Raising age limit senseless proposition for NASCAR

Think about it: Joey Logano at 17 acts like he is 27, and Tony Stewart at 36 often acts like he is 5. It sort of puts this whole NASCAR age limit nonsense in perspective.

Logano is the projected next great talent in a sport that anoints future stars faster than your average qualifying lap. His long-term outlook already has been painted a bright shade of countless wins and immense fortune, which should make things interesting when he runs a race at NASCAR’s highest levels.

This is no different from most sports financed by billions of sponsorship dollars, meaning performance dictates survival. It’s a fact that should eliminate the idea of raising the minimum age for Cup from 18 to 21, a proposed rule being considered for reasons weaker than Speedway Motorsports Inc. founder Bruton Smith’s idea of a straight answer.

Officials have said those with current plans to move up in class would not be affected, that drivers such as Logano likely would be allowed to continue their ascension without delay. Sort of a grandson clause.

But what about the next one like him, and the 10 after that and 10 after that?

Logano isn’t scheduled to be at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend, his Nationwide Series debut set for late May at Dover International. It will come one week after he turns 18, the minimum age required by NASCAR to compete in any of its three national touring series, a number for which there is no sensible reason to change. If he or others like him can’t hack it, the world — or at least North Carolina — will know.

“I feel like I’m ready,” he said. “I’m pulling my hair out waiting. I’ll have to learn a lot of the stuff as I go, but the racing part is where I’ve always been most comfortable.”

NASCAR suits should heed one of history’s memorable quotes: “And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count,” Abraham Lincoln said. “It’s the life in your years.”

Or, in this case, the laps on your car.

The concerns of NASCAR might be reasonable on face value, that driving Cup now compared to 10 years ago is vastly different in terms of handling all the responsibilities of such a position, that demands put on these human billboards in designer sunglasses are too intense for a pimply faced teenager. What bunk.

Sponsors don’t usually write enormous checks for race teams to make foolish decisions about who to drive, and the argument that those who dish out corporate funds might be wary of how a young kid might conduct himself off the track is ridiculous based on some of the childish actions we have witnessed from alleged veterans.

Logano signed with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2005, days before his 15th birthday, and last fall became the first rookie to win the NASCAR Busch East Series title. He won seven times last year, the kind of production that makes the thought of forcing such a driver to wait until May 2011 before racing Cup absurd.

“Deciding who can race should always be based on experience, on how much you have raced and won and how much teaching you have received,” said 22-year-old David Ragan, who within a year went from driving a part-time Trucks schedule to competing full time in Nationwide and Cup. “There are guys out here who are 25 and not ready for Cup and guys who are 17 that are.”

Another way of putting it: You can go from shooting a layup in high school to the NBA and from leaving your senior prom to shooting a rifle in Iraq, so interview etiquette for a race-car driver can be taught and learned over time, though some never grasp the concept anyway.

The logic for an older age limit doesn’t hold because it’s impossible to determine how mature someone 18 might be compared with another 28. Can he drive? Can he win? It’s all that matters.

It was late Friday afternoon when veteran Mark Martin spoke about the driver who won the pole for Sunday’s UAW-Dodge 400: “He is the wheel man of the series right now,” Martin said. “I can’t use the explanation I might about it in the garage, but he’s doing it. He not only goes fast, he’s taking your breath. He’s in total control.”

Las Vegas native Kyle Busch is 22 and ran his first full Cup season at 19. Imagine if he had to wait an additional two years. Raising the age limit is just a bad idea today.

If wisdom prevails, it never will be anything more.

Ed Graney’s column is published Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. He can be reached at 383-4618 or egraney@reviewjournal.com.