The much anticipated first test run of the short track has started, and the initial verdict has come out straight from the 2023 Cup Champion. Since the beginning itself, Ryan Blaney was quite excited about the test, as evidenced by his statement, “Hopefully we find some good stuff on that test. I know we’ve got a lot of things to try and hopefully, we can improve that package a little bit.”

Now that he’s taken the car for a spin, it seems the tweaks made for the short-track test have really shaken things up. It’s clear he’s feeling a significant shift, thanks to the modifications.

Ryan Blaney gives his take on the recent changes in the car’s aerodynamics

While there were a bunch of tweaks on the table – aerodynamics, transaxles, mufflers, and tires – it’s the aero adjustments that really caught the eye of Ryan Blaney. He didn’t beat around the bush, saying, “Yeah, a big difference, so. You know we unloaded exactly how we were informed with this car. Ran a couple of hours on it with a different splitter- big difference. Massive with the way it drives. I mean, there’s so much down force taken off. I love it with that. Yeah, it was big. The first laps I had I was like man this thing drives way different.”

Ryan Blaney went on to clarify that, in his view, the diffuser didn’t shake things up much, but the front splitter? That’s a game-changer. However, this is just one piece of the puzzle. We’re still waiting to hear from the other five drivers in the mix. Their insights on the new transaxle, underbody changes, and the rest will paint a fuller picture.

Eric Jones, also one of the six drivers in the mix for testing, stepped forward to shed some light on the new tire changes. It looks like we’re in for some interesting feedback as these drivers navigate the new NASCAR landscape.

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Eric Jones had some interesting insights to share about the new tire changes

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One of the key focuses of the test was to zero in on the perfect tire strategy. Goodyear, armed with insights from the Richmond test, brought a thicker tread compound to Martinsville Speedway and Phoenix Raceway towards the season’s end. This new tire got the thumbs-up from drivers and teams. At the upcoming Phoenix test, a good chunk of the first day was dedicated to tire trials.

Chris Popiela, NASCAR’s senior director of aerodynamics, mentioned to NASCAR.com, “Goodyear is going to spend about three to four hours doing tire configuration changes. I think they were pretty successful on what they brought to Martinsville and Phoenix as well.” 

Eric Jones was particularly impressed. “The tire stuff was really good. I’ll be learning a lot with that beginning of the day. Probably it’s going to apply to a lot of places and we’ll see how durability does with the tire that we tried today that everybody kind of liked tomorrow. We’re going to run along to run with it, and see what happens there and try with some different package stuff on the air with side two. So that was good.”

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He even went on to say, “Of all the tires I have tested in my career, I thought probably today was the biggest noticeable difference.” The tire testing seems to have gone down a treat. Now, all eyes are eagerly awaiting to see how the gear changes pan out for the drivers.