According to Robin Miller the NASCAR Xfinity Series will test the infield road course this June.

That’s massive news that the series likely didn’t want out in the public yet. If anyone knows what is happening at IMS it’s Robin Miller. This bit of news also goes along with other things we’ve heard. NASCAR has reportedly told IMS it’s the road course or nothing going forward post 2020. We’ll see if that’s true but for now the fact a test is happening leads evidence to those rumblings.

The infield road course at IMS has seen numerous changes since it’s inception in 2000 when it was constructed to host the United States Grand Prix. MotoGP joined the track in 2008 when the turn one complex was constructed. IndyCar has hosted a Grand Prix on the road course since 2012 to kick off the month of May.

Now NASCAR could be joining those ranks and it wouldn’t be a bad thing at all. The current road course runs clock-wise (the opposite of an oval for you mouth breathers) which is perfect considering all teams already build cars for Watkins Glen. Fueling is done on the opposite side, that’s why it’s a big deal.

One of the biggest questions is will NASCAR use the complex down in oval turn 1. Or will they skip that complex and run the opposite way through turn 1 like F1 did? Both have upsides, but they’ll likely settle for running the complex to lengthen lap times and keep speeds down headed into road course turn 1.

No word if this test will be open to the public.

The post NASCAR Will Test On The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course appeared first on Apex Off.

Excuse me, the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard presented by Florida Georgia Line doesn’t matter anymore.

In fact, it hasn’t mattered for the better part of a decade. NASCAR and its media partners have tried relentlessly to convince drivers and fans alike that this race remains a Crown Jewel race on the calendar. All while completely ignoring the putrid racing and atrocious attendance.

When NASCAR came to the speedway for a test in 1992 some 20-25k spectators showed up to watch them turn pointless laps. A Goodyear tire test boosted the excitement that NASCAR was coming to the crossroads of America.

A success for NASCAR

Just two years late in 1994 the first Brickyard 400 was held in from of 350,000 fans. An astronomical amount of fans, more fans than any other NASCAR race. The Daytona 500 hosted about 130,000 fans at its peak and currently still hosts 100,000 fans each February. It was a resounding success for NASCAR and it was only amplified by the fact a Hoosier in Jeff Gordon won.

The Brickyard 400 carried some massive weight for the better part of a decade. Every driver wanted to win there, fans wanted to watch a race there. If there is a cathedral for racing, it’s Indianapolis Motor Speedway. NASCAR was so popular the race was only 400 miles so it wouldn’t take away from the prestige of the 500. Things have certainly changed back since 1994 but at the time this was the biggest race in NASCAR next to the Daytona 500.

Flashforward to 2019 and the Brickyard 400 isn’t even a shell of its former self. Moved from it’s traditional August date to the cut-off race for the playoffs last season in hopes of boosting attendance didn’t help. Indy 500 qualifying likely had more fans in the stands than the Cup race last season. In 2020 the race will once again move dates this time to the Fourth of July weekend taking Daytona’s traditional summer spot. It once again will not help ticket sales. Indy in July is abysmal and the Cup race at the speedway isn’t a vacation destination for many.

Indianapolis track

Some folks in Indianapolis have mentioned that the track has sold less than 20k tickets for the Brickyard 400 this season. The tire debacle of 2008 combined with the sports incessant need for more downforce has killed fans interest at the track. If fans wanted to watch a parade there’s a lovely one every Thanksgiving morning.

The fans no longer care.

In the lead up to this race, some of the sports media personalities have done everything but beg fans to come out to the speedway. “We need people in the stands, we don’t need to see empty seats” is what one member said.

Outside of 2017, there hasn’t been a memorable race at the speedway since 2008. Both of the races named here were chaotic completely abnormal races. For the most part since the introduction of the CoT and Gen 6 cars, the racing has been sleep-inducing and the fans responded.

The greatest race in the world

NASCAR would be better served to visit the short track 7 miles away in Brownsburg. Or maybe take some turns on the IMS road course. The Indy 500 is the greatest race in the world, let them have the oval. NASCAR needs to lick their wounds and move on or debut the Gen 7 car with less front downforce. One thing we do know is the stands this Sunday will be baren.

The post The Brickyard 400 Doesn’t Matter Anymore appeared first on Apex Off.

It’s a story of ruthless cutthroat capitalism. Out price the competition until they can’t sustain that business model anymore and go out of business. Joe Gibbs Racing did just that to Furniture Row Racing.

