A Horsepower Hike in the NASCAR Cup Series May Be Closer Than Expected

What’s Happening?

In the latest episode of NASCAR’s Hauler Talk podcast, Mike Forde provided more details on NASCAR’s pursuit of more horsepower. Forde even stated that, regarding an increase in horsepower, “we’ll see if this is something that’s put into place this season.”

Is 750 Just Around the Corner?

On the May 28 episode of Hauler Talk, Mike Forde, NASCAR Managing Director of Racing Communications, followed up on comments made by NASCAR Senior Vice President of Competition Elton Sawyer. Tuesday morning, Sawyer told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that a horsepower increase in the Cup Series “is on the table and something that we’re discussing daily.”

On Wednesday, Forde confirmed on Hauler Talk that the Driver Advisory and Team Owner councils met this past week. During those meetings, NASCAR officials discussed increasing horsepower, which he claimed pleased the drivers.

“There was a Driver Advisory Council and a Team Owner Council meeting last Wednesday. Horsepower was a topic, I believe it was something that we [NASCAR] proactively brought up to have a further discussion of improving the short track package, and obviously, the drivers all embraced that topic and requested more and more horsepower.” — Mike Forde

Forde then claimed that, based on this feedback, NASCAR is in talks with engine builders to increase horsepower to improve the NASCAR Gen Seven short track package. Forde said, “That is something that we said, ‘You got it. We’ll look into it.’ So we are working with the engine builders now on that exact topic.”

However, during this episode, Forde was quick to remind listeners that they shouldn’t expect a major increase, such as a return to the 1000 horsepower days. “900 [horsepower], 1,000 horsepower, I guess never say never, but I would be blown away if that is a number that we look at,” Forde said.

Regardless, Forde then suggested that this increase could come into play as early as later this season.

“But as I said in the previous podcast, 750 [horsepower] is probably more what we’re looking at on that one,” Forde said. “But that is a conversation we’re having with the engine builders right now, and we’ll see if this is something that’s put into place this season.”

The Resurgence of Horsepower Talks in NASCAR

NASCAR fans have long hoped for a boost in horsepower beyond the current 650 to 670 hp package. Though this is not a new topic of conversation in NASCAR, this debate has taken on new life due to recent comments from NASCAR’s engine builders, drivers, and officials.

The current campaign for more horsepower can be traced back to comments from Roush Yates Engines CEO Doug Yates during an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on May 1.

During that interview, Yates said that a return to 900 hp is unlikely, but “if we were to increase the power from 670 horsepower to about 750 horsepower, that probably wouldn’t be much of a change for us.”

Before this interview, fans and drivers had often theorized this was the case, and with these comments, Yates confirmed these theories.

The grassroots campaign, however, really gained traction during the May 7 episode of Hauler Talk, when Mike Forde claimed that he thought NASCAR would consider boosting horsepower. Forde said, “That’s something that we’re gonna look at seriously, I think.”

Now, with his latest comments combined with Sawyer’s, it looks as if NASCAR could soon be moving toward more horsepower.

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