There was a 19-car wreck at the other restrictor plate track, Daytona, in February. Boycott has become a garage buzzword, but Labonte said he isn't leading one, and he expects all drivers to show up. I think the drivers need a union. Other sports have them. If a baseball player, who has only to worry about getting athlete's foot, has a say-so in his game, then a man who risks his life should have a voice in his.
Timing is everything.
Even the people who know little about stock car racing know the sport's No. 1 star, Dale Earnhardt, was killed, and the public likely would be sympathetic to the formation of a union. He ran the Talladega 500, the track's inaugural race, without the stars, and the PDA vanished. It wouldn't be that simple today. The drivers would have more leverage. Team sponsors are more vital to success than they were in 69.