I have to be honest. I despise the Next Gen car, as well as the type of racing it produces. Thankfully, this weekend is the “Throwback” weekend at Darlington. It is the one time of the year where NASCAR appears to still be connected to its roots, even if it’s just on the surface. While no one can argue that today’s drivers lack talent, I will argue that Next Gen NASCAR decreased its importance. Then I’ll argue said point over and over again.
In order to demonstrate this point, I am going to list my top 10 Cup series drivers measured by qualitative talent. Then I am going to compare that list with the points standings. Of course, judging pure qualitative talent is going to make my list subjective. Still, I challenge any reader to develop their own top 10 driver talent list and then compare it to the standings. In the end, I think it will be clear to all that NASCAR’s cup series has too much parity and talent doesn’t make as big of a difference as it used to.
My Top 10 Most Talented Cup Series Drivers
Given that I have already explained how subjective this is, I will just get straight into this list. Any NASCAR fan that is capable of being honest with themselves knows which active driver has the most talent in the Cup series. To be fair, this driver may have the most talent in all of motorsports. I can’t wait to watch him attempt the Indy 500/Coca-Cola 600 “double” again. Obviously, I’m talking about Kyle Larson, and it’s not even close.
The other nine drivers are a little bit more difficult to pick and place within the top 10. Still, I am confident in my top 3. For me personally, I think you have to place Christopher Bell in second on this list. Much like Larson, he can race well in a multitude of different styles of racing. Finally, it would be absurd not to include Kyle Busch in the top three most talented active cup series drivers. He may not be as versatile as Kyle Larson, but just look at his performance across all the different eras and series of NASCAR itself.
In my opinion, in terms of raw racing talent, those three really set themselves apart from the rest of the top 10. Personally, I place Joey Logano in fourth on this list, with Denny Hamlin in fifth (as much as I hate to). William Byron is sixth on my list. Chris Buescher is seventh, with his teammate and car owner, Brad Keselowski sitting in eighth. Ryan Blaney is ninth on my list. A.J. Allmendinger rounds out the top 10.
Top 10 Active Cup Drivers in Raw Talent (List)
- Kyle Larson
- Christopher Bell
- Kyle Busch
- Joey Logano
- Denny Hamlin
- William Byron
- Chris Buescher
- Brad Keselowski
- Ryan Blaney
- A.J. Allmendinger
Now Look at the Points Standings
Now shift your focus to the current points standings for the NASCAR Cup Series. Prior to today’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington, the top ten are as follows:
- William Byron
- Kyle Larson
- Chase Elliott
- Christopher Bell
- Alex Bowman
- Denny Hamlin
- Tyler Reddick
- Bubba Wallace
- Joey Logano
- Ryan Blaney
Everyone in my top 10 talent list is within the top 10 except for four drivers. Kyle Busch, Chris Buescher, Brad Keselowski, and A.J. Allmendinger. Three of those four one could fairly expect to be in the Cup series top 10 in points at this point of the season. A.J. Allmendinger (currently 18th in points) is a talent on the level of Shane van Gisbergen. In raw racing talent, he’s easily top 10. I feel like SVG will eventually make my top ten in raw talent; I just haven’t had the time to really research much of SVG’s racing elsewhere. My point is simple, like SVG, Allmendinger has plenty of raw talent and is a cup series driver, but the cup series as it is currently formatted does not reward talent.
Just look at Kyle Busch. I’m a die hard, Kevin Harvick fan, and even I can admit Kyle Busch is the biggest example of everything wrong with Next Gen NASCAR. Busch (like Harvick) is wildly talented, and (also like Harvick) his performance troubles began with NASCAR’s attempt to structural install “parity.” Brad Keselowski’s current points position is even more insane. Kyle Busch is still in the top 16. Keselowski sits in 30th. Buescher sits right outside of the top 10 in 11th in points.
Parity or Talent?
Kyle Busch has won more NASCAR races across the top three series combined than anyone else has. Someone with his level of talent should not be struggling anywhere near the cut off line to make the playoffs. I remember watching drivers like Busch and Harvick going multiple laps down during a race, due to pitting under green and getting caught by a caution. Back in the day, one wouldn’t even question if a Busch or a Harvick would recover from such bad luck. Why? The answer is sadly simple. Talent played a much larger role in NASCAR back then.
I get that this Next Gen car was developed as an answer to the talent of drivers like Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick. NASCAR didn’t want anymore “Big 3” situations. They wanted to throw the field under a blanket. Inability to pass has become a much bigger issue these days. Still, as long as the announcers call it side-by-side “great racing,” NASCAR’s new and preferred audience will eat it up. Those of us who have been here a while, realize this is not good racing.
GIVE US MORE HP
This is directly related to the Next Gen era of NASCAR Cup racing. They decreased the importance of crew chief talent with this Next Gen car and the limits regarding working on the provided parts. They gave the car a wider tire, more downforce, and refused to allow the engine anymore horsepower. They ran qualifying laps at Las Vegas Motor Speedway wide open. Yes, all the drivers in the cup series are very talented, I’ll never argue against that. I, however, argue for NASCAR to allow those drivers to utilize their talent to overcome the weaknesses of this car. Increase that horsepower until they have to lift, and then increase it some more. Right now, it seems like luck plays a bigger role in who wins than talent does.
Agreed