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When we look at the past, oftentimes, we look back with rose-tinted goggles that make us forget about some of the things we did not like about that time. For example, “The Chase” was disliked by many when it was the new thing, but eventually, those who grew up in that era look back on it fondly. This got us thinking, what are the things that NASCAR fans will think back to with a smile when they think of this era of NASCAR?
Since the introduction of the Next-Gen car, competition has increased enormously. This can be evidenced by how many different winners and how many different race teams have won races in this era.
In 2021, the last year of the Gen-6 car, 15 different drivers won and 7 unique team owners. Compare that to 2022 when there were 19 unique winners across 9 race teams and 2023 where there were 15 winners across 10 team owners. More race teams have equipment that can compete for wins week in and week out.
While the cars being so close to each other can make it hard to pass, fans now have more reason to root for mid to back-of-the-pack drivers and teams. Race teams like Kaulig Racing, JTG Daugherty, and Front Row Motorsports each can find a way to win any given Sunday if the chips fall right.
In a few years, maybe as the bigger teams begin to learn more about how they can take advantage of the car, fans will look back on this era of parity. It’s unpredictable who will win a Cup Series race every week nowadays, and that’s an epic thing.
Over the last few years, NASCAR has made an effort to diversify the schedule. One of the major issues fans had with NASCAR from the 2000s through the 2010s was how stale the schedule had gotten. There was an overabundance of intermediate tracks with only two road course races and four superspeedway races.
Nowadays, NASCAR is trying things they’ve either never tried or haven’t tried in years. They held a street race for the first time in the sports’ history in 2023, and they staged dirt track races for the first time since 1971. After years of only 2 or 3 road course races per year, NASCAR had as many as 7 road course races in 2021 with 6 apiece in 2022 and 2023.
NASCAR has also added plenty of new venues since the pandemic. Races at places like Road America, Gateway, Circuit of the Americas, the Streets of Chicago, Iowa, and North Wilkesboro were all well-received by fans.
Not every event became a mainstay on the calendar, but, the effort has been appreciated. This is an era where the schedule is constantly shifting and changing.
Every driver in the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 was 31 years of age or younger. Plenty of the stars of NASCAR’s boom such as Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick have also recently retired. People may look back on this year similar to how they look back on the 1992 Hooters 500.
Current drivers like Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. are both north of 40 years old, and Kyle Busch is 38 years old. Each of these drivers will not be racing for too much longer, and these were some of the most dominant drivers of the late 2010s.
Every sport needs new heroes to step up and take the mantle from the previous generation. Those heroes are starting to do so by consistently winning races and competing for Championships. Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, and Ryan Blaney have all won Championships this decade.
The early part of this decade is the beginning of a new era of NASCAR stars. In 10 years, imagine how fans will look back on the success of this day. This could be the beginning of a “Golden age” for some of the sport’s newest stars.
What are some other things that we will look back on fondly from this era of NASCAR? Is there anything we missed?
