The new Next Gen cars used in the NASCAR Cup Series this year have been the source of some debate between drivers throughout the season, now that there’s been ample time to get used to them.
And not everybody is an outright fan.
The Next Gen cars simply operate differently than previous NASCAR iterations, such that there are some distinct differences to how races are playing out in the Cup Series this season.
“We’re in such a weird spot where the leader has such an advantage on that track because he’s got the clean air,” Denny Hamlin remarked on the Actions Detrimental podcast after the Brickyard 400. “Having clean air allows you to run considerably faster. And we all know that these Next Gen vehicles are dreadful in traffic. They are the worst NASCAR vehicles in traffic. So when we designed them, we created a vehicle that is worse than it has ever been in traffic.
That combination has led to some interesting races in the Cup Series. And it’s not that there haven’t been any highly interesting, very compelling races in NASCAR this season.
They’ve just looked different.
Hamlin noted that he had a feeling these Next Gen cars were going to be a problem, and he has seemingly been vindicated based on his read on things.
“I asked John Probst three times before this car came out, ‘Are you sure it’s right?'” “Because you haven’t put it around any other cars during these preseason tests,” Hamlin explained. “Then, in December, before they launched the car, they put it on the track with another car and realized, ‘Oh s***, we’ve got a problem.'” Well, no kidding. You have two years to sort it out. “God, it’s extremely frustrating.” Because it is difficult to overtake in Next Gen Cup Series cars, races like the Brickyard 400, which take place on a very small circuit, have become a fight of wits more than anything else.
