NASCAR - Owner Bias Against "Older" Drivers

As a racing fan, I'm becoming increasingly annoyed by what appears to be a clear, blatant bias against older drivers. And by older, I mean over 35. For the past year, people have been bitching that there is a shortage of talented drivers. Really? I think Jeff Burton said it best when he said that excuse was a bunch of BS. Let's take a look at some of the drivers who currently don't have rides in Nextel Cup: Ward Burton, Ricky Craven, Todd Bodine, Bill Lester, Boris Said. What do they all have in common? They're "old" by NASCAR standards.

Funny, because I believe it was Ward Burton who won the Daytona 500 3 years ago. Ricky Craven won a few races, including that exciting one at Darlington in 2003. His problem was that he got stuck in the 32 Tide car, which has been an underperforming team for years, regardless of who's behind the wheel. Todd Bodine, last I checked, has been kicking ass in the truck series since he got a new ride last year. Bill Lester clearly has the drive and talent. NASCAR also "clais" to support diversity. So, why isn't anyone backing that up? And I don't need to go into Boris Said's long, long list of automotive achievements. So why do none of these guys have full-time Cup rides? They're old.

Interesting thing, though, about wanting young, "marketable" drivers. Because that's clearly what today's Cup team owners want. Yet they're not all they're cracked up to be half the time. Let's take a look at some of them:

• Kyle Busch - He clearly has driving talent. No question. But he's also proven to be more immature and arrogant than his big brother Kurt. So much so that we know Kellogg's and other sponsors must have been seething every time he's done something stupid on the track - which has happened more than once.
  
• Brian Vickers - Again, good driver in good equipment. Marketable? HA! Check him out in any of his commercials or, worse, on Inside Nextel Cup, where he's been inexpliably given a full-time roll. He's got the personality of a piece of sheetrock and is a terrible interviewer. In fact, I stopped watching the show altogether because he's painful to watch.
  
• Steve Hmeil - Showed promise as a good driver. Banned for life for repeated substance abuse. Buh bye.
  
• Jamie McMurray - I really like this guy, but his inability to see Victory Lane has everyone in the sport questioning whether he has "it" or not. You can't help but root for him since he's a class act all around. But He's had as many victories in Cup as the "old" drivers I mentioned above in 4 years. He's supposedly got the best equipment in the biz...
  
• Kurt Busch - You can argue either way here - as the guy has already scored a championship. But, frankly, he's a punk and if I were a sponsor, I wouldn't sponsor him if you paid me. He's displayed litle class so far.
  
• David Stremme, Reed Sorenson, J.J. Yeley, Travis Kvapil - Who? Exactly.
  

I know no car owner wants to invest in a driver only to see the guy retire in a few years or see how skills diminish. But not putting an established, proven driver in a full-time seat to build momentum, build morale, build an experienced team, etc. is ludicrous. To be quite honest, half the "old" guys I mentioned are great marketing personalities. Hell, Boris Said has a fanatical fan base! How can you not like Bill lEster's positive attitude? What about Ward Burton's dry wit? These guys have their own appeal - and they appeal to the Baby Boomer generation, which has quite a bit of disposable income, Mr. Sponsor!

It's time for an owner with a legitimate team (not a group like BDR which can't field a competitive car for anything) to step up and give a deserving driver a ride instead of looking for a "young gun" that has yet to prove himself. We shouldn't have to rely on an "old" driver to start his own team just his "old" friends have a ride.