2015 NASCAR Season Thread

[rvrdgsfn]

Hmm Interesting....

http://nascartalk.nbcsports.com/2015/06/08/brian-france-praises-martin-truex-jr-s-win-at-pocono-as-essence-of-nascar/

France said NASCAR still fields calls from potential new manufacturers. “We’re generally open to figuring out how to make a new manufacturer work in NASCAR,” he said. “We have those discussions. Obviously, it’s complicated how a manufacturer might enter the sport. It goes back to the original points. They want to make sure they have a fair and balanced playing field. If they line up talent, that they can have a shot to compete and do well. … Every single thing, and this is the beauty of NASCAR, leads back to the same path: How do we make sure that, as a sanctioning body, we lay out a plan and path where drivers, teams, manufacturers and sponsors all feel they can come into NASCAR if they compete hard and their talent allows them to do reasonably well? That’s an ongoing mission and serves everybody well when we get it right. That’s our mission.

I'm kind of curious which new manufactures are interested, Honda? VW? Hyundai/Kia? Nissan? I would like to say Dodge but I don't think that's going to happen for a long time...

[buckeye]

Hmm Interesting....

http://nascartalk.nbcsports.com/2015/06/08/brian-france-praises-martin-truex-jr-s-win-at-pocono-as-essence-of-nascar/

France said NASCAR still fields calls from potential new manufacturers. “We’re generally open to figuring out how to make a new manufacturer work in NASCAR,” he said. “We have those discussions. Obviously, it’s complicated how a manufacturer might enter the sport. It goes back to the original points. They want to make sure they have a fair and balanced playing field. If they line up talent, that they can have a shot to compete and do well. … Every single thing, and this is the beauty of NASCAR, leads back to the same path: How do we make sure that, as a sanctioning body, we lay out a plan and path where drivers, teams, manufacturers and sponsors all feel they can come into NASCAR if they compete hard and their talent allows them to do reasonably well? That’s an ongoing mission and serves everybody well when we get it right. That’s our mission.

I'm kind of curious which new manufactures are interested, Honda? VW? Hyundai/Kia? Nissan? I would like to say Dodge but I don't think that's going to happen for a long time...

I feel like the obvious one here is Honda. One of, if not the biggest rival to Toyota in the car market. Granted, Chevy and Ford both also do battle in the same categories, but I think Honda for a while now has seen the success that Toyota has had on the circuit and feel like they could do the same. Issue is, who would be that team(s) to make a jump should another manufacture make a move to get in. Dodge had problems keeping big teams, but they had their reasons. I think Honda could really make a splash in NASCAR should they decide to. Groups such as VW have been rumored as well, but I just dont see that working out nearly as well as Honda.

[LAWeaver]

Super-long post about manufacturers in the spoilers.

Well, Dodge does appear on the Xfinity side from time to time and are as new as 2014. However, these are some of the smallest teams in the field.

Looking at the Sprint Cup side, unless it's Tommy Baldwin, Front Row, or Phil Parsons, I don't see anyone abandoning their current manufacturer.

- Hendrick has obviously shown success with the bowtie: 11 titles, hundreds of wins, winning over 1/3 of last year's races, plus Stewart-Haas has won TWO titles since 2009 using Rick's equipment and the power of Chevy. Needless to say, HMS & SHR aren't going anywhere.

- Childress will stay with Chevy simply because it's the only manufacturer he's ever had (that I know of). Seven titles, but all with Sr. They haven't had that kind of success unless the driver's name was Harvick. If they do move, it would be quite the shock as I don't see RCR breaking from tradition.

- Penske and the blue oval aren't going anywhere either. All you have to do is look at their success the past few years with BK2 & JL22.

-Roush isn't going anywhere. The reason? Look at RCR. History.

- Joe Gibbs has been running great with their TRD power with last year being an outlier. The only thing missing is a title.

- Michael Waltrip Racing is an interesting scenario. Clint Bowyer is rumored to leave, but take that with a ton of salt. They haven't been competitive, well... ever, really. Yes, Bowyer has a couple wins. Vickers has one. Mark Martin ran consistent and he was part-time. I could see them being the frontrunner for a new brand.

- I could also see some drivers jumping ship and becoming part of a new team, similar to how Red Bull got started with Vickers and Dinger. The drivers? Trevor Bayne, for one. Let's face it, he's been terrible except for his Cinderella story at Daytona in 20...11? He's only ever driven for Roush, but he may be tired of running 28th-35th every week and be a part of something new.

