NASCAR Auto Club 400!

The Generation 6 NASCAR Sprint Cup race car delivered on Sunday. The race was brilliant!



Get well soon Denny. It may have been a great battle but we don't want our gladiators hurt in the fight.



You have got to love the passion these guys have for their racing.



A great NASCAR race then...

Long may the action continue!

Why I "Get" NASCAR!

V8, rear wheel drive, H-pattern gear changes...

I get that.

Two wide racing...

I get that.

Three wide racing...

I get that.

Drafting at nearly 200 mph...

I get that.

Bump drafting at nearly 200 mph...

I get that.

Do or die moves at every restart..

I get that.

Green, white, chequers...

I get that.

Drivers getting all emotional about their sport...

I get that.

"Have at it?"

I get that.

This years Gen 6 race car...

I get that.

2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup...

I GET THAT!!

Dennys Fine, No Really He Is...

So Denny Hamlin comes off of the track at Phoenix, after a back to front drive which saw him miss out on second by a whisker to the 48 car and makes a "disparaging remark" about the quality of the racing with the new Gen 6 race car.

NASCAR did not like these remarks and decided in their infinite wisdom to do something about it.

Except NASCARs infinite wisdom department was obviously busy when this decision was made and someone with no "clue" handed out a $25000 fine.

Fined $25000...

For having an opinion...

Ouch...

NASCAR desperately needs to get away from having dull, emotionless, corporate machines driving race cars and get back to humans with attitude, aggression, an edge, thats why I love having  Keselowski and Stewart as recent Champions.

Here's the same situation with me behind the big desk in the NASCAR hauler...

"Hello Denny, come in... slap...

Look... slap...

We know the Gen6 is a work in progress... slap...

But for gods sake shut up... slap...

The last thing we need to do is start talking negatively about the car... slap...

Come and talk to us about what's going on, how it is racing... slap...

But don't bad mouth the new car after two races or you surely will get a... slap..."

And the door opens, no one is any the wiser.

I have said before that it will take half the year before the sport learns the new car. Tyre compouds will change, set ups will develop, NASCAR will adjust the rules, all in the hope of improving the "show".

NASCAR, you just made yourselves look stupid, do not silence the drivers, encourage them... until they cross the line, then give them a good slapping behind closed doors and let them carry on.

The fans want personalities in the race cars not corporate entities. I think fans want drivers to have an opinion without the sponsors dictating what they can or can not say. Give me a Brad or a Tony any day, and in this case give me a Denny.

Hamlin might have a point, maybe the car has not raced as well as hoped, so far, but lets give everyone involved the chance to get it right before we ring the death bell.

Bemused, Bewildered, Confused, Or To Put It Another Way... I Don't Get It...

The 2013 Daytona 500 was... odd...

Old school drafting a la Earnhardt was back, and this is not a good thing in my opinion.

As I have documented in the past I am of the opinion that the two things the much unloved COT did well were keep drivers safe, and draft at Daytona and Talladega. In fact the cars drafted too well, and the bumpers lined up so perfectly that tandem drafting was born. We all know that NASCAR spent many hours trying to eliminate the tandem draft and to much success.

The first proper race of 2013 would show us what type of restrictor plate racing we would get with the Gen 6. The answer was the one I hoped I would not get... 90's pack racing. Drivers apparently unable to overtake without help, a lot of help. Drivers running round playing follow the leader until the very end. To be fair the early wreck didn't help, but that's not the answer to the fairly processional 500. That's not the answer, but what is the question?

Here is what is bothering me...

During and after the race Danica said she was only using part throttle while running in the draft. This alone is not surprising, in fact this is how it should be. What is surprising is the lack of overtaking by drivers with the loud pedal buried on the floor. The end of the race showed that the drivers and the Gen 6 could overtake, they just didn't. Why didn't more drivers "play" early in the race, find out what happened when they did pull out of the draft. Why didn't a few drivers get together to see what would happen? This was the Daytona 500 after all and no one looked like they wanted to win it, but they all looked scared stiff of losing it. If the drivers had that much accelerator to play with, why didn't they?

