MONTREAL -- It took a while to get going, but when it did, all hell broke loose.
After about 70 laps of relative calm, NASCAR's Busch Series debut in Canada on Saturday turned into the fender-banging, paint-trading, metal-twisting, car-spinning free-for-all the fans came to cheer.
There's little doubt that the late-race, no-holds-barred battle between Robby Gordon and Marcos Ambrose in the Busch NAPA Auto Parts 200 will help draw fans in 2008. The chain of events began with four laps to go when Ambrose spun Gordon out of the lead just as a caution flag came out.
Gordon got back onto the track and raced through the slowed field to confront the rookie and knocked the Australian out of contention once the race went green.
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"I knew that he was going to try and hit me," Ambrose said after the race. "We were talking whether we should pull over and let him pass, but you know, I've got two laps to go and I'm trying to win the race."
Gordon continued and crossed the finish line first, despite being ordered to pull off the track. While Kevin Harvick was declared the winner, Gordon did a couple of doughnuts before staging a mock victory celebration almost next to the podium.
"I won the race," Gordon told reporters after climbing from the car. "We worked really hard on our road course program and we came here to win the race, and that's what we did."
NASCAR disagreed and classified Gordon 18th in Montreal and barred him from the Nextel Cup race in Long Pond, Pa., yesterday.
The series may not have enjoyed Gordon's antics, but the 68,150 spectators lapped it up.
"Judging by the horns going off and the hollering in the stand, the fans loved it," said Ron Fellows of Mississauga, who finished fourth. "The fans here probably haven't seen that much passing going on at this track in 20 years."
In all, 128,473 took in the two days of action. Many of those bought $30 general admission tickets, but the organizers did not provide a breakdown of the sales.
While many felt stock cars would offend Montreal's more sophisticated Formula One palate, some Grand Prix regulars decided to give the fendered behemoths a try.
Dave North of Ottawa skipped the Grand Prix of Canada in June to buy a Busch Series grandstand ticket for less than half the price.
"My only complaint as an F1 fan is too many yellows and the time taken to clear them away," he said. "Apart from that, the actual racing is just as good, if not better."
But those thinking a Busch race will lead to NASCAR's top Nextel Cup Series coming to Canada might have a long wait.
"That's not our decision, it's NASCAR's, obviously," race promoter Normand Legault said. "We were never promised a Cup race. We have a Busch race and it's a great product."
While NASCAR chairman Brian France insists the series is committed to Canada, there's no plan to stage a Cup race outside the United States. NASCAR will not axe a U.S. race to add one in Canada.
Another challenge is Canada's lack of facilities to handle NASCAR's 43 teams and its support races.
While the Cup may be a long way off, there's talk of a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Calgary, possibly tied to the city's Stampede, and rumours of a NASCAR event in the Toronto area, perhaps spearheaded by Molson.
"We look at a market like Ontario and it's the fifth largest in North America and aside from being a great opportunity, how do you not look at it?" said NASCAR's international director, Robbie Weiss.
"A long-term strategy will take time, but let's see where this goes. But I think we will continue to look at ways to bring the sport closer to fans across the country."
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