Q: Two items I am looking for clarification on. First, what happened to the No. 3 Corvette at Sebring, and why was there no penalty if another car was involved? Next, why does NASCAR feel the overwhelming need to manipulate tracks and race formats so much? The sport is about drivers competing with others in essentially equal race cars, and it did quite well for a long time. The car of the future and compounds being applied to tracks has only created problems not solutions, as evidenced by Bristol. Thanks for your thoughts.
Craig Nelson
MP: The Corvette was hit from behind and spun out of contention; the No. 3 finished three laps down to the GTD PRO winner. I don’t know on the penalty part of the question.
KELLY CRANDALL: NASCAR makes decisions it feels will help competition and put on the best show. The same reason Marcus Smith of Speedway Motorsports has come up with ideas like The Roval. It’s about helping the racing product for the race fan. If some folks want to take exception and call it manipulation, they are entitled to that opinion. I do, however, disagree that “the sport is about drivers competing with others in essentially equal race cars.” The race cars aren’t and shouldn’t be equal. It should come down to talented drivers behind the wheel and the talent of each race team and organization. Yes, the cars might be spec, but resources and talent should equate to how the field separates itself.
Q: First, I’m going to start off with, if anyone had doubts about Shane van Gisbergen’s full-time endeavors in NASCAR, perhaps they should be put to rest. In terms of the Xfinity Series, he’s got two top 10s in the first four races on ovals. He dominated at COTA and would’ve had two top fives and three top 10s in the first five races of this season had it not been for his penalty. Not to mention, he very well should have won that race had it not been for the multiple cautions that flew. My point in that is that SVG is showing that he belongs in NASCAR!
Now to William Byron. Obviously as a lifelong fan of the 24, it is putting a smile on my face seeing him park that number in victory lane consistently now. But I used to label William as a “quiet contender” in my mind who you wouldn’t always expect to be in the mix for wins, but he would find himself there. Now he’s becoming a “loud dominator,” as in you want to keep an eye on him as a favorite at nearly every race now. A testament to his driving ability and his adaptability, I think. Can’t wait to see what more comes from William over his career!
Kevin, Arizona
KC: Shane van Gisbergen is doing a heck of a job getting his feet underneath him, and I’m not sure many people who have expected him to be off to this good a start. It wasn’t a question of talent, but just adapting to everything being thrown at him very quickly. Think about the races that started the season: superspeedway (Daytona), superspeedway hybrid (Atlanta), a fast intermediate (Las Vegas), a short track that doesn’t race like a short track (Phoenix), and then a road course (COTA). But van Gisbergen has been a sponge and that, combined with his talent, is already producing results.
Since being paired with Rudy Fugle in 2021, Byron has flourished. The potential was there all along, but his first few seasons were underwhelming at the Cup Series level. I completely agree that he went from someone that put himself in position throughout the course of a race to now someone who can dominate and manage a race from start to finish. There is no reason to believe that there will continue to be successful seasons for Byron and Fugle like they’ve had the last few years.
Q: I think it is safe to say that Williams doesn’t have much faith in Logan Sargeant. I know for a while that F1 teams would bring a third car with them to races, and that practice was eventually banned. I was assuming that the teams were bringing everything they needed to build a third car for most races. Is Williams not having a spare chassis/tub a common thing to have happen in the cost cap era of F1? Also, if Sargeant leaves Williams mid-season, is Mick Schumacher the likely replacement?
Will, Indy
CHRIS MEDLAND: No. it’s certainly not common to happen in the cost cap era. In fact, many other teams were stunned that Williams started the year without one, let alone reached round three. But there will have been occasions that teams didn’t have a spare ready for Bahrain, which is less risky given the track layout and lower chance of a heavy contact with a wall.
I genuinely don’t think we’re likely to see a situation where Sargeant leaves mid-season. In fact, I think the fact he’s been hamstrung in this way will make Williams a bit more lenient over the next couple of races. He’s missed out on valuable track time as one of the drivers with the least amount of experience on the grid, and has to deal with the psychological blow of being withdrawn.
As much as I don’t think that would happen, to answer your question about Mick, I think he would be a consideration — but so too would Liam Lawson.