NASCAR Weekly: Manufacturers to unveil their Next Gen cars on May 5
NASCAR will unveil the Next Gen cars from manufacturers Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota on May 5 – Bristol dirt returns to the 2022 calendar
NASCAR Cup Series (By: André Wiegold)
Starting with the 2022 season, NASCAR has announced that in the Next Gen era , manufacturers will once again have more freedom to design the look of their cars. The public will see what Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota made out of it on May 5, 2021, when the three Next Gen NASCAR cars for the coming year will be unveiled.
The Next Gen car will debut in 2022 and will be a real revolution compared to the Gen6 car. The new car will get a center lug nut, significantly larger alloy rims, a sequential transmission, an independent rear suspension, a diffuser and a modern fueling system.
Rain tires for tracks up to a mile long?
NASCAR has gone into an innovation frenzy where all current rules and processes are being put to the test. Currently, an oval race is stopped immediately when it rains and is not resumed until the track is dry. That could change in the future.
NASCAR conducted a rain tire test at Martinsville with Kyle Larson and Chris Buescher. For this purpose, the track was artificially moistened in several steps. The two NASCAR drivers were looking for the magic limit up to which the rain tires also work on a wet oval.
Rain races are not planned, but on short tracks and flat tracks, restarting a race after showers on a wet track could be done with rain tires. Goodyear developed its own rain specs specifically for the oval test.
Joey Logano wins first dirt race in 51 years
NASCAR fans had to wait a full 51 years for the first Cup race on a dirt track, but it finally happened in the 2021 season. For this no traditional dirt track was visited, but the concrete oval in Bristol was covered with clay. It was not the first time that the “Last Great Colosseum” was transformed into a dirt track: Late Model and Sprint Car races were held on the oval in 2000 and 2001.
Joey Logano crowned himself the first dirt winner in the Cup Series since 1970 after a thrilling race. The Penske driver held his nerve on the final restart to become the seventh winner in the seventh race. The Bristol dirt track race will also be part of the Cup calendar in 2022.
The next round takes place next Sunday at Martinsville Speedway (German TV: Sport1+ at 1 o’clock CEST).
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (by Simon Mones)
Actually, Martin Truex Jr. only wanted to gain experience for the Cup Series in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at the Bristol Motor Speedway, which has been converted into a dirt oval.
In the end, the experienced Cup driver, competing for Kyle Busch Motorsports, found himself in Victory Lane. For Truex, it was his first Truck Series win and an emphatic one at that. His lead over Ben Rhodes was a whopping 1.149 seconds. He also led 105 laps.
“It’s unbelievable, really. I guess they had to put dirt on Bristol to get me back to Victory Lane here,” Truex said. “It’s been a long time. Man, that was a blast. I’m still really surprised.”
With the Truck race also moved to Monday due to weather, Truex Jr. – like several other Cup drivers – had to do double duty. Despite a strong performance, the Cup race didn’t end quite so pleasantly for Truex.
DiSavino to make Truck debut
Howie DiSavino turns 20 on April 10, but he has already received his first birthday present. The young race driver will make his Truck Series debut on April 17 at Richmond Raceway, the home track of DiSavino, who’s from Chesterfield, Virginia.
“I’m incredibly humbled about this opportunity to not only compete in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with Jordan Anderson Racing but for the chance to race in front of my family, friends and partners,” said DiSavino. “This is undoubtedly the biggest race of my career, but I am up for the challenge.”
It will also be DiSavino’s first race in any of NASCAR’s three national series. To date, the 20-year-old has only competed six times in the ARCA Menards Series. That’s in addition to two races in the ARCA Menards Series West and the CARS Late Model Stock Tour.