The questions are obviously... How does NASCAR make the racing better? Does NASCAR need to change anything?

The Gen 6 car is supposed to do two things, bring back manufacturer identity, and improve the racing. The first it does very well, a Ford now looks like a Ford, a Chevy looks like a Chevy, a Toyota...

The jury is still out on the second and to be fair will be for the first half of this year. Every time the cars race NASCAR, the teams and drivers, and Goodyear will learn a little bit more and by the time the Cup Series starts going back to tracks again we will see what this car can really do.

I do wonder if NASCAR will do something to the 'plate package to increase the closing rates and make it easier to overtake, but lets give NASCAR the chance to get this car right before we talk the sport we love out of business. I am not convinced much needs to change, just a few tweeks and am sure the powers that be will get the show right in the end.

While I think about it I get the feeling there are going to be two attitudes towards Danica Patrick, love or hate. Some will love her and see her as the new Earnhardt Jr, the fan favourite and darling of the sport. Others who hate her will see her as the new Earnhardt Jr, all talk and no action, a driver living off of a "gimmick", Dales is his name, Danicas her gender. I am not sure where I sit yet, I just know this, I would take pole, running up front all day, leading a lap and a top 10 finish in the first race of my rookie year thank you very much, especially when that race was the Daytona 500! The media circus around her might get a bit much at times, but as Keselowski said, she's just another racing driver so lets rate her on her performances in her rookie year, and so far shes done all right.

On a slightly different topic I do wish a speedy recovery to the fans injured at the end of the Nationwide race. Racing is dangerous, but no one want to see fans hurt supporting the sport they love!

Top 10 Reasons I Am Looking Forward to 2013

10 - More NGTC = Better BTCC

It's a bit early in the year for motorsport over here but with drivers being announced and the prospect of more NGTC cars on the grid, 2013 should build on the momentum the series gathered last year.
 

9 - New NASCAR race cars
 

8 - Grand Am Daytona Prototypes, last year before "merger"

2013 is the last year for the Grand Am Series as we know it as next year it will merge with the ALMS series. I like the Daytona Prototypes. They look good, sound good, and as last years championship and this years Rolex 24 at Daytona show, they race good too! I hope the newly merged series keep the Prototypes as the top class next year, and don't let the overly technical, expensive, irrelevant European machinery wreck their own homegrown championship!

7 - New NASCAR race cars

 

6 - Year 2 for the new Indycar Series

With a year in the books the Indycar Series should produce more good racing as hopefully more teams and drivers will be competitive in the DW12 chassis this year. Roll on Indy 500!!

5 - NASCAR Trucks on Dirt

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series... at Eldora... on dirt... What's not to look forward to?

4 - New Air Titan technology for NASCAR
 

For a sport which relies on dry weather, the last couple of NASCAR Sprint Cup seasons have been blighted by rain delays early on in the season. The most famous effect of rain was the JPM vs track drier fireball incident at last years Daytona 500. This new technology, developed by NASCAR basically blows the water off of the track so the track driers can dry the track and not the water on the track. Once the water is on the apron another machine sucks the water up. It is a bit like washing your hands and then using a hot air hand drier, the quickest way to dry your hands is to shake the water off and then put your hands under the drier. This should dramatically reduce rain delays. Simply put, in the event of rain, more racing, less waiting!
 

3 - New NASCAR race cars
 

 

2 - Mercedes and Nissan join V8Supercars

The new spec V8Supercars look great! Mercedes and Nissan have joined stalwarts Ford and Holden on the grid this year under the championships new rules package. The Mercedes is especially tasty!! I can't wait to see how they race. The only pity for me is that after years of supplying the pace car, Chrysler have not joined the grid with the 300C SRT, oh well at least the pace car is still a Mopar!

 

1 - New NASCAR race cars, have I mentioned it?

