NASCAR worked through multiple changes to the Next Gen car Wednesday during the first run of its two-day organizational test at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The eight-hour session, which began at 8 a.m. ET and ended at 4 p.m. ET, broke up into three mini sessions, each with a different aero/engine configuration. The first featured a 550-horsepower engine with a seven-inch spoiler. The second was a 670-horsepower engine with a six-inch spoiler. The third and final remained the same, but the spoiler was offset to the passenger side.
Consistent across the packages, but new to Next Gen testing overall, were splitter stuffers, engine panel strakes and rear diffuser skirts. According to NASCAR, the purpose of these additions is to help with predictability in traffic. And unlike last time, there were actually on-track periods scheduled specifically for pack racing with each configuration.
— NASCAR.com —
Day 1
Position | No. | Driver | Best Time | Difference | Best Speed | Team |
1 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | 29.668 | 182.014 | Team Penske | |
2 | 99 | Ross Chastain | 29.671 | -0.003 | 181.996 | Trackhouse Racing |
3 | 45 | Kurt Busch | 29.831 | -0.163 | 181.020 | 23XI Racing |
4 | 9 | Alex Bowman | 29.839 | -0.171 | 180.971 | Hendrick Motorsports |
5 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | 29.848 | -0.180 | 180.917 | Richard Childress Racing |
6 | 24 | William Byron | 29.851 | -0.183 |
180.898 |
Hendrick Motorsports |
7 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
29.851 |
-0.183 |
180.898 |
JTG Daugherty Racing |
8 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. |
29.936 |
-0.268 |
180.385 |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
9 | 6 | Brad Keselowski |
29.973 |
-0.305 |
180.162 |
RFK Racing |
10 | 10 | Aric Almirola |
29.984 |
-0.316 |
180.096 |
Stewart-Haas Racing |
11 | 42 | Erik Jones |
30.022 |
-0.354 |
179.868 |
Petty GMS Racing |
12 | 18 | Kyle Busch |
30.053 |
-0.385 |
179.683 |
Joe Gibbs Racing |
13 | 7 | Corey LaJoie |
30.059 |
-0.391 |
179.647 |
Spire Motorsports |
14 | 31 | Daniel Hemric |
30.096 |
-0.428 |
179.426 |
Kaulig Racing |
15 | 2 | Austin Cindric |
30.161 |
-0.493 |
179.039 |
Team Penske |
16 | 14 | Chase Briscoe |
30.327 |
-0.659 |
178.059 |
Stewart-Haas Racing |
17 | 21 | Harrison Burton |
30.336 |
-0.668 |
178.006 |
Wood Brothers Racing |
18 | 38 | Todd Gilliland |
30.370 |
-0.702 |
177.807 |
Front Row Motorsports |
— NASCAR.com —