Is NASCAR a Sport?
NASCAR is a very controversial topic when it comes to classifying it as a sport or not. Many people believe since the drivers are just sitting and driving, and there is nothing else involved. There are many members of the crew that often go unnoticed.
The driver is often arguably under the most pressure throughout the race, but every member of the crew carries a huge workload in order for their racer to win.
The pit crews, in my opinion, are the most entertaining thing to watch during a race. It is amazing how fast the pit crews can perform their job. Even though the crews have lots of expensive equipment to help them perform their tasks, it is mindblowing how they can refuel the car and change all the tires in a matter of seconds. With this, having an outstanding pit crew is the key to winning a race.
The way that the pit crews get their expensive equipment is through sponsorships. After racing a while, the drivers can receive sponsorships from big names like Office Depot, M&M’s, Subway, McDonalds, Aflac, and many more. These sponsorships that they receive help pay for much of the maintenance of the equipment and car. Most of the drivers at this level have numerous sponsorships but alternate between which car that they want to drive. With many sponsorships there comes more cars to drive.
The drivers always have people on a headset in the box to see if anything is going wrong with the vehicle because sometimes the driver cannot see behind his car. The cars are designed to notify the driver and the crew whenever a problem occurs.
Even though people may not see the drivers to be physically fit, they are actually in shape. There is an extreme amount of skill that the drivers have to learn through driving school.
Regardless if someone accepts NASCAR as a sport or not, it is important to accept the passion that the drivers have for racing. Some of the drivers are even 18 years old. I believe that it is important to appreciate the effort that the drivers and crew put into NASCAR. It is dangerous because the drivers are traveling at speeds of over 200 miles per hour at times. I admire the determination that the drivers have as well as their fearlessness.
The drivers master a wide arsenal of moves to pass or stay in front of their opponents. These types of moves occur every lap. It is also very easy to lose control of the race car because they are traveling at such high speeds. It is also crazy seeing how close they get to the outside of the wall without hitting it.
In my opinion, NASCAR is very fun to watch especially when there are just a few laps left in the race. The wide variety of colorful cars is also a nice touch to the race. The fact that seeing a huge amount of sponsors that we see in our everyday life on the cars is a good way to get people interested in going there as well. It is awesome to see how many different cars the drivers drive with different sponsors on each of them.
All in all, I will consider NASCAR a sport because it requires much skill to perform in it. The pit crews are physically challenged at times when they have to refuel and put new tires on the cars.
Reagan Coppage • May 13, 2021 at 10:11 am
I definitely feel like NASCAR is a sport and it should be identified as one. We cheer them on and everything just as much as we do for football. I feel like that should not even be a question they have to ask.
Nick Kroetz • Mar 13, 2020 at 8:29 am
Whether NASCAR is a sport is about the same in whether Cheer is a sport. If you want my opinion, I think NASCAR would fall under the category of a sport. After all, it IS called “Motorsport”
Dally • Mar 11, 2020 at 10:33 pm
NASCAR seems like a sport in my opinion and it may be dangerous but it looks fun
tato • Mar 10, 2020 at 1:51 pm
NASCAR is definitely a sport. The amount of danger and stress the drivers go through should at least qualify them to say they are in a sport. I’m sure more physical power is involved in NASCAR than what people think. I know that i wouldn’t be able to race like they do.
Bailey • Mar 9, 2020 at 1:38 pm
I think that Nascar is a sport because its really dangerous to be racing that fast especially against other drivers. When I watch the races sometimes the drivers get into really bad accidents. And you’re right the pit crew is so amazing with what they do. Great article
Alia Arellano • Mar 6, 2020 at 1:53 pm
I think its a sport because the drivers are putting themselves in danger for driving at really high speeds and the drivers have their team of people to help them prepare, I think it should definitely classify as a sport.
Liberty High School c/o Sam Cox • Mar 6, 2020 at 10:24 am
The pit crew members are often time former college athletes.
Check out Jimmy Johnson’s half marathon and marathon time!!!
Most are world class athletes.
Thanks for writing Dylan.
Dylan Huggins • Mar 6, 2020 at 10:51 am
Of course Mr. Cox! It was a fun topic to write about and I have lots of respect for those guys that go out there and do their job.
Emily • Mar 6, 2020 at 9:25 am
I think it is a sport. It’s much more dangerous than football and they have an entire team helping.
Christian Torres • Mar 6, 2020 at 9:16 am
I think it’s a sport because I searched the definition of a sport and NASCAR fits in that definition.
Karlee • Mar 5, 2020 at 2:28 pm
I think it is a sport because you have a team to help you with what you need. Also you are putting yourself in danger and you have to train to make sure that you don’t get hurt.
Grace Derby • Mar 5, 2020 at 1:22 pm
I don’t think it’s a sport because you just drive in circles.