That Was Madness! | NASCAR Bowman Gray Clash Race Review & Analysis

[@DennyDeliversYT]

never thought i’d say this but shoutout to FOX for only showing side by side ads during the race… if only their cameras stopped zooming into micro-atoms 🙏😭

[@EricEstepp]

100% agree. Several positives to take away from FOX's coverage. Just please add some ambient crowd noise haha

[@opticzc82]

Booth would be perfect if Clint was better, harvick and mike joy are near perfect

[@daniel_schell_86]

@@opticzc82 clint bowyer sucks as a commentator or what ever his role is he's the peak version of cringe

[@opticzc82]

@@daniel_schell_86 or just replace him with McMurry

[@TreyDavisOnline]

@@EricEstepp YES! I literally caught myself so many times going "WHERE IS THE CROWD NOISE!?"! I know they had to be loud!

[@TJracing99]

I like the idea of going to a historic short track, let's just pick a more normal one. Jamie Mcmurray hinting at hickory on the broadcast was interesting

[@ghostrider77877]

They should pick 6 real (non nascar) short tracks to renovate, 3 pavement 3 dirt, and rotate the clash and all star race at those tracks

[@Yellawood23]

Hickory Five Flags Oswego Eldora Knoxville Volusia

[@DaltonHerzmann]

I'd enthusiastically support this but the pay driver/good ole boy segment of the sport cries about doing dirt racing and nascar caters to them

[@DaltonHerzmann]

​@Yellawood23 any of those tracks would be amazing venues for the clash

[@SamuelWillenbrink]

I'd love this

[@Matt_8000]

Kevin Harvick: "The crowd is going wild right now" I guess I'll take your word for it

[@mmargarito]

😂😂

[@supertornadogun1690]

not like you could hear it

[@Clockitlockit9]

That is the type of performance we have been looking for from Elliott since his leg injury in 2023

[@texasbbq3191]

Indeed, this was the best he’s looked since then!

[@RedlineoverloadProductions1225]

This race was in the heart of NASCAR Country! So I’m not surprised this was a success!

[@Mac-td7lt]

Much better than the Colosseum races.

[@TJracing99]

It was like the same thing

[@TanTan-hr7uq]

Same thing

[@IllinoisRacer5]

I thought both were fine

[@AcesAndEights1]

The racing was about the same, but Bowman Gray fans were a whole lot better

[@RACINGUS95]

“This was madness” “Madness? THIS. IS. BOWMAN-GRAY!!!!”

[@Yellawood23]

It was pretty calm. I expected way more craziness

[@legacyofthe243]

NASCAR knocked this whole weekend out of the park. From the racing to the no nonsense presentation to the buildup, everything was perfect. Idk how many ppl have seen it but NASCAR put out what I believe is one of the best pieces of content a few days ago about BG. If you haven't, do yourself a favor and go watch it on NASCAR's channel.

[@jrgs906]

I didn't enjoy the $50 parking. Had a great time though!

[@Indyian]

Madhouse film on the floracing channel is also great

[@C.JFomme]

Clash or all star race at eldora please. Use this format, put the heats in primetime and add a c main, would be awesome

[@Jeffoutsideback78]

Too cold in Ohio in February, it would have to be the all star weekend, which is usually in NC. I'd like eldora just make it a points race

[@mrmbr]

No more dirt.. And I love dirt racing

[@brandonalldredgeba]

One thing I noticed about this race was the amount of drivers with smiles on their face and also how many times f them said how much fun they had. So if the drivers had fun you know it was a good race

[@craigstephenson7676]

I know Ty Gibbs did not have fun 😂

[@TracksideViews]

They knocked this weekend out of the park! If it’s back next year I recommend to anyone who can, put this one towards the top of the list.

[@TreyDavisOnline]

When you and others talk about crowd noise, all I can think about is the fact that my favorite clips of races, whether it's NASCAR or your local short tracks, the video that fans post of races HEAVILY include the loud noise coming from the crowd! Even several years ago when TV would include the sounds of the fans, not just during the last lap, but whenever something great happened, you heard the crowd, and that helped YOU get into it even more!

