Loathe as I am to start a 4th or 5th or Xth thread on this....it'd be nice if we had a moderator-combine all the treads into one.

I heard some comments today from Earnhardt on the COT that made alot of sense. In general he seems fine with the car, as do most of the veterans actually. They know it is that NASCAR cliche "it is what it is", and they will have to get used to it, so no sense whining about it.

However, it was his comments on NASCAR Now that really made a point. Not quoting here, but essentially he said that the cars were irrelevant, it is the tracks that produce the racing. He believes the racing will be the same with the COT, in the long run.

I tend to agree. Sure, if you went back to 1970's or 1980's cars the difference in the racing would be huge. But, the reality is, as much as the spoiler and front splitter distinguish the COT from the jelly bean cars of the last 5+ years, overall the change is not that great. Sophisticated chasis, pushrod engines, and sheetmetal molding techniques are still in place. Even with the downforce cut, the overall DF is still far greater than 70's and 80's and most likely late 90's racing.

We should not expect a huge change on the intermediate tracks. Places like Atlanta and Charlotte(historically) will likely continue to provide side by side racing, while modified 1.5 milers like Vegas and Homestead do as well. Kansas, Chicago, California, and to a lesser extent Texas will continue to provide less side by side action....no matter what. It is the tracks that matter.

With Rockingham X2 is gone, Darlington is missing a race, and slightly further back. there is no more N. Wilk. X2...WHILE ALSO adding more 1.5-2.0 milers and expanding the schedule, it is unrealistic to expect anything similar to what NASCAR once had. The COT may slightly improve racing on 1.5 milers(I believe it will), but it won't be anything major. The greatest advantage IMO is that it makes the drivers have to drive the cars harder, losing 5 or so mph, etc, on lap time is irrelevant, especially if the benefit is showing who's the better driver vs who has the better engineer/car.