When it Comes to Johnson “Haters”, the Media Misses Their Point

You hear it all the time now that Jimmie Johnson has accomplished this unprecedented feat.

Those labeled as “Haters”(i.e. anybody who doesn’t like Jimmie Johnson) make a point stating that NASCAR is fake, or that everything that is done in NASCAR is a big act, or that Rick Hendrick is funneling money into NASCAR so that they will allow his teams to cheat.

They make accusations that may or may not be true, and then the media chimes in with brilliant counter-points.

They bring up post-race inspection, and how, if Hendrick’s teams(or in this case, the #48) were cheating, NASCAR would catch them. They bring up how NASCAR confiscated the #48 team’s cars after every Chase race, and took them back to their R&D center to “make sure they weren’t cheating”.

Surely, they say, if NASCAR put that much effort into making sure the #48 team didn’t cheat, and didn’t find anything, they must not have cheated.

The media assumes that all is settled, and that they have silenced the “Haters” accusations and proven them wrong.

But they are missing the point.

Yes, NASCAR has a post-race inspection. Yes, they confiscated the #48 car after every race during the Chase and took it back to the R&D center. Yes, we know that.

But if what the “Haters” are saying is true, if NASCAR really is fake, or an act, or if they really are taking money from Hendrick and letting his teams cheat, does all of that really matter?

If NASCAR is in on the “act”, or if they are taking bribes, what does a NASCAR-sanctioned post-race inspection or confiscation mean? If NASCAR is in cahoots with Hendrick(and I’m not saying they are, but “if”), who’s to say that NASCAR’s post-race activities are fair? If NASCAR helps rig or taint the races in Hendricks favor, what’s to stop them from doing the same thing to post-race inspection or confiscations?

The media misses the point. If NASCAR is in cahoots with certain teams to begin with, and they are rigging the races, then post-race inspection and confiscations don’t mean much now, do they?

When it comes to Jimmie Johnson “Haters”, the media misses their point.