The other driver would have to come from one of two places. The first is a smaller team. Someone like Gilliland, McDowell, etc. from a small Cup team. However, a Bayne/Gilliland/McDowell lineup isn't all that sexy a lineup. That's when you look to Xfinity. Erik Jones is proving to be quite the talent. Bubba nay not be too happy with the way hid Roush teammates race. On the other hand of that, Chris Buescher may wanna try something new.

All this is speculation and eliminating the easy targets. As Buckeye said while I was typing this, Honda would be the best bet. Ford vs. Chevy and Toyota vs. Honda would be quite the match up to watch each week. They already have cars on the indy side competing with Chevy, so why not do it in NASCAR as well?

[rvrdgsfn]

Here's my theories on which manufacturers could join, just note this is all pure speculation & predictions:

Honda: Honda IMO, is the obvious choice, they've been rumored to join in ever since Toyota like buckeye said. They have the racing heritage & plus they could race in all 3 series ( I would think Accord in Sprint & Xfinity while Ridgeline, which is going through a body change, could do Camping World). Who would I think would fit in? Well, that leads to the other team that is always rumored to join, Andretti Autosport. They have a good relationship with Honda so I could see that or merging/buying another existing team (MWR)

Nissan: Nissan would be my other choice. They could easily race all 3 series (Altima, Z, Titan) The V8's that are built for V8 Supecars are built in the US so they already have the engines to do so.

Volkswagen: The Elephant in the room, their goal is simple, be the #1 auto company in the world. Before Penske switched to Ford, they were rumored with VW. However, with the supposed changes that are coming with Gen 7, Volkswagen has been rumored to join

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/could-nascar-use-turbo-v6s-and-carbon-fiber-frames-by-2-509350566

"The most notable of the new engine options potentially on offer is that of the turbo V6, which would be popular with heavily invested manufacturers Ford and Toyota while also helping court new manufacturers (most notably Volkswagen, who's been considering joining the sport on-and-off for the past three years)."

However, they would be only about to do Sprint & Xfinity series ( I could see a Passat) however, the rumored pickup from VW (Amarok) may be built stateside to go with it, so I wouldn't count VW out & I could see them come in.

Hyundai/Kia: Long shot, I just don't see Hyundai or Kia come in. They have been rumored but I just don't see them wanting to join in, they do have the cars & a rumored pickup coming in (Sonata, Genesis Coupe, rumored Santa Cruz & Kia Optima) however, I really don't know of any racing caliber for Hyundai & Kia does Pirelli World Challenge so, I just can't see Hyundai/ Kia coming in any time soon.

Dodge: With the ongoing rumors of Fiat/Chrysler wanting to merge with another automaker (GM seems to be the heavy favorite, I hope not) & I would love for Dodge to come back. I think since FCA is still trying to figure out a few things before hand so that will stall any chance of coming back.

Although there are changes that could happen with the cars themselves such as carbon fiber bodies & V6 engines with Turbo but I think we will get a 4th manufacture, just a matter of whom is the question.

[Dalcowboyfan92]

I feel like there needs to be a 4th manufacturer to make things more competitive and spice things up within the NASCAR ranks. Dodge was basically half a manufacturer because they just had Penske.

And when Roger left them high and dry for stability with Ford; they basically had no choice to withdraw. All they had were like 1 to 2 start-and-park teams after Penske switched manufacturers.

[dfwabel]

Here's my theories on which manufacturers could join, just note this is all pure speculation & predictions:

Honda: Honda IMO, is the obvious choice, they've been rumored to join in ever since Toyota like buckeye said. They have the racing heritage & plus they could race in all 3 series ( I would think Accord in Sprint & Xfinity while Ridgeline, which is going through a body change, could do Camping World). Who would I think would fit in? Well, that leads to the other team that is always rumored to join, Andretti Autosport. They have a good relationship with Honda so I could see that or merging/buying another existing team (MWR)

Nissan: Nissan would be my other choice. They could easily race all 3 series (Altima, Z, Titan) The V8's that are built for V8 Supecars are built in the US so they already have the engines to do so.

