What desire is there to sit for three, four or even five hours watching a NASCAR race? The answer is easy when it’s a race like this year’s Ambetter 400 Atlanta. The racing was on the edge throughout, it was filled with drama and capped off by a three-wide photo-finish for the win. And it was won by one of the most liked drivers of the sport. It’s a bit tougher to answer when it’s a snooze-fest of a race, or it seems like a driver practically has the win all but secured. Like Justin Allgaier in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Phoenix. Why I keep watching these races is because there’s always the unknown. And like Allgaier can attest, a thrilling, or heartbreaking moment, could always just be right around the edge.

Allgaier had a cushy three-second lead with just five laps to go in the race. He looked primed to run away with the win. However, Allgaier’s left rear tire blew entering Turn 1. He spun, crashed into the wall, and was out of the race.

The storyline changed. The script was flipped. It was an all-new race after it looked like the end of the story had already been written.

The unknowns are what keep NASCAR fans, and all motorsports/sports fans, coming back for more week after week.

It’s the same reason there are casual college basketball fans who suddenly become obsessed with the sport each March. We can expect a No. 1 seed to thrash a No. 16 seed. But there’s always a chance they don’t. Just last year we were treated to Farleigh Dickinson University, a No. 16 seed, defeating Purdue. It was just the second time such a feat had ever been accomplished.

Even if that doesn’t happen, there are still a bevy of potential upsets — the Cinderella runs and the one-time overachieving Davids downing Goliath.

It’s why I am a season ticket holder for the Atlanta Gladiators ECHL hockey team despite them (currently) being the worse team in the league. My fandom causes me a lot of grief. But when they do win, I’m overjoyed. I’m sure Seattle Mariners fans can relate.

But it isn’t just sports. We humans seem to have an innate desire to see a story culminate.

The “unknowns” are why my wife chooses to read the 87^th book in a fiction series despite being generally tired of the premise. She still wants to know how everything ends. She is invested in the characters and their journeys. There are those within those storylines that are heroes, villains, proverbial underdogs or those she just wants to see succeed. She wants to see how things turn out for all of them.

And if it takes an unexpected turn, well, all the better.

The unknowns are why I continue to watch a TV series that, frankly, has run its course for me. There are two seasons left, and though it’s not providing the same entertainment as it once did, I need to know how things end.

The action, the ending, the characters, the storylines, the rivalries, the twists, the surprises, the underdogs overcoming and the juggernauts dominating — it’s why I watch NASCAR each week.