If there was a defining image for the first half of the Winston Cup season, it was the cars of Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch slamming together door to door as they raced to the checkered flag at Darlington Raceway in March. Craven's narrow victory-by two-thousandths of a second-symbolized the parity that has enveloped the sport in recent seasons.
Ricky Craven's narrow victory...
Ricky Craven's narrow victory over Kurt Busch at Darlington was one of several exciting finishes in the first half of the season.
While NASCAR's goal of making all things equal among competitors had no clearer symbol than the Pontiac of Craven and the Chevrolet of Busch battling for the victory, the thrills didn't stop there.
Overall, on-track action was compelling and plentiful in the first half of the season, and that's the ultimate gauge of whether NASCAR's seemingly constant tinkering of the rules-think common templates-is enhancing the sport.
NASCAR is closer than ever to having a common body design for all manufacturers, with 18 of the sanctioning body's 34 templates being identical among makes. The results have been positive in 2003, with some of the closest, most exciting racing in years. No single driver is dominating the series now, at least not at the rate Jeff Gordon piled up wins in the mid-1990s.
Now, let's take a look at some highs and lows from the season's first half.