Kaulig Racing president Chris Rice gives his take on boosting horsepower in NASCAR cars - "Handling is going to be so much worse"

Chris Rice, the president of NASCAR team Kaulig Racing, recently shared his perspective on how an increase in horsepower would change Cup Series racing.

On the TMDNASCAR show on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio posted on X (formerly Twitter), Rice advised against assuming that higher horsepower would automatically enhance the dynamics of racing, emphasizing concerns about handling. He said:

"If we give them more horsepower the field is going to be spread out because the handling is going to be so much worse."

This debate is taking place right when NASCAR is trying to deal with the problems resulting from its new Next Gen Short Track Package. Fans and drivers want more horsepower to ensure more excitement at these races.

Chris Rice explored the impact of horsepower on handling, saying:

"The field of handling is going to be spread right, because you're going to run through the corner, the car might not handle it well or it might handle it better. I feel that the field will be spread out more."

Last week's Cup Series qualifying at the 1-mile-long Phoenix Raceway showed Rice that tire wear is a major factor in race results.

"I look at Saturday when those Cup cars qualified, and you're looking first to last, was what about 4 tenths? It wasn't that much. It wasn't like a big swing and how far the pole sitter was all from, like last. So I look at it a different way, I feel like the tire needs to fall off more. If we had more horsepower, that would probably make the tire fall off more," Chris Rice said.

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Chris Rice sets his expectations for Kaulig Racing's 2024 Xfinity Series team

Chris Rice is aiming high for Kaulig Racing's 2024 Xfinity Series season. The South Boston native is positive about his team's chances with a lineup that includes AJ Allmendinger, Shane van Gisbergen (SVG) and Josh Williams.

Rice recently shared a video on his X account talking about what he expects from this trio. He said:

“I expect those guys to race really really hard on the road courses but be very respectful. You know, AJ, he underestimates his ability, but also when you look at SVG he’s going to bring something to the table we’ve never had.”

Rice also mentioned Williams' ability to pick things up quickly, saying:

“But don’t forget Josh Williams, very good learner, so I expect him to be in the mix when we go to those road courses."

He added:

“I’m telling you when we go to those ovals, AJ is going to make us better and we will get the Kaulig Racing cars to where they contend each and every weekend again.”