[@o.n.e.wayhunting]

I think Nascar has found the location to make the clash full time there! Far superior product tonight.

[@SamHyde-q8m]

😂😂 southerners are so stupid. It's the same track

[@jrgs906]

Too crowded. Really hard to maneuver at the Stadium.

[@SamHoffer-h4h]

They had more room to race in LA

[@Wezzizuz57]

Gonna throw some hats into the ring, Five Flags or Volusia in florida, keep the short track flavor but bring the clash back to florida during speedweeks

[@Indyian]

This would be perfect, both are big enough to accommodate cup cars well

[@BigBirdGoesRogue]

This would be awesome for those attending speedweeks but it would be hard to get tickets at volusia, really not enough seats there unless they add some

[@BigBirdGoesRogue]

Five Flags would be more feasible

[@ethanwhite5019]

We still up Elliott fans?? Lesss gooo 🏁🏁

[@erichetherington602]

Yes, let's go Chase Elliott.🏁

[@emsguy486]

Hell yes we are!!

[@Shorts3J21]

Jr fan n Bowman fan here but go team Hendrick

[@MegaMr46]

Yep congrats to him and Ryan Blaney finishing 1-2

[@V4-VFR]

Absolutely that was One hell of a way to start the season off congratulations to Chase Elliott and his team. 🏆

[@salbiasillo9985]

There was only one other complaint with fox I had specifically at the end of the first half when it looked like Chase was gonna cross over Hamlin they showed the crowd for a few seconds and I was like what the hell!!!

[@AtomicPunk51]

Did anyone else think the announcer for race ceremony sounded just like Rick Allen?

[@jrgs906]

It was Rick Allen.

[@Bubba55389]

Alan finally nailed a final adjustment. It’s been a while since he’s done that and been a while since Elliott has truly had a dominant car

[@thicccheese4007]

I have a theory on Fox. They use NASCAR as a development program for amateur crew members to eventually take over spots in other sports like football. There’s no fucking way this is the best in the business when they are completely missing things on the smallest track on the schedule. I refuse to believe these people are the best NASCAR and Fox can possibly find

[@skottydoesntn0o0]

FOX covers Nascar likes it's 2005 still.

[@InsaneCelery238]

12:30 R.I.P. Lectric E-bikes

[@carloconnor3876]

Josh berry is gonna do good for the wood brothers this year. I thought he was going to be in the top 10 tonight the way he moved through the main.

[@tarheel6774]

Save Greenville/Pickens speedway first televised race of NASCAR Track champions Lee Petty Ralph Earnhardt David Pearson Richard Petty and more it is under attack from developers upstate South Carolina

[@ASKid24]

Why NASCAR ever left The Rock in the first place is beyond me.

[@MichaelWilliams-vb6wr]

Chicagoland also hopefully with the great racing there was at Kansas and Atlanta that Chicagoland or possibly Kentucky if they got the traffic under control and planned it correctly

[@themotorsportgeneral]

Chase Elliott Multi-Win season….?

[@kelenefta]

I’m gonna say 3 or 4 wins this season for Chase. 4 for Larson, 3 for Byron and 1 for Bowman

[@xxtherevlukexx]

Okay hear me out about the "Clash". We bring back Speedweeks, you can do New Smyrna, Valdosta speedway, and then the Clash at Daytona. So you do all the stuff they did this weekend over Smyrna and Valdosta (order doesn't matter), and then we the Clash back at Daytona for the POLE WINNERS! It mixes old and new. I think this is a great idea, and I'm not an "old head" I'm just a 32 year old that loves short track racing and the clash at Daytona. Maybe we pull a couple races off the schedule and do this. IDK. I'm just brain storming over here.

