Racing Wrap: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly.

After far fewer miles than expected, a Memorial Day weekend of motor sports is over. Here's the officially unofficial report card.

THE GOOD:
Five weeks ago, Helio Castroneves was staring down a big barrel of tax evasion trouble. Trouble that he, his fans, and his business manager (and sister) Kati hoped he could overcome. In the end, Helio was acquitted on six federal counts; freed after a hung jury on one other; and returned to racing with a solid finish at Long Beach.
Sunday, in the only really good moment at the vaunted Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Helio Castroneves won his third 500-mile race. Even people who don't follow open-wheel racing with great regularity had to love this story. The 300,000 in attendance were nearly universal in their approval; and Helio's post-race interviews elicited more than a few tears...and more than his own. Sometimes good guys do finish first.

Also good: Michael Waltrip Racing, which I summarily buried at least twice as the NASCAR season began, got its first win late Monday when the rain-delayed and shortened Coca Cola 600 went to David Reutimann. Reutimann and his car owner stood outside in a driving Charlotte rainstorm, sans umbrella, surgically attached to the tarped 00 Toyota Camry for the final two-plus hour rain delay.

THE BAD:
As big time sporting events go, this years Indy 500...in a word...wrecked.

Indy is the only big time race on the IndyCar circuit that gets any level of national mainstream attention. It should deliver excitement and action befitting an event called "The Greatest Spectacle In Racing." This years race, with a false start, minimal passing, and what Speed TV's
Robin Miller called "no rhythm" owing to a caution every 21 laps (average), was only saved as an afterthought by Castroneves' win.

NASCAR didn't have it much better. What was to have been stock car racing's longest night turned into "The 27 Hours Of Charlotte." The Coke 600 never turned a lap Sunday evening, and was rained shortened Monday...only after a ponderous two-plus hour rain delay at the end. The best racing in Charlotte at the weekend might have been the World Of Outlaws races at the dirt track next to Lowe's Motor Speedway.

THE UGLY:
Aside from NASCAR taking it's sweet time getting to the end of the race Monday afternoon, there's then the case of a conversation between Tony Stewart and the aforementioned Reutimann. Stewart's counsel centered around what he considered aggressive early-race behavior by Reutimann, who eventually won the rain...er, race. The chat, on pit road during the rain delay, was driver to driver expressing thoughts to each other...normal behavior, and otherwise innocuous until one of Reutimann's crewmen interjected himself. Replays showed Smoke jawing with the taller, bald crewman (think: lead singer of Midnight Oil) and Reutimann ultimately getting Tony to walk off. Moments later, in explaining the conversation to Fox's Steve Byrnes, Stewart labeled the crew member "Billy Bad Butt" (probably the nicer version of what we're used to from Tony in his pre-owner days). Jeff Hammond buried the crew guy, who got his own graphic twice later on in the broadcast. Something from nothing, and probably would not have been noticed had Fox not had to fill four hours of a seven hour raceday with something other than racing.

At Indy, Tony Kanaan got wrecked. Vitor Meira got burned. And the number of bruises and bumps was just silly. The Greatest Spectacle became the Big Pain. Tony George has got to ask himself: is the danger really worth it?