Kevin Harvick, a former NASCAR Cup Series champion in 2014, has once again brought up the discussion about increasing the power of the sport. This has been an important demand from both drivers and teams since the introduction of Next-Gen cars in 2022. The idea is that increasing power would improve racing on short tracks, addressing the lack of passing and traffic issues. While there have been some talks about the importance of tire wear to solve these problems, Harvick made a compelling argument in favor of increasing power on his podcast.
Harvick suggested that NASCAR should conduct a test session with Next-Gen cars that have higher power. This would involve allowing the sport’s three engine builders to develop engines with more power. By doing this, NASCAR would be able to determine if this is the right direction to take and put an end to the ongoing debate. However, Harvick acknowledges that increasing power is not a simple task and manufacturers would need enough time to understand the requirements to develop engines with the desired power.
According to Harvick, the debate around power will continue until NASCAR takes action, whether by conducting a test or being transparent with teams about their reasons for not going down this path. It is crucial that the situation is resolved soon, as racing on short tracks has not been performing well in the Next-Gen era.