Volkswagen: The Elephant in the room, their goal is simple, be the #1 auto company in the world. Before Penske switched to Ford, they were rumored with VW. However, with the supposed changes that are coming with Gen 7, Volkswagen has been rumored to join

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/could-nascar-use-turbo-v6s-and-carbon-fiber-frames-by-2-509350566

"The most notable of the new engine options potentially on offer is that of the turbo V6, which would be popular with heavily invested manufacturers Ford and Toyota while also helping court new manufacturers (most notably Volkswagen, who's been considering joining the sport on-and-off for the past three years)."

However, they would be only about to do Sprint & Xfinity series ( I could see a Passat) however, the rumored pickup from VW (Amarok) may be built stateside to go with it, so I wouldn't count VW out & I could see them come in.

Hyundai/Kia: Long shot, I just don't see Hyundai or Kia come in. They have been rumored but I just don't see them wanting to join in, they do have the cars & a rumored pickup coming in (Sonata, Genesis Coupe, rumored Santa Cruz & Kia Optima) however, I really don't know of any racing caliber for Hyundai & Kia does Pirelli World Challenge so, I just can't see Hyundai/ Kia coming in any time soon.

Dodge: With the ongoing rumors of Fiat/Chrysler wanting to merge with another automaker (GM seems to be the heavy favorite, I hope not) & I would love for Dodge to come back. I think since FCA is still trying to figure out a few things before hand so that will stall any chance of coming back.

Although there are changes that could happen with the cars themselves such as carbon fiber bodies & V6 engines with Turbo but I think we will get a 4th manufacture, just a matter of whom is the question.

Honda sells 1,000 Accords/day and unlike Toyota/FCA/Ford/GM they really don't sell fleet vehicles. Going into NASCAR really isn't going to raise that number much, if at all. The Ridgeline was barely considered a truck in its previous life, and if it returns still with a unibody chassis and FWD options, it still won't be seen as a truck from buyers.

While the Nissan Supercar V8 is build in Tennessee, it still is DOHC as opposed to a NASCAR mandated pushrod. That's a major issue for Nissan unless the France family changes the rules. The oppositelock article was from May 2013, and while Brian France mentions changes to engine packages, there has not been any action.

The cost of entry does not just include these teams engine block, the cylinder heads, the valve seats and guides, and the cover to meet NASCAR specs, but the cost of working with suppliers to outsource the other parts. Plus, the cost for a team to change engine makers is going to be really high, so high in fact that it might be more cost-effective for the maker to buy a team outright.

[Dalcowboyfan92]

http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2015/6/7/ryan-newman-aj-allmendinger-pocono-wreck.html

Stay classy ol' No Neck. Stay classy.

I'm not saying this just because I'm a fan of the 'Dinger, but if Ryan would keep his trap shut and look at the replays, he'd see that AJ didn't intentionally wreck him. It was a combination of Kyle Busch divebombing AJ into Turn 1 and Newman continuing his pass attempt to his outside.

And Ryan...I'd suggest next time not trying to call your shot; you'll get zapped by the NASCAR bigwigs for your possible retribution.

[jc...]

The engine formula is too strict. There is really no benefit for Ford and Toyota, as they use overhead cam V8's on the street. While Chevrolet still uses the reliable pushrod V8. They don't all have to be the same, each one has its benefits. All the more reason to return to stock blocks, and build a little less reliability into the series. 600 miles use to mean something, but now with the reliability, it's nothing. Plus,it keeps manufacturers hesitant about NASCAR. If Honda showed up and wanted to run a turbo V6, so be it.

[dfwabel]

The rating for Pocono was LOW, even for Pocono. However, there is a little bit of good news.

Credit: Sports Media Watch

In its first year on Fox Sports 1, NASCAR from Pocono had its smallest audience in at least 14 years.

NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Pocono earned 3.6 million viewers on FS1 Sunday afternoon, down 19% from last year (4.5M) and down 17% from 2013 (4.4M), both on TNT. It ranks the least-watched edition of the race since at least 2001 (viewership prior to 2002 was not immediately available), falling below the previous mark set in 2013.

Despite the lower numbers, the race earned the fourth-largest motorsports audience on FS1 since the network rebranded from Speed Channel in 2013, and the eighth-largest regardless of sport. NASCAR accounts for six of the 11 most-watched FS1 shows.

[Dalcowboyfan92]

What they should do is drop the August date from Pocono. But what track would the date go to?

