NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin has called out the sport for its decisions on the Next Gen car, which is attracting more hate from fans. Hamlin called the horsepower reduction in the current cars a “horrible” business decision by NASCAR after the most recent race at Watkins Glen International, which is said to have irked NASCAR fans.
Hamlin made it clear that the current Next Gen car has a “fundamental problem,” stating that fans have begun hating it as much as drivers. He likened the current car to the Car of Tomorrow (COT) used between 2007 and 2012, which wasn’t famous for being a fan favorite.
The 44-year-old driver has stated in the past that the Next Gen car is not ideal for quick overtakes. The car produces 670 horsepower on most tracks, except on superspeedways like Daytona and Talladega, where it is tuned to churn out 510 horsepower. Speaking about the fan hate the Next Gen car has been receiving on his Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin said:
“I think that we have a fundamental car problem. It is no doubt a problem. Everyone that has ever driven it has said it’s a problem. I believe that the Next Gen car is reaching hate levels of the COT (Car of Tomorrow) with the wing. From fans — I think they’re starting to dislike this car as much as the drivers that have to drive it.”
Previously, NASCAR cars were limited to 750 horsepower, but the Next Gen car was introduced with a power drop, which Hamlin thinks was a bad business decision, since it affects the racing spectacle. He added:
“We’ve just steadily progressed our way back and back and back and back and taken horsepower away more and more and more. These are 10th floor decisions and let’s just say us drivers are on the third floor. No business is immune to bad decisions. I think that the NASCAR business has made some horrible decisions over the last given amount of time and eventually, it catches up.
“You can’t just say, ‘This is the direction I wanna go.’ ‘Well, why?’ ‘Well, this is the direction I wanna go,’ and not eventually have to pay for that. You’re going to have to pay for your bad decisions at some point. And this could be said for lots of things that have happened in those offices. We’ll just see how it goes.”
Related: Denny Hamlin Points To Major Horsepower Deficit Problem on NASCAR Cars
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