First Time, Long Time With Sirius NASCAR Radio's Dave Moody

Moody Hosts NASCAR Radio's "Sirius Speedway"

This week has been a busy one for NASCAR. As the Chase for the Sprint Cup edges closer toward the finish, NASCAR gears up for its end-of-year events, and Chair & CEO Brian France has been outspoken on a number of topics. Then there are the ever-present Danica Patrick rumors. Staff writer Preston Bounds discussed some of these issues with Dave Moody, who hosts "Sirius Speedway" on Sirius NASCAR Radio weekdays from 3:00-7:00pm ET.

Q: Brian France has gone on record defending the level of competition in the Chase and the sport in general. Do listeners believe the current format is good or bad for competition?

Moody: The verdict is still split, to some degree. We talk about it a lot. The fans always want it to be better, but nobody remembers the bad old days. It's always the good old days. ... I think the vast majority of our listeners are of the opinion that the competition is at least as good as it's ever been.

Q: With ratings down for many races this season, do you get a lot of calls from people saying they are not going to watch a given race or series?

Moody: We get less of that because we're NASCAR Radio. If people aren't interested in watching or listening to the races, they're probably not listening to our channel either. There is some sentiment out there that there are too many of the cookie-cutter mile-and-a-half tracks, and that those are not as competitive as they should be.

Q: How do listeners feel about NASCAR moving to more standard start times for the Sprint Cup next season?

Moody: Very few things on our channel are met with universal sentiment in one direction or another, but when NASCAR announced that, it was universally hailed as something that's long overdue. We've heard that not knowing where the race is going to be on or what time it's going to be on had really bothered people.

Q: Has Brian France's call for less media criticism resulted in fans and media meeting him halfway, or has it drawn out even more criticism?

Moody: We haven't talked about it a whole lot. And I didn't really hear Brian France say he wanted less criticism. I heard him say we're a little different than other sports because if you are broadcasting the NFL on NBC, you don't talk down the sport. I think NASCAR has always been pretty open to criticism. And Brian France, probably to a larger extent than either his father or his grandfather, does listen to the criticism.

Q: Do your listeners think Danica Patrick would be good for NASCAR?

Moody: Predominantly, no. Rightly or wrongly, the consensus among our listeners is that she hasn't paid her dues or proven herself to be a consistent winner in IndyCar. Among our fans, at least, she seems to be more of a brand than a racer, and a lot of that goes back to the way she has marketed herself.

Q: Do your listeners care where the Sprint Cup year-end banquet is held? Is the move to Vegas being received positively?

Moody: I think they like the move, but the average listeners' attitude toward the banquet is, "We can't go to the banquet, so who cares?" The banquet is something you watch on TV.