Daytona 500 with a Next Gen car makes this either the worst or best year to be a rookie
.JPG "Todd Gilliland leans on his tool box during qualifying for the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)")
During a typical NASCAR preseason, a driver with more than a decade of experience in the top series and nearly 400 race starts would be able to offer more than a shrug to his rookie teammate when approached for advice.
But when veteran Cup Series racer Michael McDowell and former Truck Series driver Todd Gilliland, who is making his Cup debut this year, paired for testing at Charlotte Motor Speedway for their Front Row Motorsports team, there was little insight McDowell could offer.
“He was looking at me like, ‘Whoa, what should I expect?’ ” McDowell said this week from Daytona International Speedway, recalling the offseason test session. “And I have no idea what to expect. I don’t know what to expect. I’m as nervous as you are!”
“Even though you have years of experience, this Next Gen car is completely different (from) anything we’ve ever driven before in the Cup Series,” McDowell continued.
NASCAR’s new car is debuting in its biggest test of the season at the Daytona 500 on Sunday. The technical differences between the Gen 6 car formerly used and the new car running this weekend are vast, and the industry shift has introduced a steep learning curve for veterans and rookies alike.
“For me, it’s kind of that same rookie jitters,” said McDowell, last year’s Daytona 500 winner. “Preseason testing, because you just don’t know what to expect, it’s so different (from) what we’ve had in the past.”
The changes to the new car include a five-speed sequential shift for the transmission instead of an H-pattern gearbox, as well as larger brakes, larger wheels, an underwing, a new transaxle that combines the transmission and rear gears into one package and independent front and rear suspension.
To a casual observer, the differences are tough to spot, barring a number shift from the center of the side panel to farther forward to maximize space for sponsors. Overall, the Next Gen car is designed to look more similar to the cars manufacturers sell in the showroom. But for drivers, they will still be learning their machine’s handling quirks while crews test their pit road choreography. There were only two multi-day test sessions at Daytona within the last year prior to Speedweeks. It’s a major change for those involved, and three rookies, Gilliland, Harrison Burton and Austin Cindric, are entering the series full-time amid it all.
“I think if you’re to make a quantifiable list of all the things that Harrison and I and Todd, and anybody else who’s been a rookie in the series, (have) to learn, and you top that with a new car, you’ve got a lot of subjects we’ve got to cover here that are completely new,” Cindric said. “Whether that’s being around new people, new race team, new car, new competitors, coming to new tracks on the schedule, there are certainly things that make this challenging.
“But I think the change is an opportunity. I think it’s a great opportunity for both of us to go out and really apply ourselves.”
Cindric won the Xfinity Series championship in 2020, and last year raced in seven Cup events, including the Daytona 500 through qualifying, before making the full-time jump to Penske’s No. 2 this year. He’ll draft with Ford teammates, including Burton, who’s driving the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing car that Cindric was once slated to step into.
“This time last year, Harrison didn’t think he was going to be driving this car because I thought I was driving the Wood Brothers car this time last year,” Cindric pointed out.
“Things change so quickly and so rapidly, and there are so many external factors that sometimes I actually find mentality-wise other sports are pretty useful (to reference),” he said, citing the demeanor of NFL quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
Lawrence was drafted to a struggling Jacksonville team after a storied high school and college career. While the obvious difference is that Cindric is leveling up to a powerhouse organization with Penske, his point was that there are often “external factors” out of an athlete’s control that they must adapt to, such as the timing of a rookie season aligning with Next Gen.
Cindric also highlighted other more recent rookies who have made an impact in the Cup Series, including William Byron, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe, but none of those drivers posted an average finish in their rookie season better than 17th. Burton said he’s aware of the steep learning curve he’s facing based on prior stats.
“You see some of the best to ever do it and some of them will struggle in their rookie year,” Burton said. “The best rookie year in recent history is probably Denny Hamlin. It was like a 12.5 average finish and two wins (in 2006), so that’s like the over-the-moon ... and then there are guys that hit a 25th average finish, so trying to find your way through that.”
Similar to Cindric, Gilliland said he views the challenges as an opportunity and said that he considers the Next Gen timing and plethora of preseason testing an advantage compared to seasons past. McDowell called the timing “perfect” for Gilliland after describing his own jitters. Unlike Cindric and Burton, Gilliland is moving straight from Trucks to Cup without any Xfinity starts under his belt.
McDowell, who is working with a rookie teammate for the fourth consecutive year, pointed out Gilliland’s advantage entering the series with Next Gen.
“He’s not starting at such a deficit,” McDowell said. “Is it still going to be hard? Is it still going to be overwhelming? Is he still going to be a rookie? Absolutely. The Cup Series is very challenging that first year, but it would definitely be worse if he waited until next year, when you take the best drivers and the best teams (and) you give them a year of experience with this car.
“It’s gonna be hard for a rookie to make up that deficit. Where at least now, where he’s at somewhat of a deficit, he’s not completely behind.”
This story was originally published February 20, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
