Austin Konenski
NASCAR held its last State of the Sport address in November 2022 before the Championship 4 races took place at Phoenix Raceway. During this media availability, the sport’s top decision-makers discussed the status of many topics, such as the short track package.
Steve O’Donnell, Chief Operating Officer of NASCAR, said the sport was looking to improve the short track and road course package after poor showings at both track styles during the first season of the NextGen car.
The sport came through and tested several packages at Phoenix Raceway last month. With the first short track and road course getting closer, NASCAR needs to figure out the official package soon.
Related: Chase Elliott discusses NASCAR’s struggling short track package
NASCAR nearing decision on changes to the short track and road course package
The first race that NASCAR’s short track package will be used at will take place in over one week at Phoenix Raceway. This means the sport needs to make a decision on whether the tested short track package from last month will be implemented or not.
According to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass, NASCAR is expected to decide on the short-track package for the 2023 season in the coming days. As stated above, the first race using this package is getting closer so a decision needs to be made.
The teams are expecting many changes, such as a two-inch spoiler, the removal of some rear diffuser panels, and more downforce changes underneath the car. The most notable change is a two-inch spoiler which is smaller than the normal four-inch spoiler.
The sport also tested mufflers during the two-day period at Phoenix Raceway and while no one should rule out the possibility of NASCAR adding them to short tracks, that is not something that will happen in the foreseeable future.
Pockrass also said there would be a 50-minute practice session on the Friday of race weekend at Phoenix Raceway. This would allow the teams to gain data and evaluate the changes before hitting the track for an official race.
The new package would be in effect for all short track and road course races outside of Bristol Motor Speedway and Dover Motor Speedway. It would be a much-needed change after short tracks and road courses were simply not up to par last year.
It will be interesting to see what NASCAR decides with time running out. The idea of doing nothing would be insane so the expectation should be that something will change. The sport simply cannot run back the same package.
Stay tuned for the latest updates on NASCAR’s decision to potentially change the short track and road course package.
