ways to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. who's "stupider" now?  i'd like to think i have the common sense to not spend valuable seconds of my life hanging out in places i don't want to be, and places where i'm not welcome...

Answer 15

A win is a win they don't put an asterisk by it if you win on fuel mileage. When you have 42 other cars out there and you are the only one who gambles and tries to make it on fuel then you earned it because if you run out with 1 lap to go they aren't going to let you forget it.