While I cant stand the way it was presented in TPM the idea of pod racing fits into the Star Wars universe well.
It would have been better if it was more firmly rooted into the story.
This historical event could have been a useful guide into working the concept into a more serious storyline :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nika_riots
In fact Belisarius would make a great template for a Last Days of the Republic Jedi :