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Many NASCAR fans have welcomed the series’ reported decision to bring back extended practice sessions, but not everyone agrees. 23XI driver Bubba Wallace’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, has made his feelings known about the same.
Earlier this week, The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi reported that the NASCAR Cup Series is expected to get an extended practice session. Under this, the teams will have one 50-minute practice session with all the cars on track, and teams will also be provided with two sets of tires.
While discussing this change on the “Door, Bumper, Clear” podcast, Freddie Kraft raised concern about how it might ruin the race product. He used last weekend’s Atlanta race as an example to support his argument.
“I’m just worried that more practice is going to hurt the race because we’re all going to be going even closer to get their speeds, especially like short tracks,” Kraft said during the podcast. “Like we just saw in Atlanta: show up, no practice, the field is f****** scattered the first run because guys missed it.”
According to Wallace’s spotter, the more practice the teams get, the more it allows them to close the gap, which makes passing on track during the race even more difficult. He said:
“You know, then we get one opportunity to work on it, and it’s like we’re all right back together, and we’ve now figured it out, and you couldn’t pass. It was harder to pass. You still could pass, but it was harder to pass. Like, you know, the more practice we get, the more testing we do, we just, with this car especially, we just make the box smaller and smaller, and then it becomes even harder and harder to pass”.
Under the current format, the NASCAR Cup Series teams are being split into two groups. Each group is given a 25-minute practice session and only allotted one set of tires.
With the change coming into effect from New Hampshire onwards, it will be interesting to see if it will validate Kraft’s concern and make racing less competitive.
Why is NASCAR introducing this new change for the Cup Series
Over the years, the fans have been asking for longer practice sessions not just to get their money’s worth but to help rookie drivers get acclimated to the tracks. However, in the report put out by Jordan Bianchi via The Athletic, he reported that the new changes were coming in keeping in mind the smaller and mid-level organizations.
Under the current format, many of the teams are forced to rely heavily on simulation data. This is something that benefited the bigger teams closely aligned with Chevrolet, Ford, or Toyota, which “provide additional tools to their factory”.
However, under the new format, it can help the smaller teams learn the track better and make changes to their setup for qualifying and the race. This will help them improve their performance, making them more competitive.
As of now, NASCAR has yet to make an official announcement about the reported changes.
Follow the RFK Racing Digest for more updates!
