Gone are the days when one or two road course races on the schedule didn’t decide a driver’s fate. In the Next Gen era, with 5-6 road course races placed across the calendar, it’s no more a race that drivers can just breeze through. Now that the All-Star weekend is done, the next 14 regular-season races are going to be crucial for drivers who haven’t locked themselves in the playoffs and are banking on the points to make it through. What makes this stretch of 14 races more challenging is that it will have four races, which are a mix of road course and street racing.
And, with round course ringers like AJ Allmendinger, Shane van Gisergen, and Tyler Reddick all looking to make their mark, it is going to spoil the playoff picture for a lot of the drivers, who are currently doing good in points. Kevin Harvick even went on to predict that drivers like Ross Chastain and Ryan Preece will feel the heat if these wildcard races deliver on their promise.
Will Ryan Preece survive the road course test?
“Road Course season is going to be interesting for Allmendinger, SVG, some of these guys that you don’t think should be in the playoffs that could easily put them in the playoffs, and that’s when it starts to get interesting. Having guys get into the playoff picture with a win that aren’t even close on the points battle, then it starts to get interesting because you’re knocking guys out.” Harvick said on the Happy Hour Podcast. Shane van Gisbergen (SVG) and AJ Allmendinger, those road course wizards, could snatch playoff spots with a single win. Ryan Preece, who for the time being stands 15th in the points just above the cutline, isn’t entirely safe. So, if either of these two drivers were to book the playoff ticket, Preece is the one who’s going to take a fall. And out of the three RFK Racing drivers, he is the one likely to make it to the postseason on points.
The 2023 season saw SVG win at the Chicago Street Course, a road course victory that put him on the map, and Allmendinger’s win at the Roval in 2023 kept him in the playoff hunt. These aren’t isolated incidents; they’re trends, and this is indeed threatening for Preece, who only had one top 10 finish on road courses in the Gen 7 era. Allmendinger’s case here is what could shuffle the entire points structure, as he went from 15th to 25th after the engine failure at Kansas. And while he is a road course ringer, a single win by his rivals could also push him out of the playoff picture. “Then the Allemendinger’s are out, the Preece’s and the guys who are right there around the bubble, all of a sudden are way further behind,” Harvick added, but wait, there’s more, not even the likes of Bubba Wallace and Ross Chastain are in the clear.
AVONDALE, AZ – MARCH 13: Brad Keselowski, driver of the #6 RFK Racing Violet Defense Ford Mustang, looks on before the NASCAR Cup Series Ruoff Mortgage 500 on March 13, 2022 at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“I feel like that could bump up into that Chastain area even though it seems like he has a good points cushion right now I think you gotta take two or three of those spots out of the mix because of the guys that are gonna win,” Harvick said, and it’s a gut punch. Chastain is placed 11th right now and is 56 points away from getting into the danger zone, The Trackhouse Racing team has been lackluster all year. All the streak of top 10s and the only lucky top 5 result is the talent of Chastain pushing the No. 1 Chevy to the limit. And the kicker is that while he might be a better driver than his teammate SVG on the ovals, there is a possibility that the Kiwi driver could make it in the playoffs. All thanks to a bunch of road course races that are lined up on the schedule.
Let’s not forget, Preece’s teammate and co-owner, Brad Keselowski is also on the hunt. Given the slump the #6 team is under right now, the only hope to see him in the playoffs is through a wildcard superspeedway race, which does plays to his strengths. Going by his latest comments, he certainly isn’t eyeing to seal his playoff spot with a win at road course race.
Brad Keselowski’s Roval Rant: “It’s Got to Go”
Keselowski is an oldtimer, and he would prefer a short oval track over a road course any day. Although he has to adapt to the new schedule, he thinks NASCAR is missing out on a good opportunity. One that could bring back the points race to North Wilkesboro at the cost of Charlotte Roval. That’s not a bad suggestion, given that NASCAR didn’t flinch while removing a date from Richmond and still retained the road course race at Roval.
After earning pole position for the All-Star Race and winning his heat race, Keselowski sat down with the media, and boy, did he have thoughts. “I think this needs to be a points racetrack,” he said. North Wilkesboro, with its deep history and 1949 season finale creds, hasn’t hosted a points-paying Cup race since 1996, but Keselowski’s got a vision. “I think the Charlotte racetrack, particularly since it only has one race on the oval, I think that’s a miss for our sport. It’s a great racetrack and puts on some of the best racing, so it would make sense to me if we were to revert back to that and make this a season race, and probably get rid of a race like the Roval or something like that,” he explained.
The Charlotte Roval, that Frankenstein of a track combining the oval and an infield road course, is the Round of 12 elimination race in the playoffs, and Keselowski’s not a fan. “Utilizing both the oval and an infield road course, the Roval is an event at Charlotte during the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs and currently serves as the Round of 12 elimination race,” a reporter reminded him, but Keselowski wasn’t buying it. “Has it really?” he shot back, his skepticism palpable. “I look at the stands and there are more fans that come to the oval race and better ratings, too, than come to the Roval races. I thought that’s what we judge the sport by. I’m very strong about the Roval has got to go.”
Hoepfully NASCAR was listening to Keselowski’s suggestions. There’s nothing wrong in adding new tracks to the venue, but keeping Roval at the expense of traditional short tracks isn’t the best approach.
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