Apr 26 2008
SAID WHAT???!!!
Saidhead60 has made several guest appearances, always with a direct message and a refreshing point of view. This is her first post of the current NASCAR season…welcome back.
Never judge a man until you’ve walked a mile in his shoes – or in this case, drove a mile in his car! Maybe ‘fair weather fans’ can judge Boris Said’s entire career reputation by one incident – but, I refuse to turn against the guy – yet. Of course, the ‘incident’ in question is the Marcos Ambrose/Boris Said ‘row’ during last weekend’s road race in Mexico City.
After reading MANY post-race comments on NASCAR-related web forums, I was surprised by how many are suddenly ‘anti-Said’. It seems a good percentage of race fans, and at least one RacingOne journalist, are shocked by Said’s “dangerous threats” and “childish behavior.” The words ‘classless’, ‘whining,’ and ‘baby’ popped-up more than once.
Now, I’m NOT saying I think Boris is right or wrong in this situation. What I am saying is…I can understand where he’s coming from. Boris obviously feel strongly that Ambrose took him out intentionally. And, because Boris has never struck me as a driver who blames his bad luck or crappy performances on others – I have to ask myself, “Why would he start now?”
Speculation on the boards is rampant. Maybe something went down between the two drivers at some point before the race even began…and it’s been building up? Maybe it had NOTHING to do with racing at all. Maybe years of Said’s frustrations finally came to a head or Ambrose was feeling especially desperate.
Let’s face it. Emotions run high when time’s running out. And maybe….just maybe, the two of them are ‘milking’ the whole thing now to get some extra media hype – and we’re all suckers, being manipulated for ratings and sponsors.
Like everyone else, all I can do is speculate – but it seems ‘pride’ and ‘respect’ are at the heart of the matter here. Boris seems to hold himself to a certain professional standard in racing. He apparently held Ambrose to the same standard – and then felt betrayed when Ambrose didn’t live up to it.
Did Ambrose intentionally take out Boris? Only Ambrose knows for sure. He says he didn’t – but Boris sure thinks he did.
Which takes us to the whole NASCAR NOW fiasco last Monday.
Personally, I think Ambrose chose the wrong forum to issue a legitimate apology. It would have been much better to hash it all out privately – through a personal meeting or telephone call, FIRST – rather than put Boris on the spot. Sure, Marcos was irresistible. (The Said Head wig was an especially nice touch). He apologized profusely, proclaimed his own respect for Boris, and declared himself a Said fan – all in front of the cameras and the country.
I’m thinking he figured Boris would HAVE to accept his apology on national TV – especially on a show Boris works for. It would have been the easy way out for Boris. But, he didn’t opt for that. Instead, Boris stuck to his convictions. And, when Ambrose didn’t get the response he expected from Boris – the gloves (or in this case, the wig) came off – and Ambrose came out fighting.
The whole thing reminded me of some poor, pathetic guy proposing to his girlfriend on a stadium Jumbo-tron – only to have her turn him down in front of thousands of strangers. It was awkward at best. And, in both cases, there are no happy endings.
The truth is…talk is cheap. The words “I’m sorry” and “respect” (with or without a wig) don’t make things better. Boris played fair and where did it get him? A front-row seat on the sidelines, to watch the guy he believed ‘cheap-shotted’ him, get the glory and the cash. Who WOULDN’T be bitter over that? And, who still wouldn’t be stinging just 24 hours later?
At this point, I can totally understand and defend what Boris has done. But what I can’t defend is the whole ‘retaliation’ thing. I seriously hope he re-thinks that one. Wrecking another team’s car has the potential of hurting lots of people. He risks fines…suspension…damaging his own car again…possibly knocking his team out of another race…ruining his
reputation…and worst of all, possibly harming himself or other drivers.
I hope Boris is man enough to take the “high road” all the way to the finish line. Revenge is never as sweet (or respected) as victory.
