CHARLOTTE NC. - How do you make a perfect year even better for the next year? You don’t change a thing.
That was the message from NASCAR Thursday at the last stop on the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Media Tour. The annual state of the sport address has been the site of many announcements concerning big changes in the past. Not so Thursday.
Last seasons changes, one driver one series, the Chase Wild Card and the switch to a simplified points system gave NASCAR and its fans one of the most memorable seasons on record.
Not any big changes were expected during Thursday’s meeting and that’s exactly what happened.
NASCAR’s vice president for competition Robin Pemberton outlined the changes for the Daytona 500 that are meant to break up the tandem drafting that has been the preferred way to race at the restrictor plate tracks in the past few years. The changes are a result of data gathered during testing at Daytona several weeks ago.
Among the changes in place will be a slightly larger restrictor plate, a 29/32 size, a shorter spoiler, softer springs, tweaks to the radiator opening sizes and the radiator itself along with a change in the pressure relief valve. The rear bumpers of the cars will also be lowered slightly
As for the overall state of the sport, NASCAR is very happy with where its at, so more of the same rules in place last year won’t change for 2012, including the no testing policy.
On the new racecars for 2013, Ford debuted their new model this week and the other manufacturers will roll out their new models in the next few months. NASCAR will conduct a closed test with all the new cars at an undisclosed location prior to open testing later this year.
Overall however, the NASCAR executives were all smiles and looking forward to the start of the 2012 season in about a month.
The only down part of the meeting Thursday was the announcement of the passing of Dr. Joseph Mattioli the founder of Pocono Raceway.
“He was a friend from the very beginning,” NASCAR CEO Brian France said. “Our hearts go out to them. He cared a lot about this sport, he will be missed.”
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