“I have no idea what I’m getting into.”
This weekend, NASCAR heads to familiar territory this weekend in Atlanta, Georgia. However, that ground has been torn up, lifted and repaved to create a total unknown.
The banking of the old surface was just 24 degrees. Now, the banking has been lifted to 28 degrees. The corner width has been narrowed as well.
Beyond the track, the NASCAR Next Gen car will be unloaded. NASCAR has further aided the unknown by adding a tapered spacer to the engine package. Talladega, Daytona and Atlanta are the only tracks that run the taper spacer and high downforce package.
They’re aiming for pack racing, which hasn’t been done on a 1.5-mile intermediate track. Will it be that? Nobody knows and that includes the drivers…
Related: Atlanta Motor Speedway repave features new technology
Denny Hamlin ahead of Atlanta Motor Speedway
“I don’t know what to expect,” Denny Hamlin stated via a team release.
He added, “I don’t think know if we are going to be drafting. I don’t think we are going to be tight pack racing.”
“It’s not going to be Daytona or Talladega but are we going to be grouped together, so how are you going to build you car?”
“All of those things are going to be question marks. So, I have no idea what I’m getting into,” Hamlin concluded.
Click here to view the Atlanta Motor Speedway tv schedule
Related: NASCAR drivers talk ‘disconnect’ and ‘broken system’ with Atlanta repave
