It used to be road racing was a fairly calm exercise in precision driving.
Not anymore.
When NASCAR instituted the combination of double-file restarts and the "boys have at it" policy, it seems as though the 1.99-mile, 12-turn Sonoma Raceway replaced Bristol as the most action-packed track on the circuit.
All hell tends to break loose, especially in the final laps. And drivers get ticked off about it in the process.
"I think, ever since double-file restarts came about, aggression at Sonoma has gone up a lot," said Kyle Busch, a past winner here. "You have these cautions that come late in the going and cautions breed cautions - especially on a road course and especially with double-file restarts. It just seems to be out of control there. You're trying to take everything you can get and all the positions you can because it's coming down to crunch time."
"I love racing there, but it's a short-track road course," Brian Vickers of the Sonoma circuit. "I think the pros and cons come along with that. You're almost inevitably going to come out of there mad at someone and someone mad at you, and you just hope it's not too many and they're not too mad."
Vickers should know. He was half of one of the most infamous dust ups at Sonoma, when he and Tony Stewart took turns wrecking each other two years ago.
Even four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon earned the wrath of his fellow drivers when he hit everything but Power Ball here in 2010 - and Gordon has five victories at Sonoma, most of any driver.
So expect to see some sheetmetal flying and some tempers smoking on Sunday.
"It's just that's what the fans show up for, right" said Vickers. "It's that strong and entertaining competition, but it's such a short track, and the field is so tightly packed and so competitive, you're inevitably going to rub fenders with somebody."
