Should NASCAR increase the practice time for teams and drivers on race weekend? It depends on who you ask, as the garage area remains torn.
Practice time has been a touchy subject over the last three years. The talk has grown louder this season, as drivers complain about the difficulty in being able to pass. The cars are nearly identical, as teams aren’t given the opportunity to “dial them in” during practice.
When NASCAR eliminated practice time due to COVID-19, it made perfect sense. The re-introduction to limited practice at a handful of events raised the question. Is it really necessary? The series cited the need to reduce costs as the reason for the move.
Brad Keselowski is still waiting to see the cost savings come to fruition.
The RFK Racing driver and team co-owner stated during an April 2nd media availability. “I haven’t seen how we’ve saved any money getting rid of practice, not from a team perspective,” Keselowski said. “Maybe there were some savings in other places in the industry that I’m not aware of, but there hasn’t been a significant cost savings.”
When asked if he was in favor of additional practice, Keselowski was quick to answer. “Yeah, I’m more than comfortable with it. I would say I’m an advocate for it.” The 2012 Cup champion is not alone, as Dale Earnhardt Jr and Jimmie Johnson echoed those same thoughts over the last few weeks.
Johnson, like Keselowski, is a driver and owner in the series. When Johnson spoke to Jeff Gluck before the April 28 race at Dover last weekend, the seven-time champion made it clear how he felt about the subject.
An increase from 20 minutes to about 45 minutes was Johnson’s suggestion. Not only would this help drivers fine-tune their cars, but it would help sponsors garner more television time and increase the fan experience for those at the track.
Earnhardt backed his former teammate on his “Dale Jr Download” podcast.
Another popular Hendrick Motorsports driver disagreed, though.
“I think we have enough practice,” said Chase Elliott. “I certainly can understand their perspective on guys either running a part-time schedule or people that are running maybe full-time in Xfinity and a few Cup races here and there.” Elliott compared the situation to dirt track races, where drivers don’t have much practice before the race.
Elliott is not wrong in his comparison, but there are certain issues in Cup that other series don’t have.
Rookies and The Next Gen Car
Rookies have the most to gain in terms of having more track time. Kaz Grala and Zane Smith each suffered brutal crashes before qualifying last weekend at Dover. Their road ahead will be even tougher without proper practice time in the Next Gen car. Even generational talent like Ty Gibbs can struggle to find success.
Gibbs is still searching for his first career Cup victory. In an interview with FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass in March, Gibbs spoke out on this topic. “I spent a lot of time on the simulator,” he said. “Simulating stuff and then going to the track and actually doing it, the cross from that is really hard. The sim is not fake. You have to make it close to be real. It’s pretty difficult going from that to the track, so I would definitely like longer practice.”
While the drama and news cycles are endless, the on-track product has not been great for many of the races this year. The lack of passing and the inability to do anything about it has frustrated several drivers from air blocking to horsepower, tires, shifting, and everything in between.
Ford Struggling, Hendrick and Gibbs Dominating
Ford has been shut out through the first 11 races this season. Even on superspeedways, they have come up short. The other eight races have provided a much better barometer of where they stand, and it hasn’t been pretty.
Speed is not an issue for the new Dark Horse Mustang body. They have performed extremely well in qualifying, but the race has been a much different story. Without much testing in the offseason, all of the Ford teams would greatly benefit from more practice time to work on race day setups.
Two teams have largely dominated the season, which hasn’t been ideal. Rick Hendrick and Joe Gibbs have seen their teams win nine of the 11 races, and that trend is likely to continue. Smaller teams with less data and resources simply do not have the budget to live in the simulator like these two powerhouse organizations.
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