[@Yellawood23]

It's volusia not valdosta. But yes they absolutely should race at the short tracks around daytona

[@MichaelEvans-xw9cv]

It was nice to see what a Nascar race is suppose to look like and not all the glitz and hype, just Nascar.

[@spheredhawk67]

I think the Clash should be for experimenting with new markets only, like trying a race in Denver or something. While the All-Star race is reserved for legacy tracks, like North Wilkesboro, Rockingham, and even Bowman-Gray. That's what I think anyway.

[@TheGatorator]

The silence after the restarts was deafening

[@bradfordmcgomery9058]

I was there at the Start Finish Line. The racing was fantastic. The Crowd of course was wild and crazy. I didn’t realize that on TV it wasn’t that way. It will be back guaranteed at The madhouse So glad u give it positive results and enjoyed it on television. Keep up the good work Eric.

[@-chungus]

Finally you’re giving SVG credit. It only took you a year 🤣

[@BrandoTheGamingChampionship]

Chase Elliott lead 171 laps, Denny Hamlin led 28 laps & Tyler Reddick led one lap and this was Chase Elliott first Clash win

[@ravagingwolverine666]

Glad to hear that the race was well received, but no surprisedbecause when it was all over, I felt satisfied. I'll just say up front that I enjoyed the project of bringing the show to LA. The Coliseum made for great imagery, and I liked how they made a show of it. The racing wasn't as good in LA, but I still had fun, especially with it being an exhibition race. With that said, after last years major rain almost ruining the weekend, and this year with the fires, it ended up being good timing that they moved it to Bowman Gray. I thought the racing was very good. Blaney's drive from the back to racing for the lead with almost no damage on his car was impressive. Not much to add that wasn't covered by the video aside from one broader point. We just saw a legitimately good short track race(super short track, really) with the Gen 7 car. And the track was half the size of a normal short track and flat, so figure that one out. And the Fox booth was pretty decent. Mike Joy sounds refreshed, while Harvick and Bowyer focused on the race instead of taking shots at each other, which I bet was a producer's idea last year.

[@MichaelWilliams-vb6wr]

Engine Engine #9 First across the finish Line way to go Chase Elliott next go get that 500 super glad the seasons under way lots of drivers im waiting on how there gone do

[@Duff79]

They should do this at Eldora Speedway/Knoxville Raceway in my opinion but that wasn't a bad race. I'd like them to return to Bowman Gray, just not necessarily next year

[@Eagleracer38x]

Dude, this race was really good! I was waiting for a very late yellow to spice up the ending artificially, but NASCAR didn't do it. Did they really learn their lesson around the end of the regular season last year? I would like this race every few years at Bowman Gray Stadium. I'd like to go to other tracks like Hickory Motor Speedway and other 1/4 to 1/2 mile tracks around the Southern states for the Clash and anywhere for the All-Star race (because weather is better). Idk, I wouldn't be against seeing racing like this on normal race weekends. Bring the Friday night racing feel to Sunday NASCAR national series. NASCAR needs to start doing what SRX doing, race at local Friday night races, and put butts in seats at those places. The local short tracks are closing more and more, NASCAR could try to change that trend.

[@irvingboy1122]

Bowman Gray > The Coliseum that was fun to watch

[@C.JFomme]

I see no difference

[@OHIOFARMBOY-kb6fn]

Very similar racetracks, nascar people are biased towards carolina tracks

[@OHIOFARMBOY-kb6fn]

The should go to the world's greatest short track eldora speedway

[@IllinoisRacer5]

​@@OHIOFARMBOY-kb6fnextremely biased holy crap

[@Joshua8824Racing]

I heard some people say that FOX needs to stop zooming in so much. But I think that's no big deal. Anyway YAY MY GUY WON!!!

[@davidHardie-p9q]

Sadly here Down Under in Aus we had Full Screen Ads, but still enjoyed the race. It was a little more Tame than I expected tho.