OK I am in love with the new Ford, Chevy and Toyotas in the Sprint Cup Series! You might have gathered, I am of the opinion that if a car looks right it probably is right, and these look... right! I hope the American press and the fans give NASCAR, the teams, the drivers and Goodyear the time to get the racing package right at all tracks. The prospect of 43 of these 2 and 3 wide, nose to tail at all types of race track is one I look forward to. This will be a learning year but the sport has the right goals for this car!
 

Hey Good Lookin'... Part 5...

We now have the last piece of the puzzle.

This is the new Chevrolet SS!

I am a little disappointed that the new Holden Commodore is only a facelift, a very extensive facelift mind you, of the old car meaning that while this looks very much like a mark 2 Pontiac G8 it is still a good looking car... and who am I to argue with a rear wheel drive, V8 Chevy.

Once again this shows NASCARs latest race car is doing a very good job of putting the "stock" back into stock car racing!

2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Chevy SS... or... Hey Good Lookin' Part 4

The last of next years Sprint Cup race cars has now been unveiled.

 

Next years Chevy race car will be based on the still to be unveiled new "halo" car, the rear wheel drive, V8 engined "SS". The road car will basically be an American market version of the Australian Holden Commodore.

 

The race version does look good but without seeing the road equivalent we have nothing to compare it to. It is odd that with the new NASCAR bodies putting such a huge emphasis on manufacturer identity, or to put it another way, making sure the race cars look like the road cars, that Chevrolet have decided to show us what the race car looks like, but not the road car. I certainly hope the "SS" is more successfull than the Pontiac G8 was!

 

 

 

We are starting to see more and more 2013 paint schemes now, and it has to be said, again, that the 2013 Cup cars do look good!

 

Are we there yet?

Dodge, Road Racing BS, and AJ

Get the Hell Outta Dodge… Actually… Please Don’t

I am saddened by the news that Dodge is pulling out of NASCAR racing at the end of this season. Ever since Ray Evernham brought the third of Detroit’s big three manufacturers back into the sport I have enjoyed watching the Chevy Vs. Ford Vs. Dodge battles.

As a Mopar fan I may be biased, I drive a Chrysler PTCuiser and also have a Chrysler Voyager (Dodge Caravan in the US) in the family, but the 2012 Nationwide Series Challenger and the 2013 Cup Series Charger are two good looking race cars! The new 2013 Cup Series bodies suited the Charger so well, allowing Dodge to finally race a car that looked like the bold road car. Next years grid will be worse off without the Dodge in the field.

 

AJ – What a Waste

 

I was also saddened to hear what has happened to AJ Allmendinger. I think he was one of the next “stars” of the sport, and was impressed by his performances in some average machinery over the past few years. Remember he qualified for every race while driving for Richard Petty, at a time when the team had no provisionals to fall back on! Regardless of whether what happened was an innocent mistake or something else I am sorry to see such a talented young driver jeopardise his racing career in this way. NASCAR are right to do what they have done, I just hope AJ can sort himself out and do what is necessary to get behind the wheel of a Cup car again.

Road Racing… With An Edge

I am from England, where the average racetrack turns left and right, and an oval is a small, less than quarter mile long short track (Rockingham excepted), and the racing on the ovals is not exactly mainstream. NASCAR however does not race in England. In America a race track is oval shaped and a road course is a track with right hand turns.  

Twice a year, however, NASCAR turn right and at Watkins Glen we got one hell of a finish! Should NSCAR have thrown a caution and cleaned up the oil that was being dropped on the track? The English race fan in me says yes. The oil was dangerous and NASCAR should have put out the yellow, cleaned up the track and then finished with a G-W-C. Had this scenario taken place on an oval, this is what would have happened. Thankfully this did not happen last weekend.

NASCAR let the race finish under green and in doing so gave us one of the seasons most dramatic finishes. Road racing with an edge. Car slipping and sliding, slithering and spinning, on track and off, dust flying, and a last lap lead change. What’s not to like!