Furniture Row Racing cited “the rising costs of continuing a team alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing.” Joe Gibbs Racing reportedly DOUBLED the cost of the alliance FRR had with the team.

Financials in NASCAR are impossible to come by unless someone forgets to pay their bills and goes to court so we don’t know what FRR was paying. However, doubling the cost of anything will almost always have ramifications.

Back Story 2016-2018

Furniture Row Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing entered an alliance starting in 2016. The #78 car was viewed as a 5th JGR entry. FRR used cars built by JGR and over the wall guys provided by JGR. In return, FRR paid handsomely for this alliance and increase in on-track performance.

Combine the performance of JGR Toyota’s with Cole Pearn’s mastermind brain and you have a championship winning team, literally. The combo of journeyman Martin Truex Jr. and Pearn resulted in 17 wins over the last three seasons and a NASCAR Cup Series Championship. Beating JGR’s Kyle Busch for the title last season.

As FRR continued to outrun JGR the relationship seemed to strain. Last summer at the Brickyard 400 the tension rose to an all-time high as the #78 and #18 tangled on a restart and both cars slammed the wall (the 45 person crowd erupted, it was magical). Instead of having an easy 1-2 finish the teams were left exchanging words in the #78 pit box. Adam Stevens was still in the wrong there and JGR dropped the ball. That was the first visible sign of strain in the relationship.

Around late spring of this season, rumblings started in the garage area that FRR had not re-signed Truex for 2019. Not only that but the team also didn’t have a new deal in place with JGR or TRD. That was the beginning of the end combined with 5-Hour Energy leaving the team after the 2018 season and taking half a season of funding with them.

If You Can’t Beat Them, Put Them Out of Business

Joe Gibbs Racing ultimately wanted Furniture Row Racing to go away. Being embarrassed in 2017 by the satellite team wasn’t in the cards when this alliance was born. So doubling the cost of their alliance deal was the easiest way to dispose of FRR.

Furniture Row Racing could have formed an alliance with another team. Barney Visser ultimately decided he didn’t want to take a step back and that’s his prerogative. The notion that the state of NASCAR put FRR out of business is a bit overblown. FRR could have survived with an RCR alliance and asking for less from a potential sponsor. It comes back to not wanting to take a step down.

Gibbs took a no discretion, cutthroat approach. TRD’s flagship team wanted Truex and Cole Pearn in-house. A combination of Pearn and the resources at JGR should terrify the rest of the garage. JGR bolstered their lineup and their engineering staff with this move.

The fallout from this could be damaging for JGR and TRD in the future. Not only with potential teams that want to form an alliance but also with fans. NASCAR fans are a fickle bunch and if they feel someone was wronged they’ll be vocal. Thankfully JGR employs Kyle Busch so being booed is nothing new.

The post Joe Gibbs Racing Ultimately Killed Furniture Row Racing appeared first on Apex Off.

Take a look at what the grid COULD look like for the 2021 season;

Hendrick Motorsports

#9 Chase Elliott – The present and the future, he’s not going anywhere.

#24 William Byron – Byron is on thin ice but HMS doesn’t want to replace two drivers in one year.

#48 Tyler Reddick – Rick Hendrick wants talent, and wants the future of HMS secure. Reddick gets bought.

#88 Alex Bowman – 1-year deal for Bowman, he needs a stellar 2021 to attract sponsors.

Gibbs

#11 Denny Hamlin – Ole’ runner up isn’t going anywhere, he’s never been better.

#18 Kyle Busch – This is like the Chiefs letting Patrick Mahomes go, KB is here forever.

#19 Martin Truex Jr. – 2021 could be Martin’s last at JGR.

#20 Christopher Bell – Bell has a three-year deal with JGR, he moves to the big team in 2021.

Penske/Wood Brothers

#2 Ryan Blaney – Brad K. is out at Penske, Blaney moves to the Captain’s marquee ride.

#12 Matt DiBenedetto – Matty D. did so well with The Wood Brothers he moves to big Penske.

#21 Chase Briscoe – Briscoe is asserting himself as a force in the Xfinity Series. People are pointing at Austin Cindric for this ride but he has to beat Chase Briscoe first. Briscoe’s Ford connections put him in the #21.

#22 Joey Logano – Joey Slowgano isn’t going anywhere.

Stewart-Haas Racing

#4 Kevin Harvick – SHR can’t afford to lose Harvick so he’s signed for three more years.

