INSIDE TRACK: News & Notes for Monday

Jeff Gordon needed armour plating yesterday after winning at Talladega. Threats and requests from track officials weren't enough to deter some drunken morons from launching full beer cans from the stands, toward the racetrack. There's no word on how many of these weapons ended up hitting unsuspecting fans in the front rows in the backs of their heads.

These people are a black eye on the sport. NASCAR blames the situation on the actions of a few. Let's hope that's the case, but there were a lot of bombs flying out of the stands.

The next logical steps are to stop allowing people to bring their own closed containers (coolers, cans and bottles) into the stands - at least at Talladega - and to force people to buy drinks in soft cups that don't have the same risk of killing someone.

****
There was more fallout on the weekend from Tony Stewart's attack on the credibility of the sport. TV analyst Darrell Waltrip said that caution-causing debris should be put on display for all to see. NASCAR boss Mike Helton responded by saying that Waltrip used to throw stuff out of the window of his car to bring out cautions. Ouch.

****
Is Jeff Gordon reading the Inside Track Breaking News Blog? Last week, we said that Tony Stewart was turning into the Rosie O'Donnell of NASCAR. And this past weekend, Gordon was quoted as saying, "He's like the Rosie O'Donnell of NASCAR. Controversy is something that he's used to. To me, it brings a flavor to the sport."

****
Barrie Speedway will host a test session on Thursday (May 3).