Close, hard racing without the “BS” as Keselowski put it!

Well said Brad, and well done Marcos!

 

Plato Vs. Neal… Again…

 

At Watkins Glen we saw racing with no, well you know, from Keselowski and Ambrose, in the BTCC, at Snetterton, we got our fair share of, you know, from Jason Plato and Matt Neal.

Jason Plato in his MG6 was obviously holding up the following cars, including Matt Neals Honda Civic, but he was also teaching a defensive driving master class, until Neal changed the game.

With a couple of laps to go Neal went for a “gap” that was never there and pushed Plato sideways. Plato, giving another master class, this time in front wheel drive car control, gathered it all up and followed Neal to the next, the last, corner. Nobody was surprised by what happened next. Plato used Neal as a brake and shoved the both the Civic and his own MG off the track.

 

 

I must admit I did not blame Plato for retaliating. Neal’s move was stupid and uncalled for; Plato’s was payback! NASCAR would have called it “have at it” and America would have loved it! The BTCC officials may not have loved it, but they did leave it alone. They both gave and they both got, so that makes them even.

On a different note, I was pleased to see the new Motorbase NGTC Ford Focus driven by Matt Jackson doing so well on its debut! Bring on more NGTC cars and the racing can only get better. The challenge for Alan Gow and his staff is to keep the technical specs of the cars close, and to keep costs down! I wish them well!

2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Toyota Camry

Another individual looking Sprint Cup race car.

2013 is going to be a good looking year for STOCK cars!

More... 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Preview Videos

2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Ford Fusion



2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Dodge Challenger

Hey Good Lookin' part 3...

2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Ford Fusion COT "stock car" vs. Road going Ford Fusion...

2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Ford Fusion COT mark 2 "stock car"... vs. New road going Fusion...

Now we have the best indication yet of how successful NASCARs new "stock" looking bodies for the 2013 season are... the Dodge Charger. The road car is the same, and we can tell how things have moved on...

2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Dodge Charger COT "stock car" vs. Road going Dodge Charger...

2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Dodge Charger COT mark 2 "stock car"... vs. Same road going Charger...

Wow that's what I call a "STOCK CAR"!

2013 is shaping up to be the best looking year for the NASCAR Cup Series in a long time!

What's in store for the next generation Chevrolet and Toyota??

Hey Good Lookin' (part 1) - http://jameswright42.blogspot.com/2012/01/hey-good-lookin.html

I Couldn't Help But Wonder - http://jameswright42.blogspot.com/2012/02/i-couldnt-help-but-wonder.html

Hey Good Lookin' (part 2) - http://jameswright42.blogspot.com/2012/02/hey-good-lookin-part-2-not-necessarily.html

Hey Good Lookin'

2013 NASCAR Ford Fusion...

When the COT was introduced I liked the idea. I liked the "non twisted" bodywork. I liked the square, upright stance that was a million miles away from the squashed bullet shape of the old cars. Most NASCAR fans hated the "styling" of the rear wing and the splitter though.

Bit by bit NASCAR have developed the COT. The rear wing has been replaced by an old fashioned spoiler and the unsubtle front has been replaced by a smoother look.

Then came COT mark 2, the Nationwide car. More manufacturer identity, better balanced, good looking.

Now comes the first look at COT mark 3... the 2013 Cup car.

With a Ford Fusion body we can now get an idea of what NASCAR is doing with the Cup car for next season. Looking lower and wider than the current car, with a very swoopy roof line and more shape to the sides, it is another racey, good looking car.

If NASCAR can allow the manufacturers this much freedom, this much identity... and keep the aerodynamic balance between the different body styles... they are on to a winner!

I like the overall look and the amount of Fusion detail work in the body. They might be stickers but it looks like the road car. I even like the hole for the rear licence plate!

We all know NASCAR cars have not been "stock" for quite some time but with this car they just got a whole lot closer!