Don’t look now, but the shortest offseason in professional sports is just about over.
Yep. You read that right. The Busch Clash goes green out west in about a month, followed by Speedweeks (which are pretty much SpeedDays now) and, of course, the Daytona 500.
What’s that? You don’t wanna wait a month to get your racin’ fix? Well, lucky for you, the motorsports calendar actually goes green in January! And no, I’m not just talking about the Rolex 24.
That’s right … we’re talking about practice!
NASCAR Next Gen test at Daytona International Speedway
Late last month, NASCAR and Daytona International Speedway announced a mega, two-day Next Gen test at the track set for Jan. 11-12.
Over two dozen teams are rumored to be attending what will be the final superspeedway tune-up for the Next Gen car, which will make its unofficial debut Feb. 6 at the L.A. Coliseum.
Next Gen reaction:NASCAR Next Gen test at Daytona includes slightly slower speeds, but more aggressive racing
Next Gen changes:NASCAR makes sweeping changes to Next Gen cars, including bigger wheels with one lug nut each
Open it up:NASCAR ‘Next Gen’ test at Daytona International Speedway next month open to the public
Oh yeah, I almost forgot … the first day of the Daytona test is open to the public, free of charge! Talk about burying the lead.
Fans are allowed in for free any time between noon and 8 p.m., with both frontstretch seating and the Fanzone open. Parking is also free.
Will Next Gen cars be slower?
So, what are we looking for during this test?
Well, the big news from the September test down here was the fact NASCAR was trying to slow these cars down just a tad, which they did by reducing the rear spoiler and making the tapered spacer (the new fancy name for restrictor plate) smaller.
William Byron, who was here for that test, said his speeds were “within a second or two” of what it used to be.
“I felt like we were all pushing each other to make moves, and everyone was pretty comfortable,” he said. “I don’t know exactly, it feels a little bit slower, but you have a little bit more time to think on the speedways.”
While there were only a handful of teams on hand in September, NASCAR’s Senior Vice President of Racing Innovation, John Probst, said at the time he expects about 26 teams to participate in this next test.
Jimmie Johnson to run Rolex 24
All right, enough about practice. Let’s talk about seven-time!
Over a year into his NASCAR “retirement,” Jimmie Johnson announced last month he would run a full-time IndyCar schedule this season. Full time!
Just for good measure, Johnson followed up that announcement by officially confirming his return to the Rolex 24 in a few weeks with Action Express Racing. Jimmie and Company finished second in last year’s race and figure to be among the favorites this time around.
“The fire is still there,” Johnson told The News-Journal at a Rolex test last month. “With sports-car racing, it’s been in me for over 10 years. I ran my first 24-hour race back in the early-2000s, and didn’t think we had a chance to win, and my first year we finished second. I think I’ve been second four or five times now.”
Remember that John Madden NASCAR commercial?
Before getting out of here, let’s shift gears to … the gridiron.
Unless you live under a rock (and maybe even then), you undoubtedly heard about John Madden passing away last week at the age of 85.
The legendary NFL coach and broadcaster left his mark on the sport on the field and in the booth, and the league spent the weekend giving him a proper sendoff.
For those old enough to remember (I’m not, but that’s what YouTube is for), Madden crossed over into the NASCAR world briefly in 1987, when he was featured in a commercial for Superflo from Exxon with Darrell Waltrip, Geoff Bodine, Brett Bodine and Tim Richmond.
“You play football?” Madden asks as the drivers race off with the new motor oil.
“No, too dangerous!” they yell back.
Boom!