NASCAR will use the media's annual preseason visit to its R&D Center on Jan. 21 to announce several rule changes for the upcoming Sprint Cup season. Among them are the likely ditching of the Car of Tomorrow's controversial rear wing in favor of a more traditional rear spoiler, removing the yellow "no passing" zones at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, and allowing drivers to once again bump draft in corners.
"I think it's safe to say we're taking a very serious look at the possibility of reintroducing rear spoilers," NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston said over the weekend. But Poston said the change is not a result of last season's two spectacular airborne accidents at Talladega.
"We took a car to the wind tunnel after last year's fall race [at Talladega] and recreated Ryan Newman's crash to as high a degree as possible," he said. "Tests showed beyond any doubt that the rear wing had no effect on the way that race car took off. We talked to 14 drivers and all of them were in favor of going back to rear spoilers to increase downforce.
"There are other changes we'll announce during the Media Tour that I think will be welcomed by everyone: drivers, crew chiefs, team owners and especially fans. We're going to let the drivers drive. If it helps us improve competition, we will move forward with it."
Many of motorsports' leading writers, photographers and broadcasters will visit the Concord, N.C., R&D facility as part of Charlotte Motor Speedway's Jan. 18-21 Media Tour. (The 1.5-mile track is no longer known as Lowe's Motor Speedway). The four-day event will include sessions with drivers and officials from Stewart-Haas Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, Penske Racing, Richard Childress Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, Wood Brothers Racing, Roush Fenway Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Michael Waltrip Racing and Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing.
In addition to the R&D Center, the tour will also visit the under-construction NASCAR Hall of Fame in downtown Charlotte, Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s "Whiskey River" nightclub and the Z-Max Drag Strip at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In addition to Cup teams, the tour also will meet with a handful of Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series teams.
source: autoweek
