Whats your thoughts on this?

When Dave Blaney headed to the garage in his No. 66 Prism Motorsports Toyota after 43 laps, NASCAR officials were waiting.

Three laps earlier, Michael McDowell drove the other Prism Motorsports car to the garage. The final race report concluded that both cars had engine failures.

So why did the sanctioning body confiscate the No. 66 car before the engine had even cooled down?

“Because they can,” said Bill Henderson, crew chief of the No. 66 team and general manager for Prism Motorsports.

Henderson, who has just two cars for the team, was initially told the car will not be returned until next Saturday — long after qualifying is over. However, the primary car has the basics of racing — swaybar, shocks and springs — that the team simply can’t afford to duplicate on the backup car. Without those necessities, Henderson will not be able to race.

Is NASCAR attempting to send the message to “start and park” teams not to stink up their show?

“It’s one thing to try to race each week,” said a team manager that generally finishes among the 40-somethings who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “But I think doing two (teams) to get a check isn’t going to sit very well with NASCAR.”

NASCAR Sprint Cup director John Darby said choosing the No. 66 Toyota as “the random” car was part of “the normal inspection procedure. That particular car stood out given that Blaney qualified fifth and led three laps.

“The ‘randomness’ of inspection covers everyone in the field,” Darby said. “The 66 was a car that was very competitive. Yes, he was outside of the top 35, but he was the fastest of the group. He was fifth overall qualifying and he led the race today.

“We’ve got to make sure that as we fulfill our responsibility to our competitors to make sure that everyone is playing with the same rulebook and adhering to the same rules — and that means everybody. That car deserves a look at to make sure it’s up to start.”

Darby said the sanctioning body cannot try to “outguess the teams” to determine who the start-and-park cars are every weekend.

“You don’t know what their plans are,” Darby said. “Sometimes that might be 50 laps. Some races it might be the whole race and running a top 10. You don’t know. It’s no different than a top 35 car that blows up on Lap 2 and comes into the garage. You just don’t know those things so you apply the policies and procedures as evenly as you can to everybody in the garage.”

Henderson said if Prism Motorsports could secure sponsorship for the entire season, the teams would run every lap of every race. At Daytona, Prism attempted to qualify both cars with Dave Blaney in the No. 66 Toyota, but only McDowell in the No. 55 made the cut. The team ran 195 of the advertised 200 laps until a driveshaft broke in the car. McDowell finished 33rd and the team earned $267,495 for their effort — enough to continue to California and Las Vegas.

“We prepared ourselves all winter to race,” Henderson said. “We do everything we can to go as far as we can each week. You can’t do this out of your own pocket or you’d go broke.

“Dave did an awesome job for us this weekend. Yes, he deserves better than what we’re able to give him. I just hope we’re able to continue next weekend. If I don’t have the parts, I’ll see what I’m able to buy and what I have to whittle out of wood.”

This is what Ryan McGee said in his chat on ESPN. I think that he's right. I don't think Nascar plans to crackdown on single car operations that are trying to gather enough funds to actually race. We saw Mike Bliss in the #36 car actually finish on the lead lap at Fontana. However, when Prism Motorsports is entering multiple cars every race only to have them retire 30-50 laps in and collect their check, there is going to be an issue.

I think Prism wants to run they just dont have the money. That car is obviously fast. And they made a great point to potential sponsors as well. I promise Dave wants to race.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Phil Parsons didn't take it personally or consider it a message to start-and-park teams when NASCAR impounded the No. 66 driven by Dave Blaney following Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Auto Club Speedway.

He took it as a compliment.

Had Blaney not qualified fifth, led three laps and run in the top 10 for a while before parking 43 laps into the 250-lap event, Parsons doesn't believe the car would have been a random selection for a full teardown.

He's probably right.

"If I am them and they are me and they qualified fifth, I may want a little extra look at that car,'' said Parsons, the owner of Prism Motorsports that fields the 66 and No. 55 of Michael McDowell. "We're fairly new and haven't been around that much. There aren't many relatively new teams that are able to do stuff like that.

"We may be a victim of our own success.''

Some might question success. Both Prism cars parked early Sunday, saving the engines and other parts for this week's race at Las Vegas.

McDowell stopped 40 laps in, pocketing $79,990. Blaney picked up $80,080 for driving three more laps.

They combined for almost $9,000 more than Mark Martin got for finishing fourth.

Like it or not, that's the business model some owners have to follow until the economy lightens its grip around the sport. Parsons understands it could gives owners like him a bad name. He also understands that he's doing everything he can to stay in the sport.

"We try to race when we have money to race,'' said Parsons, who formed an alliance just before the season to get cars from Michael Waltrip Racing. "We raced Daytona the week before and [McDowell] broke a drive shaft with five laps to go. We're out there in the market place. It's just been very difficult to raise money.''

Bottom line, when the cars are sponsored Parsons will race them. When they are not he'll likely park them unless he's made enough money from days like Sunday to take a chance.

It's not an easy decision to park, particularly when a car is as competitive as Blaney's at California. But you can't reverse the decision 40 laps in just because you hope for a good finish.

"The economics of the thing, the additional cost for an engine, to use the engine for all 500 miles and the amount of tires that it takes to run the rest of the race ... it could be astronomical,'' Parsons said. "We're all racers. I know how hard it is for Dave.

"But we also want to race next week.''

One easily could argue they're not really racing if they start-and-park. But if they don't start-and-park, they're not at the track at all and have no chance to race down the line.

"We have to try to be smart and do what we can with what we have,'' Parsons said. "I'm trying to build this thing. Hopefully, deals like Dave Blaney qualifying fifth opens some eyes.''

There are some who believe Parsons is throwing the whole start-and-park philosophy in NASCAR's face by doing it with two cars, and that NASCAR tossed it back by impounding the 66.

That means Blaney, who only had two cars to start with, will have to qualify his backup at Las Vegas unless NASCAR is able to complete its inspection in Vegas in time.

That likely won't happen.

But, remember, the governing body gave the team a break by agreeing to attempt a Vegas teardown instead of hauling the car back to North Carolina as it normally does. Had that happened there's no way the organization could get the car back to Vegas -- even as a backup.

What makes this difficult on the 66 team is the backup won't be nearly as equal to the primary as might be the case on large, well-established teams.

Parsons doesn't take that personally.

"We're just trying to build a race team,'' he said, "and do it the best way we know how.''

I agree Blaney wants to race.I just question why they are trying to run 2 teams

Thats easy. Look how much $$$$$$$$ they are making.

yes I know that part but gonna be hard to attract any viable sponsorship that way

How do you figure. They have 3 crew guys. Waltrips cars from last year and qualify 3rd. Go to the back and then slowly work their way forward and are 30th before stops start, stay out and lead 3 laps. Come on they are doin somethin right. 

I'm hoping the #36 car backs up its performance at California in this week's race at LVMS.

It's got to be humiliating for a proud driver to have to start and park under team orders. It was too much for Scott Riggs last year, as he just quit because it was too much. Good for Bliss posting a 22nd on a non-restrictor plate track.

With Prism motorsports its a great way to come home with a great pay day "IF" they can put both cars in the show. Think about it they are using MWR cars. So its a win win for both teams. Prism get a car that can make the show and MWR makes money off the sale of the cars. Plus MWR gets feedback from Prism on parts they use on the cars and set up information. With no testing allowed set up information is a huge topic in the garage area.