[@publo_esky_bar2768]

yeah, we should send in complaints to KAYO, if ur using KAYO that is what I am using

[@DuncanMcCarthy]

CANNOT WAIT for the S1apSh0es video abt tonight’s race! WE ARE SO BACK!!!

[@JayAshbey]

Excellent video Eric as always. Love your produced wrap-ups.

[@kennymiklaszii6229]

Nice to see a short track race and not hear short track problems with the gen 7 car

[@rogertrout7694]

Great video Eric! Thanks! I really like your point about the crowd noise and I agree. I hope you get another sponsor for the Groovy Gauge real soon!

[@Thegreatdeer53]

And as a Kyle Busch fan it feels like it’s still 2024 😔

[@GracieSkywalker]

Might need to go PartTime cup racing give that ride to Austin Hill it is what is best for RCR

[@commandercody8786]

Let’s go baby!!! We are back Eric!

[@revelare_xvii6269]

I think it’s safe to say that Bowman Gray should be a permanent spot on the schedule.

[@dxrkfire22]

100% agree. I think this is a perfect spot for the clash for a few years.

[@CodyLetsRace]

Uhhhh what? I'd like this every 5 years or something but not every year. Way too hard to pass

[@Yellawood23]

I don't lol

[@KyleMurkowski]

No, once a decade for bowman gray due to historical value is fine, but it dosn't need to be more than that

[@KyleMurkowski]

​@@CodyLetsRaceAgree completely

[@MichaelEvans-xw9cv]

I say 80%. Thought LQR was better but impressed with the overall. Hope the driver's cool down over the next 2 weeks or Daytona could be a wreck fest. Thanks Eric, glad you're back.

[@michaeljenkins746]

Im hoping they do the picture and picture all race every week during commercials like the plate race's experiment last year 😊 especially with the new contracts hope cw fs1 do it too especially for trucks and arca

[@john-e2g1k]

i was happy the first race i watched was won by my favorite driver

[@mikefeltner4216]

Madhouse At Bowman Gray Was Awesome!!!! NASCAR At it's Roots!!! Blew The La Coliseum Away !!!! Eric It was Fantastic!!! Great Win By Chase!! And Love That The Fans Was Standing Seem liked the Whole Time!!!! NASCAR Clash 26 Will Definitely Be back There!!! Was That Rick Allen on The PA!!!?? Sure Sounded Like Him!!! #LovedTheMadhouse!!

[@jokool_aid]

I'll be honest, I had other plans tonight at first and wasn't planning on watching the race, but as the start time got closer, I started getting that itch to watch, even though I knew it wasn't a points race and might end up looking like the LA races. I am so glad I changed my mind and saw what was a super fun race! I really hope they come back to Bowman Gray for this at least a few more times!

[@shaheerahmed5134]

We are just getting started happy that Elliott won LETS F***ING GOOOO! See you guys at Daytona

[@Darcy-v1u]

I knew you were gonna post this today 😂

[@InsaneCelery238]

As in Monday? Or Sunday?

[@EricEstepp]

Well yes, I've been very consistent with my Sunday night uploads over the years lol

[@Darcy-v1u]

@@InsaneCelery238 Sunday

[@palmtree82]

"wonder if Eric has uploaded a post race yet?" *Posted 14 seconds ago* Hell yeah 🤘

[@ryansullivan6411]

the max driver cams are a game changer. banger of a race and to see it from the wheel

[@MercuryStaniel]

One of the biggest things I noticed at this race was none of the drivers appeared to be shifting like the past few years at short tracks - Wonder if this had to do with the racing we saw?

[@speedcupstopmotion]

Amazing race at bowman gray and Chase Elliott winning it two hours before my birthday was the best thing ever! Glad race recaps are back Eric!!

[@johndraper9065]

Really good race! I agree about the crowd noise.

[@iceman942]

Really enjoyed the races this weekend and tonight!

