Its hard rooting for a team that loses. Its the antithesis of why we watch sports in the first place. Why pay money to attend a football game if you know your team is going to lose? We watch sports to make ourselves feel better, right?
Or perhaps we watch sports so we can see the human drama; the ultimate reality TV show has been in front of us the whole time. We feel the rush of victory when our team wins, and we share in their joy. Likewise, we feel the hole in our heart when our team loses. We play the game with them, vicariously, as if by sheer force of will we can help our team achieve their goal.
Then there are those who watch sports because it has handsome guys or beautiful women. I'm not a girl, so I can't really say why women watch. Having said that, I like women's tennis, and I'm not at liberty to mention why.
Perhaps its for all three reasons we watch, even participate mentally with the competitors. So why are there those who root for the underdog like me?
Because when the underdog wins, the thrill of that single victory is by far sweeter than sum total of all the favorite's wins. That's why I love cheering for the underdog.
What brought this on, you ask? Fine, I'll get the point.
Some of you know that I'm a Jamie McMurray fan, and have been since 2002 when he came onto the NASCAR scene. When he didn't win all that much, I was still loyal. He had a great season in 2003 and an even better one in 2004. He didn't win any races either of those years, yet I knew his consistency showed promise. However, he decided to move over to Roush, as it seemed a better opportunity to win races.
There were high expectations when he moved over to Roush Fenway. Even though he won two races with Roush (Pepsi 400, 2007 and the Amp Energy 500 in 2009) he was never really consistent in Roush equipment. Ultimately he was squeezed out of Roush when the 4 team limit imposed by NASCAR came into effect for the 2010 season. Nobody really knew what was in his future, and I scoured the internet consistently looking for some clue as to if he was even going to race in 2010.
Eventually the 2009 season ended and it was quietly announced that he would be joining Earnheardt Ganassi in the vacated 1 car for the 2010 season. Better than nothing, I thought. I wished him luck, and was still loyal, yet my expectations were quite low. Frankly, I'm glad they were.
Well, here it is, the beginning of the 2010 NASCAR season, and as always, they start off with the biggest race of the year, the Daytona 500. McMurray looked decent in the Budweiser shootout, but never really threatened to win. The same applied in the Gatorade duels. Everyone knew he had a decent car and the experience to win, but was overshadowed by the favorites, Harvick, Hamlin, and Biffle.
During the race, he was usually near the front, usually from 5th to 15th or so, but it was a yo-yo act pretty much until the sun started going down. Then suddenly the twilight brought his car to life.
VIDEO OF LAST 3 LAPSYou could call it a Cinderella story if you wish, a foolish fairy tale. It came true, though. McMurray defied the odds and won the Daytona 500. This is a colossal accomplishment, and one that will never be taken away.
I waited 8 years to see him win that race. It was well worth the wait.
Congratulations, Jamie!
