NASCAR Awards Night Adds a �Personal� Touch to the Ceremonies

This year�s Nascar Champions Week Awards Night has seen better programming than the previous years. From being an impersonal ceremony which involved NASCAR insiders (race car drivers, crew teams and staff) and coporate sponsors, this year�s festivities focused less on the technical aspect of NASCAR and more on the personalities of the people who are behind America�s most loved motor sport.

The awards night began with a warm remembrance of the late Bill France Jr. by his good friend and former NBC News anchorman Tom Brokaw. The speech was �funny, poignant, and respectful� (quoted from ESPN Sports) as it fondly remembered one of the strongest pillars of the motor sport.

The features on the Top 10 race car drivers have also become more personal. Instead of focusing on the usual race track stats and career highlights of each driver, the short videos featured the driver and somebody or something unique and special about his life.

This gave NASCAR a more human feel and the awards night was, in fact, an easier and more moving show to watch this year.

The emphasis on moving towards a more �human� NASCAR is echoed by NASCAR Nextel Cup second � finisher Jeff Gordon. He speaks about the pressure of media scrutiny as he is quoted saying, �If you go back to the days when maybe guys were a little rowdier, I definitely think there wasn't as much media scrutiny. The repercussions weren't as broad as they are today. We rely on our sponsors more today than we ever have. Our sponsors want to be proud to have us as representatives.� Emotions are usually high before, during and after a race and he believes that drivers need to express their emotions more on track. He says �My opinion is that there is a way for all of us to continue to open up with our personalities and show ourselves a little bit more. It's almost as if sometimes I watch the sport and see some of the interviews and I think it was scripted. I blame myself at times, too. I see my own interviews and say, `Why do I always say the same thing?'�

While the awards night�s efforts to become a more personal event, is definitely evident, there is still much to be done. David Poole of The Charlotte Observer suggests that the awards night should focus more on the people who devotedly follow the sport. Fans should be given a chance to participate more actively in the awards night.

Sources: NASCAR awards show better, but not there yet , Champions Week '07: JJ, the Big Apple, Tiffany's ...and, oh, NASCAR