[@TanTan-hr7uq]

ready for 500 just to see my boy back!!!! Lets go MTJ 🤘🏻

[@JDberry]

Hey Eric, thanks for inspiring me to do what you do. I’m gonna try to do what you do. I’m making my review on the last chance qualifier soon.

[@stopmotionisthebestofmotio1550]

Watching nascar >>>> studying for my molecular genetics and physiology exams

[@KashmirRIPEddie]

I have a first draft due tomorrow, nahhhh NASCAR day for me.

[@DepravedCoTApologist]

Bruh, it's been 3 weeks into the semester. How do you already have exams???

[@stopmotionisthebestofmotio1550]

@@DepravedCoTApologist good question😭

[@KyleLarson-d8o]

Bowman Gray gives short track racing a bad name. Go to a bigger one and make it dirt

[@gareth9538]

Thought it was awesome, some bumping and banging with some good side by side racing. It came down more to driver , teams like legacy and wood brothers were able to mix it up front.

[@Steeevey1222]

Postrace reviews are back 💪🙏

[@MitchCollins15]

Best short track race in the next gen era unfortunately

[@AlexE5250]

This was a really fun race! And I’m not even a chase elliot/hendrick fan

[@ryanjones4106]

I’d give it an 85% but since I’m an Elliott fan I gotta give it 90% positive. The side by side racing was insanely cool. I agree about needing to add the crowd noise into the mix

[@nickdolin393]

Such a great weekend all around, I loved it.

[@williamsiebert9830]

Being a crash fest isnt real racing! Atleast have a track with some banking

[@TreyDavisOnline]

While I think a lot of people hoped for the typical Bowman Gray races with wrecks and mad drivers wanting to jump out of their cars and throw car hoods at each other, I actually loved this race! I knew the Cup drivers would be a little more conservative throughout the race, but the racing was actually good! The LA race was cool at first, but this just had more of a hometown shorttrack feel to it, and I'm here for it!

[@jeezychreezy1]

Like a phone booth fight! Fun close quarter racing

[@tanjirouzumaki144]

As someone who was there... it was electric and AMAZING

[@vaderakajames]

Not the typical short track race but it was fun and exciting great starter 😊

[@WesleySJones]

From Utah - HAD NO IDEA this event was even going on

[@lordfarquad444]

0:52 so many nascar fans out here in the west. I hope they go back to auto club soon. I don’t want to have to go to Vegas every year. Not that it’s a problem but I gotta make Saturday a short one so I get to the race before the national anthem.

[@ad_astra81]

I took a few videos from front row tonight, first time I’ve uploaded to YT. Everything was amazing! Time of my life!

[@goaliecalledmike]

If we didn't have the crowd noise for Chase's first win, him cutting down Hamlin's tire, Kenseth wrecking Logano, Kasey's last win at the Brickyard, or heck, lets give FOX some flowers: Bayne winning Daytona or Danica leading her first laps, all those moments would be waaaaay less memorable.

[@opticzc82]

Eric can you do an updated video on your rating NASCAR TV commentators? Since Harvick is here, diffy etc

[@craigstephenson7676]

Between fall Martinsville and Ryan Blaney being able to drive through the field today, I think there might be hope still for next gen short track racing. To me it was clearly more of a race than in years past at the coliseum. I thought Blaney was going to win it until he missed that corner. Just about all I could hope for with this kind of race.

[@johnlafever3162]

With the investment NASCAR made in improvements to the track, they will run at Bowman Gray for a while to pay off that safer barrier, the LED lighting and the other improvements. Gotta spread the cost out over a few years.

[@lkhracing63]

Honestly, I liked it. Even though it was practically the same thing as LA, this just felt so much more NASCAR. Don’t get me wrong, I was ok with LA, but this just felt right. This felt like a great salute to veterans of the sport, and the drivers looked like they enjoyed this challenge. I’d be very very happy to see this track return once a year. Congrats NASCAR and everyone else involved.

