Two races down, along with a trio of exhibitions for good measure, so what do we know now about the Gen 6 car? Starting with cosmetics, it at least looks like a car one might drive down the street.
If I wanted a cow catcher, I would buy a steam locomotive. At least that front platform ledge disappeared a couple of years ago. Would I want to seen driving one of these new cars? Sure. In fact, I like it better than the showroom models. It is very sleek, while the cars on the road appear too boxy in comparison. Just tone down the safety features to save me and mine at 80 mph, instead of 200, put in the seats and all the gizmos for me and my crew to travel in comfort and style, and better the gas mileage from the racing version and we are talking about one sweet ride.
Has the Gen 6 car bettered the racing? It has not fixed everything, as when one passes a dozen cars to get up front it still would be nice to be able to pass that final one at the head of the pack. Imagine that little hiccup while out on the highway, and if it does not happen there it should not happen at Daytona. I thought they had engineers who understood this stuff and who could figure this all out. To be fair, they do and they are, but it is not going to happen overnight. Since 2001 it has been a whole lot about driver safety, and now that they have made great demonstrable gains in that area, the focus is starting to turn to better racing.
The racing itself has not been bad at all. I have long thought races at Daytona, Talladega, Charlotte, and Bristol to usually provide the most excitement, while I can remember only one at Fontana worth watching. This season I am rating the races to see if what I perceive is really the reality. Daytona I gave an 8.5 out of 10, while the slickness of track, the short cut, and the unexpected tire failures prompted me to give Phoenix the same. Whether it was the car or the tracks that weighed the most heavily in my enjoyment gets tested again when they roll into Las Vegas.
Even though I thought the Nationwide at Phoenix rated a 7, which still is pretty good, I also wonder how much the presentation on television influences my experience. For example, Mike Joy is not exactly Mr. Excitement, but his voice and expertise behind the microphone adds a lot. As much as I loved Allan Bestick on the Inside Winston Cup program where his boyish enthusiasm was a great asset, he vocally lacks the maturity and authoritative strength to keep you glued to three or four hours of race action. The personnel on FOX are better to watch, better to listen to, and they tend to provide real insight compared to those on ESPN. I doubt we will see much difference from their Nationwide crew to what takes over the Cup presentation on ESPN/ABC this summer. At least then the cars and drivers will be the same.
Daytona has its formation racing on those high banks, Phoenix had some quirks in its track design that brought some interesting moments. On Sunday, we will see what hand Las Vegas is able to play. Enjoy the week.
