Domination is Good

While I sit here and watch the race season start to ramp up and some of the other sports either wind down for the year or just get started, I thought to myself why domination in any sport or in life is a good thing. 

Last night (Tuesday) the UConn Women's Basketball team won their 4th straight NCAA Title. Now some may think that this is bad for the sport, while I tend to think the exact opposite of that. Look at other teams or people that have been dominate in what they do. The Yankees, love them or hate them, they have far and away the most titles in Baseball history. The Steelers, the Blackhawks, the Bulls, and the list goes on. 

What does this have to do with drag racing or motorsports in general you may ask though. Well it's really pretty simple. Who comes to mind when you think of dominance in the modern era of drag racing? The first answer out of most people's mouth will be John Force. He is a 16x World Champion in NHRA Nitro Funny Cars. While some said during his run, that it was bad for the sport, I looked at it as an opportunity. An opportunity to bring in more sponsors, more fans, more interest in the sport. Yes John Force has an amazing character about him, which certainly helps, but what his does gets noticed as well. 

You don't have to look all the way up to John Force to find dominance either. I remember how dominate Charlie Booze was in the NMRA & NMCA for a time. People complained that was bad for the sport, yet guess what, people talked about how dominate he was. If you look at people that dominate what they do, they all have something in common, they have the drive to succeed, the team to help them succeed, and the willingness to get back up if they fail. 

Do you think that John Force, Bob Glidden, Charlie Booze, Tim Lynch, Keith Berry, and others never failed? Their failures is what made them push the envelope of greatness. It makes them work harder, stay up later, and keep pushing. Dominance is what most strive for, but many don't put the right system in place to succeed. 

Staying on this exact topic. Do you know why Donald Long is one of the best promoters in Drag Racing? Or for that Matter Mike Hill? It's because they push and hustle to be the best. They aren't complacent with second. They want to be the best and it shows. There are reasons that their races fill stands and bring in so many cars. It's because their week starts at 40 hours, not ends at 40 hours. They have a system in place for success. Donald has people like Lenco Jim, Troy Moore, Billy Driscoll, and others that help him succeed. Could he do it all on his own? There is a chance that he could, but why would he when he strives to be the best and has the opportunity to use all the tools out there. 

Nobody ever strives to be average. We strive to be more successful than our parents were. We strive to get better grades, make more money, have better jobs, etc. We strive to be the people that within our industry are what we consider class leaders. If you are a drag racing photographer, chances are you strive to be like Mark Rebilas or Roger Richards. If you are in the news and publishing world (in motorsports) you strive to be like Wes Buck. If you are tuner you strive to be like Petty or Ledford. You strive for that dominance. That is why dominance and being dominate is great. 

Dominance also creates competition. Sure, maybe you want to just make the field, but in actuality, don't you want to be the car that everyone wants to beat? Don't you go out there and strive to be the best? You think that Top Fuel drivers like Antron Brown don't strive everyday to be able to dominate the competition? 

So next time you start to think that there is something wrong with being dominate or striving for dominance look at some of the people in your field of work, whether it be drag racing or burger flipping and that one person who is at the top, the elite one will become glaringly obvious. When you can no longer find the dominate one...it's because you have become the dominate one!