[@HUSKERS_FAN_1]

agree! what a great choice by nascar to come in and ive that track a shot in the arm as clint bowyer would say

[@RoxChaseDi9]

Well as a Elliott fan i Couldn't ask for anything better. Elliott dominates the clash. Roxanne perez P2 in the Royal rumble... Not bad huh💙

[@Dupontman627]

HMS takes home their next championship this autumn

[@stephenholloway6893]

What's neat that despite the location in the history of the event the Elliotts are now the 2nd father son duo behind the Earnhardts to win the Clash. Overall it a good race it was better then I thought it was hopefully they'll keep it at Bowman Gray next year. Do I miss it at Daytona? Yes however despite the dominate performance by Chase Elliott it was a good race if you of course not a fan of someone dominate the race. Impressive run to Bubba with 5th and SVG with 9th plus all 3 Penske drivers in the top 10 2 of them in the top 5 Blaney and Logano.

[@AcesAndEights1]

85 seems fair. Maybe even 90. Awesome race!

[@michaelwright8687]

On a track this small I’m guessing the crowd noise would be drowned out by the cars. Normally they can use microphones from a section of the track with no cars, but obviously a quarter mile track doesn’t have that.

[@iceeblueburst03]

Awesome to see the NAPA car back in Victory Lane!

[@raginOKCTHUNDER]

THE WHITE SCHEME CURSE IS FINALLY BROKEN!!!

[@skottydoesntn0o0]

I disagree about the "positives" about Fox. The coverage was a cliche Fox broadcast. Great race, bad broadcast. - Zoomed in camera angles - Horrible audio mix - Only okay commentary - The crowd shots are back - Despite it being a very small track, they still missed a spin through the grass - side by side commercials is good but something they should have been doing well before this. Their coverage is too old school" for my liking. Mike Joy is a legend, but he's not drawing in a new fan. Harvick is fine and Bowyer won't be DW no matter how hard they try. The Amazon/USA and NBC broadcasts will once produce a much better product. I'm obviously a FOX hater but I saw nothing new from them tonight. Just the annual reminder of how bad they are.

[@atkearly1]

They took a while to cut to Burt Myers crash. Despite Mike Joy announced "Crash!".

[@WheelzGaming88]

I was wrong as well thinking these cars could not put on a quality race on such a small and narrow track

[@pacmac79]

McMurray's idea for Hickory is a nice thought but how about this being a way to soft re-intrdouce NASCAR to the Nashville Fairgrounds without actually having a full on, 2-3 series NASCAR weekend? Use the funds to help rebuild the track & infrastructure, help work with the community to develop that future relationship & get a great weekend of racing to build the nostalgia of those local veteran attendees & new eyes on the track from afar.

[@kevinkinney5445]

Tonight's race was 100% better across the board than all of the races at the LA Coliseum combined. Way better fan support, a faster track with quirks, and a lot cheaper to add safer barriers than to transform a football, track & field venue out west. The shipping, Hotels, travel expenses make no sense versus staying near home base. So they sold out with 17,000 fans... What did they sell in LA? Twice as many? Even though we lost Nascar in the greater Los Angeles area, we can go to Vegas twice a year and Sonoma even though ITS EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE and usually very hot

[@InsaneCelery238]

Race was a 6/10, but those heats and lcqs were great 😆 10/10

[@jakehobby3477]

Great racing 85%

[@GracieSkywalker]

Chase Elliott is back baby he will win the championship

[@emsguy486]

Fox was good. Race product was good. Track was good. But even though I’m not one of his fans, can we all agree Ryan Blaney was on fire tonight. He was flawless.

[@EMTWHAT911]

Next year Nascar is going all in back to their roots- Dirt Race ON Daytona Beach! lol I heard this from a reliable source! ( My guy used to sell hotdogs in the Speedway paking lot, He knows)

[@dannyflay5465]

Mid season lows are good for Is experimenting but the first 1/3 and the last 1/3rd of the season leave for the core fans... There is a reason these old tracks have stood the test of time