#10 Brad Keselowski – Brad K. stays in the Ford camp but he’s over at Tony Stewart’s team now and the SHR looks to secure their competitiveness outside of Harvick.

#14 Kyle Larson – Rusty Rush won’t have a problem with Larson taking over for Clint Bowyer. Larson and SHR is a match made in heaven.

#41 Cole Custer – Custer is the future of SHR.

Chip Ganassi Racing

#1 Kurt Busch – Kurt is on the last year of his deal in 2021, he remains competitive and CGR may try to keep him another year.

#42 Ross Chastain – Ross has a deal with CGR, he moves up to Cup in 2021.

Richard Childress Racing

#3 Austin Dillon – AD is keeping his seat warm for Ace in 18 years.

#8 Noah Gragson – Gragson replaces the departed Reddick with help from Bass Pro and others.

Roush Fenway Racing

#6 John Hunter Nemechek – Newman retires and JHN moves up to a more competitive ride.

#17 Chris Buescher – Buescher is being held hostage at RFR.

Front Row Motorsports

#34 Michael McDowell – Don’t think he’s ever going to leave. At least not until he tweets “fake news” at a rumor and then actually gets replaced.

#38 Corey LaJoie – LaJoie wanted the #48 car, he got the #38.

Richard Petty Motorsports

#43 Bubba Wallace – Bubba would like a more competitive car but will be back with RPM.

Leavine Family Racing

#95 Erik Jones – That Jones boy moves to LFR in 2021 but remains in the Toyota camp.

JTG-Daugherty Racing

#37 Daniel Hemric – Hemric returns to a full time ride replacing the struggling Ryan Preece.

#47 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – He and Brian Pattie will find a way to victory lane.

And just like that the competitive grid for the 2021 season is set.

Let us know what we got wrong and where your sources say people are going.

The post Let’s Get Crazy: Here Is What The 2021 NASCAR Grid Could Look Like appeared first on Apex Off.

Turns out while I was wondering what the hell the 95’s sponsor “Darkmatter” this weekend is the Leavine Family Racing team might have some plans up their sleeve for 2019. They fired crew chief Travis Mack three races ago due to differences between himself and ownership. They hired Kasey Kahne this year and they’re looking to take the #95 to the next level. What’s the best and easiest way to do that?

Follow the Furniture Row Racing mold.

LFR could easily become a Toyota team next year with a Joe Gibbs racing alliance. Currently, Furniture Row Racing has an alliance with JGR. However, there is speculation surrounding that arrangement considering the two sides haven’t agreed on anything for 2019 and the future. Could the LFR rumors be linked that that? There is certainly a possibility of that.

Will LFR continue to field on or two cars?

There are a number of questions that arise if this switch in manufacturers does in fact happen. Will LFR continue to be a one-car team or will they field two cars? Is Kasey Kahne going to be a one and done destined to follow the World of Outlaws across the country in 2019? Or is Christopher Bell not ready yet? A lot of questions and no real answers outside of Stern saying JGR expects Bell back in the Xfinity Series in 2019.

Joe gibbs racing drivers

For now, though Silly Season is ramping up in July. There is an empty grandstand worth of questions that need to be answered for 2019 and we should start to get some answers over the next few weeks and months. For now though, we’re all here for the rumors.

The post Leavine Family Racing Exploring A Switch To Toyota W/Joe Gibbs Racing appeared first on Apex Off.

Sunday after Michigan’s monotonous race Steve hopped on the old Twitter machine and answered some questions for fans. One question asked by this Zach character regarded the Gen 7 car. The next generation of Cup car that NASCAR has talked about, that was supposed to debut in 2021. The next car with technology built into it, whatever that means for a Cup car.

Steve answered Zach with 2022 as the earliest! That means at minimum we have three more years of racing with the Gen 6 body.

Honestly, this is terrible news. Instead of debuting the new car sooner NASCAR wants to make teams spend enough money a Nigerian Prince would be jealous on converting their current Gen 6 cars into plate cars for 2022. Cutting air duct holes, doing the R&D, replacing oil pans and splitters doesn’t come from NASCAR, that comes from the teams. And then in three years, you have to have a completely new car. Sick.

The next question that came up was “will there be a splitter.”

Everyone should hate the splitter on the car. All it does is seal these cars to the track and make them so much easier to drive. Look at Harvick. His car was so planted to the race track he held the wheel steadier than anyone I’ve ever seen in the middle of the corner. That doesn’t create for good racing.

