“More competitive than ever”: Insider believes NASCAR is ‘headed in the right direction’ in Next Gen era

Since the usher of the NextGen car in NASCAR, both fans and pundits have been criticizing the sport for the seemingly poor handling of its cars and, most importantly, the short track package, which they think is not up to the mark. Some even have suggested that NASCAR doesn’t have a definite body of rules to settle on-track disputes effectively.

However, journalist Jordan Bianchi begs to differ. According to the veteran NASCAR insider, NASCAR is more competitive now than it has been in its 75 years of operation and is headed in the right direction.

Notably, Jeff Gluck, Bianchi’s colleague at The Atheltic, is known for his 12-question interview, where he asks 12 similar questions to different NASCAR drivers. Each year has a different set of questions. This time around, Bianchi was asked those 12 questions and the video recently featured on Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s Dirty Mo Media.

Gluck asked,

“What is an opinion about NASCAR that you think is not shared by the fans?”

“I think NASCAR is in a good position,” Bianchi replied. “This sport seems like a lot of the sky is falling...a lot of chicken little...like, oh my goodness...the racing is bad, this and that...not saying that there's to issues. There are certainly issues.” (29:30)

“But we heard so much about the NextGen car and how it's bad on short tracks. I feel like they made efforts to get that better. I do think NASCAR attempts to make the sport better, it's sincere and genuine and I believe they have a direction. I think the sport is headed in a different direction; I think it's more competitive than ever,” he added.

Jordan Bianchi and Jeff Gluck also host a weekly podcast called The Teardown where the duo discuss everything that happens every week at the racetrack starting from reactions to analysis and debates.

Jordan Bianchi feels for NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin as the latter parted ways with longtime crew chief

Denny Hamlin is one of the best drivers in the Cup Series today. With a combined 54 victories including wins in the crown jewel Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600, and Southern 500, the Tampa, Florida native ranks 13th in the all-time wins list and second among the current Cup Series drivers, the first being Kyle Busch with 63 wins.

However, what Busch has, and Hamlin doesn’t is a championship title. When Joe Gibbs Racing announced that Chris Gabehart, who has been serving as Hamlin’s crew chief for the past six seasons, would be moving to a new role within the team, Hamlin’s chances of winning the championship seemed to get even bleaker.

Addressing the matter, Jordan Bianchi said,

“When you think about where Denny Hamlin is at in his career...the reality is the reality...he's 43 You don't have a lot of runway left on your career. You're kind of in a win-now mode right?”

“Knowing that, I can understand his frustration and his anger,” Bianchi further explained. “Like, I got the best crew chief in the garage. I know we didn't have the best year as an organization but we're pretty good. We had a lot of thing go against us...out of our control. I don't want to have to work and figure out a new crew chief and all of that goes into that. Maybe it works out but maybe it doesn't. Because I know what I got. I don't got many years left and I want to maximize it.”

Chris Gayle, the former crew chief for Ty Gibbs, will join the No. 11 team as Hamlin’s crew chief. Gabehart has been promoted to the team’s Director of Competition. Hamlin won 23 races with Gabehart, including two Daytona 500s. Will Hamlin’s stint with Gayle prove to be as fruitful? One can only wait for now until the next season begins.