Daytona Test Is Over

The Daytona test is over.  What did we learn from the three-day test at the speedway?  One of the things we learned is that it is great to have cars back at the track.  Even though the NASCAR off-season is one of the shortest in sports, I still missed racing action.  I have my NASCAR fix and it should do until next month.

One of the other things we learned is that Sprint Cup cars in a large pack flying around a super speedway is a good thing.  It is good for the drivers and it was good for the fans.  Fans didn't care for the two-car tango that had become the norm at the two restrictor plate tracks.  The two-car tandems did create the fastest speeds of the week at over 205 mph, but NASCAR is trying to discourage the two-car tandem racing.

We also saw NASCAR flirting with and be kind of comfortable with the over 200 mph speeds. It even surprised some of the drivers that they were allowed to run nearly 207 mph at points during the testing.  Even though NASCAR seemed comfortable they still made changes to the aero package to lower the top speeds.  NASCAR officials were more comfortable with speeds near 200 mph and that may be their target for Speedweeks 2012.

There will be lots of data evaluation by the teams and NASCAR and teams will be waiting on the final word from NASCAR on what the rules will be for the Daytona 500 this year.  The upcoming weeks will be full of adjustments, refinements, corrections and lots of man hours as teams prepare for the beginning of the Sprint Cup season.