[LAWeaver]

I believe the fact that the race was on FS1 is the problem. Not everyone has that channel. Heck, only a week ago did we finally get NBCSN as a part of our main package. We've had FS1 since switching to DirecTV in October 2013.

Despite that, I'm a little shocked by the rating. It was a decent race, but people probably assumed it would be boring because... well, Pocono.

[buckeye]

What they should do is drop the August date from Pocono. But what track would the date go to?

Iowa, I believe, is the track most fans and drivers want to see the cup series go to. Provides great racing, both to watch, and to be a part of. Could also see the success of Road America leading to a date as well.

[Dalcowboyfan92]

I think Iowa would be best for the schedule unless NASCAR would want back-to-back road courses in Road America and the Watkins Glen in August.

But, if they add both, they can easily change the schedule; putting either Road America or Watkins Glen in the Chase.

[buckeye]

I think Iowa would be best for the schedule unless NASCAR would want back-to-back road courses in Road America and the Watkins Glen in August.

But, if they add both, they can easily change the schedule; putting either Road America or Watkins Glen in the Chase.

I for one believe Watkins Glen is a no brainer for the chase. They absolutely need a road course in the final ten, and having it as one of the first couple races of the chase provides it will still be plenty warm enough in western New York as well. Give Road America/Iowa the Pocono date and swap WG for Chicago and to me that fits perfect. Kansas also needs that 2nd date revoked for now, until the track wears and the racing improves, so give that to either RA/Iowa as well, that way both get fit in somewhere.

[jc...]

Watkins Glen in the fall, like in October, would be great. Foliage in the background! Just like the old Formula 1 US Grand Prix.

[rvrdgsfn]

I would love Iowa to finally get a Sprint Cup race, hopefully the schedule next year allows it. The fans, have been asking NASCAR to add a road course to the chase & I think its time to do so as well. Just imagine Watkins Glen or Road America or somewhere else like Virginia International Raceway or Road Atlanta having a chase elimination race! That would be awesome!

[Dalcowboyfan92]

You know, I'm happy for Kyle Busch coming back and winning a race after his nasty injury; but at the same time I'm sick and tired of the same old song and dance with Kyle Busch playing the role of the Pied Piper.

NASCAR needs to cut down further on the double dippers like Kyle, Kes, Logano, Harvick because it's not fun for the fans and the Xfinity regulars to see these Sprint Cup guys take the field to school each and every Saturday (or Friday if it's a night race).

They may have prevented them going for a championship. You think that would've stopped this but I think it made it worse. And honestly, they can blow their horn on the whole "track practice", but it's a load of bullcrap thinly veiled by a clever rouse.

[Needschat]

You know, I'm happy for Kyle Busch coming back and winning a race after his nasty injury; but at the same time I'm sick and tired of the same old song and dance with Kyle Busch playing the role of the Pied Piper.

NASCAR needs to cut down further on the double dippers like Kyle, Kes, Logano, Harvick because it's not fun for the fans and the Xfinity regulars to see these Sprint Cup guys take the field to school each and every Saturday (or Friday if it's a night race).

They may have prevented them going for a championship. You think that would've stopped this but I think it made it worse. And honestly, they can blow their horn on the whole "track practice", but it's a load of bullcrap thinly veiled by a clever rouse.

If Cup drivers want to double dip, they should either run their own stuff OR run for an Xfinity team only. This running for your Cup team's "minor league" team is crap! JGR and Penske are the major culprits of it, using the whine "How are X series drivers supposed to get better without running against the best?" Um, yes, Dale Sr and DW ran the then Busch series, too, but in their own equipment or for a Busch series only team.

People whine that Harvick is running, that Kahne is too, but they're in Jr Motorsports stuff, NOT for SHR or Hendrick.

[Dalcowboyfan92]

"How are X series drivers supposed to get better without running against the best?" Um, yes, Dale Sr and DW ran the then Busch series, too, but in their own equipment or for a Busch series only team.

And at the time the Busch series was created basically everyone who drove in it was a Winston Cup regular (Dale, DW, Mark Martin). They were often racing against fellow Winston Cup competitors (like Mikey [Waltrip]) in less powerful equipment.

[cubsfan2015]

I really want overseas manufactures to come to our sport.

Honda,Volkswagan and Nissan are my top 3.

I would want Dodge to come back,but I think the only team that would support them is PRM.