Could NASCAR fix a race?

More importantly, would it ever imagine, let alone perform, such a deed?

These issues are raised as a prelude to Saturday's Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway, where Dale Earnhardt Jr. returns as defending champion.

It was one year ago, at the track that claimed his father's life less than five months earlier, that Earhardt Jr. single-handedly authored one of last season's few feelgood stories in a campaign filled with tragedy, controversy and innuendo.

When Earnhardt Jr. won the Pepsi 400, it released a torrent of emotion not only in Victory Lane, but also throughout the grandstands and in family rooms across the country. From pit road to the cheap seats to the local watering hole, grown men and women wept. Fans who had never met the elder Earnhardt reveled in how the late champion's son had come back to conquer Daytona, summing up his accomplishment by saying, "This one was for my Dad."

It was almost as if the young Dale thumbed his nose at Daytona, in much the same way his father did after winning the Daytona 500 after 20 tries, saying, "You're not unbeatable."

If there was ever an event made for a Hollywood script, this was it.

But just as we wiped away the tears a venomous cloud descended upon NASCAR. Four of the ugliest words in sports -- "the race was fixed" -- began to be uttered by a small but vocal minority of fans who couldn't believe Earnhardt Jr. had just accomplished one of the most inspiring feats a driver -- or son -- could ever achieve.

Those same "fans" began a tarnish-filled campaign that spread through the sport quicker than rust. What's more, the momentum of such accusations built to a near-crescendo in the coming days. Even several drivers in CART and the IRL publicly chided NASCAR for allowing "the fix."

Such talk was knee-jerk reaction at its worst.

But for argument's sake, let's say NASCAR did fix last year's race as a weird testament of honor to the late Dale Earnhardt and his young successor. Let's say NASCAR stacked the deck in such a one-sided way that no other driver could claim the checkered flag but Earnhardt Jr. Let's say the fix was in.

Now, fast forward one year. In the nearly 365 days since, we have heard nary a peep out of anyone affiliated with NASCAR that Earnhardt's win was anything but on the up-and-up. You would think that someone, somewhere would have spilled the beans by now. You would think a tabloid paper would have jumped all over the topic and offered big money to anyone who would verify the rumor.

But not one word has been uttered.

There is no way NASCAR could keep such a secret for this long. There's no way the other drivers would agree to go along with something as underhanded. It wouldn't happen.

NASCAR would need hundreds of drivers, crew chiefs, team members and possibly employees, sponsors, track operators, public relations officials and media members to all keep their mouths shut. Even in a best-case scenario, that would be impossible.

The rumors of a "fix" are similar to those that popped up when Michael Jordan suddenly quit playing in the NBA. First, Jordan said he wanted to take time off, but he then quickly pursued a new career in baseball. Many rumors floated around. The most notable "report" was that NBA commissioner David Stern banned Jordan from basketball for allegedly betting on games. But because Stern did not want to lose Jordan's drawing power and the millions of dollars he generated, he banished Jordan for a year. Or so the story goes ...

It's unfortunate we live in a day and age where inspiring occurrences are second-guessed, where fact is replaced by rumor, where a normal win is turned into an abnormal litany of accusations.

Earnhardt Jr. will undoubtedly be inundated with questions this weekend about last year's event. To his credit, the Earnhardt dealt with the issue with grace and dignity then, and will probably continue to do so now, even if he has long grown tired of the subject.

One angle that has been lost in the whole "fix" imbroglio is the most obvious reason Earnhardt Jr. won last year's race: His team, Dale Earnhardt Inc., has arguably the most successful superspeedway program today. That's why Earnhardt Jr. won at Daytona last July and at Talladega last fall, and why he finished second to teammate Michael Waltrip in the same race that the elder Earnhardt was killed. It's also why Earnhardt Jr. won at Talladega in April.

That's why, when someone -- including members of the media -- spouts off about Earnhardt's win last year, one can't help but laugh in both disgust and sympathy for the person who claims to know the "true" story.

Last year's Pepsi 400 was not about fixes or cover-ups, it boils down to one thing: Earnhardt Jr. was the best driver with the best car, plain and simple. And given his superiority on superspeedways, if Earnhardt wins Saturday night, a win he desperately needs to revive a sagging season, it will hopefully put an end to last year's rumors once and for all.

Jerry Bonkowski covers NASCAR for ESPN.com.