Cowherd: Tony Stewart Incident "All because of Southern culture"

[Tiger Wench]

Collin Cowherd can suck my left nut.  They are in a pretty silk box on my desk.  What a shithead.  he is no better than Finescum in saying inflammatory shit to get the unwashed masses stirred up.  I guarantee his show the rest of the week will be the rednecks who follow NAY-SCAR calling in, when the reality is that they are quickly being priced out of attendance, and becoming a minority. But that won't be the narrative.  If he truly believed we are all about "eye for an eye" he best watch out.

Monday on The Herd, ESPN’s Colin Cowherd partially blamed what he described as NASCAR's southern "eye-for-an-eye culture” for the tragic death of driver Kevin Ward Jr., who was run over by three-time champion Tony Stewart Saturday at the Canandaigua Motorsport Park dirt track. As for Stewart, Cowherd said, "I watched the video seven, eight times: He revved up, other racers put on the brakes."

Cowherd started off the 11 a.m. EST hour with a rant ripping the “machismo” perpetuated by NASCAR and what he repeatedly called the “eye-for-an-eye” worldview of the South. During his opening monologue and his follow-up discussion with NASCAR analyst Marty Smith, Cowherd criticized the sport for failing to ban running on the track and other dangerous displays of "bravado" long ago, and suggested a number of times that three-time champion Tony Stewart could have avoided hitting Ward.

Cowherd began the segment by citing NASCAR’s embrace of dangerous displays of masculinity and "settling the score," saying that it, like the NFL, NHL and boxing, deliberately allowed those elements to draw in a larger male audience.

Of all the sports in America, NFL, NASCAR, boxing, there's a lot of machismo involved. In the sports there's a fine line. They want to sell it to guys, but they have to have rules. But NASCAR failed to set a rule [against running on the track] [...] Being aggressive has always been at the heart of NASCAR. [...] Who's to blame? Bravado is, anger is, the sports culture, speed is, macho is, tempers are.

Saying NASCAR had a "unique culture" that was almost exclusively a "southern delicacy," the ESPN host linked the sport's emphasis on displays of masculine aggression to what he said was the “eye-for-an-eye” culture of the South, which he suggested encouraged behavior like that exhibited by both Ward and Stewart. 

It doesn't get ratings anywhere really outside of the South in the major cities, Atlanta, Charlotte [...] It's really, really part of the South, and it's an eye-for-an-eye culture.

This culture, Cowherd said, encouraged drivers to find ways to "settle the score" by dangerous means, as in the case of Ward and Stewart. After slamming into the wall due to contact with Stewart’s car, Ward walked into the middle of the track, waiting for Stewart’s car to come back around. Dodging a few other cars, Ward walked directly toward Stewart’s oncoming vehicle, at which point Stewart’s back tire ran over Ward, killing him. This behavior, Cowherd suggested, has been encouraged by NASCAR and its "eye-for-an-eye," "settle the score" mentality.

As for Stewart, Cowherd suggested a number of times that he was too skilled a driver to accidentally run into Ward, saying the other drivers managed to miss Ward, why couldn’t Stewart?

I watched the video seven, eight times: He revved up, other racers put on the brakes. [...] His entire career, his nickname is "Smoke." He's been about confrontation, he's been the tough guy, he doesn't back down...

Citing Stewart's history of angry outbursts and his M.O. as the bad boy of NASCAR, Cowherd asked guest analyst Marty Smith if any of the other drivers suspected Stewart of deliberately hitting Ward. Smith "vehemently" denied the accusation, saying there's only sorrow with all involved in the sport.

[GH2001]

The dummy who got out of his car is from New York no? The race was in New York. Stewart is from Indiana.

Sprint Car racing on dirt tracks got their start in Ohio and Indiana.

But SOUTHUNERSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!

Got it.

[Godfather]

The corndog's or your ex's?

[Tiger Wench]

The corndog's or your ex's?

Mine.  They were a gift.

[Buzz Killington]

Let's play tummy sticks

[Godfather]

Let's play tummy sticks

You tell that mean ocean, Buzz!

[Saniflush]

The dummy who got out of his car is from New York no? The race was in New York. Stewart is from Indiana.

Sprint Car racing on dirt tracks got their start in Ohio and Indiana.

But SOUTHUNERSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!

Got it.

Yea well like most things we are just better at it.

[Townhallsavoy]

NASCAR Sprint Cup race venues:

8 in the South.

15 outside of the South. 

And one of those Southern venues is in Homestead, FL which might as well be bordered with Cuba. 

[GH2001]

NASCAR Sprint Cup race venues:

8 in the South.

15 outside of the South. 

And one of those Southern venues is in Homestead, FL which might as well be bordered with Cuba.

but...but....SUTHENERS!!!!!!!!!

[Snaggletiger]

I listen to a good bit of Cowherd. I think he's entertaining as long as you know to take a lot of what he says with a grain of salt.  On this, he's jus loss his damn mind.  The only thing I'll agree on with his take is that NASCAR does promote conflict between the drivers.  No, not publically.  They'd never say it.  But, they allow it, whether it be fights in the pits, wrecking someone out, Tony Stupid throwing his helmet at another driver, the war of words etc.  They know their fan base always has and always will need that storyline.  That soap opera of who's feuding with whom. So, when conflict occurs, they bring the drivers in to the office for a stern lecture and a firm, "Let's not (wink-wink) have anymore (wink-nod) of this between you two."

"Now get out there and run somebody into the wall."

[jmar]

I listen to a good bit of Cowherd. I think he's entertaining as long as you know to take a lot of what he says with a grain of salt.  On this, he's jus loss his damn mind.  The only thing I'll agree on with his take is that NASCAR does promote conflict between the drivers.  No, not publically.  They'd never say it.  But, they allow it, whether it be fights in the pits, wrecking someone out, Tony Stupid throwing his helmet at another driver, the war of words etc.  They know their fan base always has and always will need that storyline.  That soap opera of who's feuding with whom. So, when conflict occurs, they bring the drivers in to the office for a stern lecture and a firm, "Let's not (wink-wink) have anymore (wink-nod) of this between you two."

"Now get out there and run somebody into the wall."

He gets it all pretty much spot on but he keeps hammering it out till you get sick of hearing him.