So what did Steve say?

HE SAID NO!

Which means that there will definitely be one. But if he’s telling the truth that is a win for fans and Dale Jr. everywhere.

Instead of having teams modify the noses of cars for 2021 by cutting holes in them and what why not just take the splitter off cars? Put the valence back on, shorten the side skirts and make these guys figure out how to go fast again. It seems like a better use of money than a package that fans have bemoaned and drivers have openly mocked.

Need to get Bren Dewar’s thoughts on this too.

The post NASCAR Will Debut New Gen 7 Without Splitte in 2022 appeared first on Apex Off.

Richard Petty And The Pre Modern Era

Richard Petty has 200 NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup wins. An insurmountable amount of wins in today’s NASCAR and certainly not a realistic number that will ever be beat. Petty raced in a time where 62 races a year was the schedule. That’s nearly double the schedule of today’s NASCAR and also double the chance he had to win. Imagine if Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson had 62 races a year. They would both have 200 wins by the time their careers ended. In 1971 the year before the “modern era” Richard Petty racked up 21 wins in 48 races. That’s ridiculously good but also shows how awful the competition was and how many chances he got to win.

In the pre modern era of NASCAR Richard Petty had 140 wins from 1958 through the 1971 season. That’s a remarkable accomplishment and all but it’s not applicable to the modern era of NASCAR. In the modern era Petty recorded only 60 wins from 1972-1992 his final season in NASCAR. When he only had the opportunity to race 29-31 times a year his winning percentage dropped dramatically.

From 1958 to 1971 Petty competed in 565 races winning 140 of them racing on average 40 races a year for 14 years. Those 40 races are still more than any current cup driver races and at times he raced up to 61 times a year. His winning percentage during that era was 24%. A remarkable feat but still not something that correlates to current NASCAR. In the modern era his win percentage was 9% in 619 races. Granted the competition was much stronger but it does to show the difference between modern era and pre modern.

Modern Era Stats

In the modern era of NASCAR Jeff Gordon is the win leader. 93 careers wins is an attainable number that a driver could chase and something NASCAR could build a marketing campaign around. Jimmie Johnson has 82 wins currently and will likely surpass Gordon in the next few seasons. After him though it’s a steep drop off to Kyle Busch.

My point is if NASCAR used modern era stats only then racing for that career win total could become an actual talking point. It could become a legitimate goal for drivers to strive for. “Records are meant to be broken” and they are unless you all ridiculous statistics to be used in a completely different era. Baseball records are broke all the time and they’ve been playing for 100+ years. Why can’t NASCAR records be broken?

This isn’t a knock on Richard Petty, he raced when he raced. This is a knock on the stats and NASCAR for running with that 200 win total for as long as they have. Richard will always be The King but he isn’t the modern era king. He’s more like 8th in line to be kind. If NASCAR is only going to allow drivers to race in 36 races a year their record book needs to be adjusted accordingly.

The post NASCAR Needs To Use Modern Era Stats Only appeared first on Apex Off.

According to Majeski, he has been told that Roush Fenway Racing will not have an Xfinity program next season. Majeski also stated that he will return to Super Late Model racing in 2019 where he has excelled at.

Xfinity program for next year

All signs do point to RFR shuttering their Xfinity program for next year. Ryan Reed announced he won’t return to the #16 car in 2019 after sponsor Lilly Diabetes decided to end their sponsorship with the team/driver. Roush’s second car the #60 rotated between three Ford development drivers in 2018. Unfortunately for the #60 team, they were involved in 27 incidents over the course of the 33 races this season.

RFR is only three seasons removed from winning an Xfinity Series championship. In 2015 the team was standing atop the stage in Homestead with Chris Buescher celebrating. Now, three seasons later it appears they will close the team down and that’s a massive loss for the support.

Regardless of how competitive RFR was, they were still a team that brought two cars to the race track. Now in 2019, that’s two less competitive cars and more bad news for the sport. Roush has fielded a car in the Xfinity series on a full time or part time basis every year since 1992. It appears like that streak is over.

In 2018

The team combined for two Top-5 finishes and fifteen Top-10 finishes with zero wins. The RFR Xfinity program hasn’t been to victory lane since Daytona in February of 2017 with Ryan Reed. Before that, it was the same Daytona race in 2015 with Ryan Reed. The performance wasn’t there and the results certainly were not there.

