NASCAR Racer Ned Jarrett - Too Close?

"But then, like in every sport, you've got to have your Tiger Woods and your Jeff Gordons and these kind of people," Childress says. "Then you've also got to have your Kevin Harvicks and Robby Gordons and these type of guys we have with us, who are out there today building a following."

Parity, in whatever form, has not come without a price, though. There is concern that Winston Cup competition, with cookie-cutter cars not only performing the same but looking the same as well, has gotten so close that it lacks the definition and flavor found in previous decades. There is also concern that too much emphasis on technology has shifted Victory Lane's bottom line from driver talent to other factors, such as aerodynamics, pit stops, or wherever else the slightest advantage can be gained.

"I am concerned about the direction we're headed in as far as the aerodynamics and downforce," says Jarrett. "I believe if the cars were running at slower speeds at all racetracks we would see even better racing than we're seeing today. And I think one thing that's helped to take that away is the aerodynamics, because the cars have so much downforce on them. When one car gets up behind another it's difficult to pass. I feel that we need to put a bit more of it back in the drivers' hands."

Childress says the guy behind the wheel is still the deciding factor, however. "A driver can be a driver, but to be a winning driver they still have to have that desire and the will to win," he says. "You've got a lot of guys who want to win, but when it gets down to the end of the day they can't pull it off. So the drivers are still important."

Winners each year during the modern era of Winston Cup, when the number of races was reduced to approximately 30 per season: