NASCAR’s Next Gen car has now competed on 11 different tracks, if you include the temporary course built in the L.A. Coliseum.
But one of its more interesting tests comes this weekend as the NASCAR Cup Series makes its only trip of the season to Dover Motor Speedway.
Dover will be the first time that the car has competed on an intermediate oval with significant banking with its normal rules package.
While it’s gotten workouts at the 2-mile Auto Club Speedway (14-degree banking) and Las Vegas Motor Speedway (20 degrees), neither compare to the “Monster Mile’s” 24-degree banking.
Via testing for the Next Gen in the last year, only a few Cup drivers have gotten to experience what Dover will be like with the new car.
Among them was Ross Chastain, the winner of last weekend’s race at Talladega Superspeedway.
The test he was part of had only three cars involved, one for each manufacturer.
“Very challenging just to make laps,” Chastain said. “That was early on in this car. We’ve been a lot better but yeah, it was just hard just to make a lap.”
The Trackhouse Racing driver described how the car races on the 1-mile track as behaving like “a really late in the run, ill-handling Xfinity car, but without the skew, so it doesn’t go sideways into the corner with the track bar and the truck arm skew. … You just have to really be within your means.”
When the Next Gen car raced at Auto Club Speedway and Las Vegas, there were multiple one-car wrecks and spins, far more than typically seen in the recent past with the old car.
Could Dover see more of the same?
“Just wrecking by yourself? Yes, absolutely,” Chastain said.
Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron believes Dover will be “eye opening” with the new car.
“I’d say every week is a new week (with the car). It really is,” Byron said at Talladega. “We look at our old notes for balance and things like that, but even that’s kind of changed. I think Dover’s going to be eye opening to see how this car gets around Dover, because you know it has way less downforce. Downforce is key at Dover. I’m very interested to see how that feels and how that plays out, because I don’t know what to expect. Darlington it sounds like is really difficult with this car. Lots of spins and wall contact just by yourself, so I am sure you guys will see a great race the next few weeks.”
One driver who is very excited about getting to Dover is Daytona 500 winner Austin Cindric.
The Team Penske driver told SPEED SPORT it’s one of his “favorite racetracks.
“I don’t care if it’s a single-file line on the bottom and we don’t put any rubber down and it’s just the most boring race ever. I am just so looking forward to going there. Because I love that racetrack. I love making laps there. I wish every race fan could experience what it feels like to ride around Dover. I’d say that’s my favorite race track to just cut a lap at on the schedule.”
Keyword: Next Gen Car At Dover Could Be ‘Eye Opening’