Since 2012 RFR was faded into obscurity. The once proud #1 Ford team has been relegated to the #3 Ford team with no end in sight for their struggles. Marred with drivers jumping ship, engineering struggles and questionable calls from the cat in the hat have all but sunk RFR.

We’re waiting for an official word but Majeski is one of their drivers, no reason to doubt his information.

The post Sounds Like Roush Fenway Will Close Their Xfinity Program appeared first on Apex Off.

The Brickyard 400 has been considered a “Crown Jewel” on the NASCAR schedule since its inception 25 years ago. After a rapid decline in popularity and attendance, many have asked if IMS should remain on the NASCAR schedule.

A mere 7.7 miles from the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway sits Lucas Oil Raceway Park. A .5 mile oval with 12 degrees of banking and the ability to put on the races NASCAR fans have been clamoring for. It’s essentially the exact opposite of the monstrous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. A tight, confined oval on the outskirts of town. A track where aerodynamics don’t matter and the leader won’t have a 7-second lead because of clean air. It’s not a dream, it’s just IRP.

NASCAR hasn’t raced at IRP since the 2011 season when both the Xfinity and Truck Series held events there. NASCAR decided to move the Xfinity race to IMS in 2012 and the trucks to Eldora. Moving Xfinity to IMS will go down on the long list of bad ideas NASCAR has had. Instead of running a competitive race in front of a reported 36,000 people they opted to run a follow the leader race in front of hundreds of people at IMS to appease sponsors and their hospitality guests.

Things Could Change Though

A person I’ve spoken to within NASCAR indicated the sanctioning body is looking at IRP for future events. It fits the direction NASCAR fans desperately want the series to move towards and it keeps the series in motorsports hotbed Indianapolis. Not to mention IRP just announced $10M in improvements to the grounds. That doesn’t mean NASCAR is coming by any means but it also doesn’t mean they aren’t prepping for the future.

NASCAR however though may not want to lose a “crown jewel” and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. While the racing there is generally more boring than The Walking Dead spending 4 seasons in a god damn prison it is still the mystique of the speedway. So why not alternate dates?

One season fans can be treated to great short track racing. And the next they can be treated to the most famous race track in the world. Except they’ll be sitting in $95 turn one seats clamoring for a return to IRP.

The allure of IMS has worn off on fans. The racing is bad, the visuals of 200k empty seats are bad and most of all no one seems to care anymore. Unless you’re going to have a 2008 debacle or a calamity-filled race like 2017 there is nothing entertaining about the Brickyard 400 anymore. The Indy 500 will forever be the best race in the world, the Brickyard 400 should yield way and NASCAR should head back to the short track.

The idea of running IRP has spread within NASCAR as well.  When asked how intense Indy will be this weekend Joey Logano’s spotter TJ Majors said on “I think it will be intense 3 years from now when they go to IRP. HAHA Just Kidding.” No, you weren’t TJ. You can check out what he said on Door Bumper Clear. 

More short tracks.

The post What If they Alternated NASCAR Dates? appeared first on Apex Off.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. stormed to his first Daytona 500 pole in his first race for JTG-Daugherty Racing.

Last season Roush Fenway Racing surprised everyone when they announced Christopher Buescher would be replacing Ricky Stenhouse in the #17 car starting in 2020. Stenhouse had multiple years left on his Roush contract but was left looking for a ride in 2020.

The team that came calling? Buescher’s old team, JTG-Daugherty Racing. It was announced a couple of weeks later Stenhouse would take over the #47 Kroger Chevy as he tried to revive his slow fading Cup career.

Welcome To Daytona

On Sunday during Daytona 500 pole Ricky’s #47 team sent him out in a Camaro that was alllllllll the way trimmed out for speed and it paid off. The two-time Cup Series winner will start P1 when the field takes the green flag next Sunday for the Daytona 500.

Stenhouse will also lead Duel #1 to the green flag Thursday night but you can expect to see him drop to the back of the field. One to preserve the car since the front row is locked in and two, because his car is not set up for race conditions.

Alex Bowman joins Stenhouse on the front row with his P2 qualifying spot. Those two are locked in and will lead the field to green next week.

For Ricky Stenhouse, he couldn’t ask for a better start to the 2020 season with a new team. While Daytona is an anomaly and is in no way indicative of how they’ll run when the series heads to Las Vegas, Phoenix, or California. It is a great start to a new relationship and one that can certainly build confidence.

Qualifying Results

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