Not necessarily because of the weekend pairing with Halloween and the fun and frolic that would ensue — though that happened — but because with Talladega Superspeedway's unpredictable race four races from the end, it leaves no time for drivers to make up for a bad race day — which can and usually does happen.
Though Talladega ran a caution-free race in 2002, multi-car crashes are a common occurrence because of the tight packs the cars run in, which are created by the horsepower-robbing restrictor plates used at NASCAR's two superspeedway tracks.
One wrong move by a driver can take not just himself out of the race, but the others around him who were doing everything right.
That unpredictability — which led Mark Martin to recently dub Talladega "the lotto" — can certainly be mentally taxing on drivers with title hopes on the line.
"It is if you're leading the points," said Tony Stewart, who is fourth in the Chase, 192 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson. "I don't think for us, with the situation we're in, that it's at all nerve-wracking. We're looking at it as an opportunity to gain some points and positions."
And sometimes even being asked about it is nerve-wracking.
"I'm so tired of answering this question," Johnson said. "I think you guys can all figure it out. Talladega, there's no telling, and I feel good with the other tracks after that as long as we don't have any mechanicals."
Before — while nobody wanted to wreck at Talladega — it wasn't as big a deal. Talladega was right near the middle. The Chase's lone superspeedway gave drivers six races after the checkered flag dropped to recover from any problems that might arise. Johnson certainly proved as much in the past when he went on to claim his first three championships.
In 2006, after getting caught up in a crash and finishing 24th at Talladega, he finished no worse than second in the next five races.
In 2007, Talladega was no problem as he finished second.
But in 2008, it was another average day. Johnson finished 20th, but logged two wins and finished sixth or better in four of the following five races. That push gave him his third championship, which tied him with Cale Yarbrough for the most all time.
One-third of Johnson's 15 starts at the superspeedway have ended with finishes of 30th or worse — including his most recent race there.
As if Talladega weren't risky enough, NASCAR put it right after Martinsville — probably NASCAR's second-most unpredictable race. However, this past weekend's Tums Fast Relief 500 went rather smoothly — Chasers dominated as usual, with Denny Hamlin winning and Johnson finishing second.
However, NASCAR probably can't count on getting that lucky with the race again. So what to do?
Kasey Kahne said he thinks shifting the Chase schedule would be too much trouble to fool with.
Unsurprisingly, Ryan Newman, who owns 45 career poles (second among active drivers) suggested awarding more points for qualifying.
Kurt Busch's suggestion aligns itself with how NASCAR starts the season.
"I think that (Talladega) deserves to be in the Chase," he said. "I think the most unique place to put it would be the first race — I don't think that's a bad idea.
"It definitely would kick it off with a bang."
If Kahne's thoughts that moving everything around would be too much trouble is true, stealing a page from the world of golf and giving the drivers a mulligan — the ability to drop their worst race — certainly piques Busch's interest.
"I would take Martinsville off and just not show up," he said.
When told that might leave him as the only racer who didn't make Talladega his mulligan, Busch just smiled.
"I like Talladega," he said.
