Racing a new superspeedway package without any practice in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona has NASCAR Cup drivers concerned because it’s difficult to prepare for the unknown.
Austin Cindric believes they will take the first Stage, which is 35 laps, to race hard and get a feel for the new package since fuel conservation won’t be an issue.
“I think the way that first Stage plays out is kind of a perfect warm-up, a perfect playground for trying to figure out what we’ve all got,” Cindric says. “I think you’re gonna see the drivers trying to learn what the cars have, what the tires do over the course of a run, what the balance of their car is and what adjustments need to be made.”
Austin Dillon agreed with Cindric that there would be “a lot of learning” in the first Stage of the regular season finale because it’s “hard to prepare for the unknown.”
The new superspeedway package that NASCAR announced more than a month ago has the car’s rear spoiler being shortened to four inches from seven and the horsepower reduced from 510 to 465. Also, the wide splitter stuffers resemble those used at the intermediate tracks.
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Ty Dillon’s car goes into inspection before qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
When the new package was announced, NASCAR Event Management President John Probst said simulations showed the package would reduce drag, provide more opportunities for passing without competitors having to rely on fuel-saving strategies to move through the field. He said the new package opened the bubble behind a car “just a little bit” so the cars couldn’t run nose-to-tail, preventing a car on the outside to move down or a car on the inside to move up.
The teams have used simulation programs to prepare for the race, but Daniel Suarez noted they’re not always accurate.
“We study data. We study information, but… it has happened several times in the past where we study all these different things and then sometimes the numbers, the data, doesn’t match exactly with real life,” Suarez says.
“We have a great group of engineers that have worked very hard during the week to try and prepare as much adjustability on the car as possible, to be prepared for any scenarios, but the reality is that we don’t really know. We don’t know if it’s gonna be a super tight pack or everyone is gonna be spread out.”
Dillon agreed with Suarez.
“You… look at data in different things that the computers tell you, but you really don’t know until you get here,” Dillon commented.
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Austin Hill.
Austin Hill said no practice before the race concerned him.
“There’s a lot of different agendas,” Hill said. “You’re gonna have guys that are fully trimmed out for just straight raw speed, and you’re gonna have guys that are full downforce and won’t have a lot of balance in their car. We’re not gonna know until that green flag drops on Saturday night on what’s gonna be the right case scenario.”
Denny Hamlin said there “probably” should have been a practice with the new package even though it would have been in “really small packs, kind of, with our manufacturers.”
“I think that the pack will have a vibe to it that will play off of how comfortable everyone feels in the car, around other cars,” Hamlin said. “So, I think that the intensity level of the actual race is gonna be dependent on that comfort level.”
A North Carolina native, Deb Williams is an award-winning motorsports journalist who is in her fourth decade covering auto racing. In addition to covering the sport for United Press International, she has written motorsports articles for several newspapers, magazines and websites including espnW.com, USA Today, and The Charlotte Observer. Her awards include the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence, two-time National Motorsports Press Association writer of the year, and two-time recipient of the Russ Catlin award. She also has won an award in the North Carolina Press Association’s sports feature category. During her career, Deb has been managing editor of GT Motorsports magazine and was with Winston Cup Scene and NASCAR Winston Cup Scene for 18 years, serving as the publication’s editor for 10 years. In 2024 she was inducted into the NMPA Hall of Fame.