Now that the tire rubber has stopped smoking for 2021, it is time to look ahead at what is soon to be around the corner and with the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series set to appear on the horizon, the focus will be on the drivers who find themselves behind the steering wheel.
Drivers who will once again include Kyle Larson and with the Hendrick Motorsport star leading his team to overall victory in 2021, the 29-year-old will obviously be the man to beat from the start of the Daytona 500 and beyond.
A race that is just a round the corner in terms of scheduling and although February of next year may sound a decent amount of time away, Larson and his three teammates are not affording themselves any rest.
Because when it comes to Hendrick Motorsport, they have not one but two genuine NASCAR Cup Series contenders to call upon, and with Larson earning the spoils this year, he will once again have to keep teammate Chase Elliott at arm’s length.
Especially as the 25-year-old Elliott has shown he is more than capable of earning victory for himself and if he can iron out the inconsistencies that he sometimes showed in 2021, he could be worth a wager when it comes to the 2022 NASCAR Series Cup.
A wager that you may well look to place after reading this article and for those who are unsure how to use an online sportsbook, checking the bovada review may help you make sense of all that confusing betting terminology.
Although you may need to understand your outright bets from your race wins wagers, it is the latter of the two that are important in any regular NASCAR season and for those who have genuine hopes of being crowned champion in 2022, they will need to be at the front of the pack.
Something that those who race under the stewardship of Joe Gibbs Racing usually find themselves doing and like their Hendrick Motorsport rivals, they also placed two drivers in the final four of the 2021 playoff schedule.
Even though both Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin both came up short in the end, they pushed Kyle Larson all the way in the pursuit of overall glory and not only in the Season Finale 500 but across the whole of the 2021 schedule.
This meant that the Toyota pair had to settle for second and third in the overall standings respectively and with the bit between their teeth, they will both look to lift the NASCAR Series Cup for themselves in 2022.
Then again, theirs and the inter-team rivalry that can also be found at Hendrick Motorsport does pose an interesting question and one that asks, how strong should a driver line-up be? Is there ever a risk of it being too strong?
Because although two top teammates can push each other all the way, there is also the danger that they can push each other too far and although matters were rather harmonious last year, there is the potential for things to fizz over in the end.
Just how harmonious can the pitlane be when two teammates are gunning for the same prize and God forbid, the men on the same payroll take each other out of contention in a high-profile race at the end of the season.
Of course, this is nothing more than conjecture and if the team owners believe that everyone can get along nicely then there is no reason to suggest that there will be foul play on show across another nine months of exhilarating action.
Action that will also see Team Penske look to do better than their efforts of 2021 and although the name is synonymous with victory across all forms of motorsports, their Ford cars were not quite as dominant as many thought they would be.
Whether this is because both the Toyota and Chevrolet engines have a bit more grunt under the hood is something that can be argued. Then again, when it comes to Penske and all things racing, they take a painstaking approach to their preparations.
Preparations in disciplines such as IndyCar or Supercars, usually will see them at the top step of the podium and that is something that Brad Keselowski failed to do in 2021 – something that largely kept him out of the Championship 4.
Something that he will also look to avoid next year and if that is to be the case, it will not be done at Team Penske either. Because with it’s contract recently coming to an end, it is a change of Ford car which awaits in 2022.
For Team Penske read Roush Fenway Racing and if his new employers can return him to the sight of taking the chequered flag, then the 37-year-old Keselowski may find himself in the mix for the overall championship contention.
