NASCAR Pole Position - 2022 Preview

NEXT GEN

THE NEXT GENERATION IS HERE

MUCH-ANTICIPATED NEW CAR READY TO RACE BY JARED TURNER Say hello to the Next Generation – the Next Generation NASCAR Cup Series car, that is. When the green flag waves on the 2022 Cup Series season, the cars on the race track will look and drive differently than the ones fans are accustomed to seeing. And that’s not a bad thing. For years, followers of the sport have clamored to see race cars that more closely resemble the ones they might buy at a dealership or find sitting in traffic. Numerous drivers have meanwhile expressed a desire to exert greater influence over how their car handles, with aerodynamics becoming less of a factor. The Next Generation car – otherwise known as the Next Gen – checks both of these boxes and a whole lot more. “It looks like you can drive it down the road,” 2018 Cup Series champ Joey Logano said. “The cops might pull you over, but the car has the same look.” Along with a Ford looking more like a showroom Ford, and a Toyota looking more like a showroom Toyota, etc., the Next Gen car is significantly harder to drive than its predecessor. That’s because the body is fully symmetrical, which reduces aerodynamic forces and puts a premium on car setup and driver control. Odd as it might sound, most competitors want to drive a car that slips and slides a bit through the turns, because it gives them a better opportunity to showcase their skills. “It’s definitely fun for the drivers,” Hendrick Motorsports wheelman William Byron said after turning laps in the Next Gen car during a December test at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “There’s a lot more going on, you’re sweating a little bit more, or at least I was working harder. You’ve got more brake usage, more throttle usage, more of a difference I feel like I’m making.”

Originally set to debut in 2021, the Next Generation car had its release date pushed back a year because of scheduling challenges related to COVID-19. By the time the 2022 season starts, drivers will have tested the car at more than a half dozen tracks – including Daytona International Speedway, where the Next Gen will turn it first official laps during Speedweeks. But even with all the testing and positive feedback about the new model, it’s hard to predict how things will play out when 40 cars are on the track at the same time. Test sessions with the Next Gen car have featured minimal pack racing, with drivers running mostly single file. “Yeah, I mean, who knows?” Joe Gibbs Racing driver and 23XI Racing co-owner Denny Hamlin said. “I do not know exactly what to expect until I get out on a race track and feel this car out. I love change. Throw something different. Cocky drivers believe we’re better than everyone else, and we’re going to adapt quicker than everyone else, and that’s what I believe.”

6 KEY FEATURES OF THE NEXT GEN CAR GRIP

APPEARANCE

SHIFTING

THE NEXT GEN TENDS TO AIR ON THE LOOSE

“THE CARS LOOK PHENOMENAL,”

A NEW TRANSAXLE COMBINES THE

side. Just ask Tyler Reddick, one of multiple drivers who

NASCAR President Steve Phelps said. “If

transmission and rear gears into one package,

had an incident during testing. “The cars are on edge,

you think about this car and its styling, it is a

with an eye on the future – the ability to

which is a good thing,” Reddick said. “There’s more

souped-up Camaro, it’s a souped-up Mustang,

incorporate electrification. “The shifting is

mechanical grip in the car, less aerodynamic grip, so

and it’s a souped-up Camry. That’s what they

different,” said Denny Hamlin, comparing the Next

you gotta keep it straight, and you gotta keep the tires

are. It looks like you’ve gone to some type of

Gen car to its Gen-6 predecessor that drivers have

happy. You can’t get completely sideways or as sideways

outfit that’s taken a regular car and just made

raced the last nine years. “I’m going to need to

as we used to in years past with the other cars.”

it look incredibly sporty.”

adapt on road courses to that side of things.”

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POLE POSITION 2022

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