BROWN: Edwards Proves That Nice Guys Can Finish First

Edwards’ win at Richmond over teammate Kyle Busch was one of the most memorable moments of his final full-time season. (NASCAR photo)

Edwards rattled off three wins last year, including a bump and run of teammate Kyle Busch at Richmond in April. He went about the Chase very quietly, flying underneath the radar from the rest of his competition. Then in a bit of irony, at Texas Motor Speedway last November, the skies opened up and poured over the Fort Worth area.

The race was declared official and Edwards crowned the winner. This time, instead of bumping him from the Chase, the rains advanced Edwards into the Championship 4 and gave him what would turn out to be his final chance at that elusive Sprint Cup title.

For much of the Homestead finale, Edwards was in control. He had the fastest car, lead the most laps and appeared to be on his way to a championship he had dreamt of for 13 years. But with 10 laps to go, Edwards went to defend his title lead from Joey Logano and came across Logano’s nose, spinning to the inside of the track, pounding the inside wall and flying back across the race track into oncoming traffic.

Just like that, it was over.

But in a fashion only Edwards could have, he walked from the carnage of his car to Logano’s pit box and once again showed his true class. He told Logano’s crew chief, Todd Gordon, that there were no hard feelings and they shook hands. Once again, even in bitter defeat, Edwards knew that being a good sport was more important than winning a trophy at the end of the day.

And now, it’s truly, officially all over. The man once dubbed “Cousin Carl” has called it a career from full-time racing at the peak of his career and performance.

However, none of us are Carl Edwards. We don’t know what he’s feeling and we’ll never know the true reasoning behind his decision, outside of what he said at his press conference on Wednesday.

Sure, we can all sit here and say that he “should” continue to race and that he “easily” could have been a title favorite this upcoming season. However, Edwards is at peace with his decision and is willing to walk away healthy and content.

While it probably wasn’t an easy decision to make, it was easy to see by watching and listening to him on Wednesday that he made his decision with 100% certainty and that it was the right choice for him.

This sport is a grind. Anybody who has ever worked a day in their life knows that. After a while it wears on you. Obviously, it wore on Carl enough that he felt it was time to walk away and go in a different direction.

At the end of the day, Edwards was able to do what so few are able to accomplish: be a successful stock car driver at the highest-possible level and maintain a true nice-guy persona along the way. He won a handful of races and competed for a championship or two along the way.

His Cup days were a far cry from his days racing for Mike Mittler and the MB Motorsports team. Sure, he will never have the pedigree of a Johnson or a Busch, but he has the heart of a champion on and off the track. Sometimes character defines you more than the championship rings on your fingers. It certainly defined Carl Edwards.

That nobody from Missouri sure became somebody.

Edwards may not ever be called a champion in the Cup series, but he was — and is — a champion in life, and that’s something that he can walk away proud of.

It’s proof that no matter how you come into the sport, that nice guys truly can finish first.

The opinions expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Race Chaser Online, the Performance Motorsports Network, Scorpion Radio Group, their sponsors or other contributors.

About the Writer

Rence Brown is Race Chaser Online’s West Coast-based correspondent, who currently resides in California and carries a deep passion for NASCAR, but is a follower of multiple forms of auto racing across multiple disciplines.