Will pothole reveal cracks in NASCAR's armor?

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.

Now, like a candidate on election night, NASCAR awaits the results.

Will the nearly 2-1/2-hour pothole delay during Sunday's Daytona 500 turn away some fans? Or will they forgive and forget after a frantic finish that saw Jamie McMurray narrowly edge Dale Earnhardt Jr. to the checkered flag?

The early returns are mixed. Fox announced Monday that 29.8 million people watched at least some part of the race - up 14 percent from 2009. But the overnight ratings for the race portion of the broadcast - not counting the long delay for track repairs - were down from 9.2 a year ago to 7.7. The Norfolk market was up 7 percent to a 12.2 rating.

Although those TV ratings reveal how many watched a race that finished more than six hours after it began, the most telling numbers could come later. Will there be a further drop-off in TV viewership for upcoming Sprint Cup races? Will as many fans buy Daytona tickets next time around?

Indianapolis Motor Speedway saw attendance for its Cup race decline an estimated 25 percent in 2009, a year after the tire debacle there.

Daytona's crowd dwindled as the delays progressed Sunday. McMurray's father even left the track during the second break, not wanting to drive his motorcycle at night when the race would end. He watched from a sports bar 30 minutes away as his son scored his first Daytona 500 victory.

That a pothole developed 120 laps into the race between turns 1 and 2 was unfortunate. That it took so long to repair, some will say, is inexcusable.

Two attempts to patch the hole, which originally measured 9x15 inches and was 2 inches deep, failed because of the unseasonably cool temperatures, said Robin Braig, the track's president. NASCAR chairman Brian France called the delay "disappointing."

NASCAR stopped the race a second time about 40 laps later because the hole re-emerged and was twice as large. Track officials patched it with Bondo, an auto body repair product. NASCAR officials requested the Cup teams' supply of Bondo in case the hole needed further repair. That proved unnecessary.

NASCAR finished the race - after two attempts to do so under green - before any more problems developed.

The extended finish was the result of a rule change series officials made last week. The previous rule had been to make one attempt to finish under green, but when the Budweiser Shootout ended under caution, series officials realized something needed to be done to add buzz to the racing.

The result: A bold move that calls for three attempts to finish under green.

Without that rules change, the 500 would have ended under caution, leaving fans who waited out the long delays grumbling at that type of finish. That, in turn, would have stifled hopes of building positive momentum into the season.

Sunday's race still will leave some fans angry, but others will talk about the finish and how McMurray held off Earnhardt. Both made aggressive moves, with Earnhardt going from 10th to second in the final two laps.

NASCAR's decision to alter the rules is a sign France is willing to continue making more changes as need arises.

Questioned for his limited appearances at the track, France met with every team in the offseason, discussing the state of the sport. With ideas from those meetings and elsewhere, NASCAR mandated a larger restrictor plate, a new rear shock package and gave drivers more latitude in bump drafting. Later this spring, the spoiler will replace the rear wing.

Without such changes, fans might not have seen 52 lead changes among a record 21 different drivers Sunday.

"In my career, I haven't seen this kind of shift in thinking out of the leadership of NASCAR," said ESPN broadcaster Andy Petree, a former crew chief and car owner. "I think that they're realizing who to listen to. Right now, they need to be listening to the fans. The fans are saying what they like and don't like about the sport, and NASCAR is listening."

That and figuring out its pothole issues.