“If We Go to No Shifting…”: Denny Hamlin Warns Against NASCAR Turning Into “Slot Cars”

Recently, Denny Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. sat down to share their views on a variety of topics, one of which was to decrypt the short-track package of NASCAR. While doing so, Hamlin shot a warning at NASCAR, explaining how reducing shifting could turn the stock cars into mere “slot cars.”

Very few drivers in the modern era are as vocal as the JGR speedster. In his usual straightforward demeanor, Hamlin stated that increasing the horsepower was the only way to improve short-track and intermediate-track racing.

“When I looked at what NASCAR was proposing, for getting rid of shifting at Martinsville, we were like, ‘That isn’t going to work, our minimum RPM is going to be 5000. We are going to mat it.'” said Hamlin.

“If we go to no shifting, we’re going to run so low of an RPM through the center that it’s going to be slot cars. It’s not gonna work,” he added. Hamlin felt like shifting was something that would just wear the tires off.

More from @dennyhamlin on shifting at short tracks 🛞 pic.twitter.com/3E6jd871cC

— Dirty Mo Media (@DirtyMoMedia) December 14, 2023

In simpler words, what Hamlin meant is that obliterating shifting with low horsepower would only translate into less RPM, which, in turn, would serve more grip and less tire wear. As of now, the top-end RPM is limited and the bottom-end RPM is way too low.

Backed with no horsepower, Hamlin explained that the cars would just have terrible torque.

Denny Hamlin explains why shifting is bad on ovals

During the same conversation, the show’s host Dale Earnhardt Jr. revealed that NASCAR was supposed to change the transaxle to figure out if they could do away with the shifting.

But then again, NASCAR seemed to have removed it off their list just because it would have taken too much of their time for all the teams to make the adjustments.

.@dennyhamlin explains why getting rid of shifting isn't just a flip of a switch 🙅‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/jc38z4zQ9u

— Dirty Mo Media (@DirtyMoMedia) December 14, 2023

Hamlin then explained why shifting is a bad idea in oval racing, considering oval racing is a game of momentum and when someone misses the center or the corner, they can gain that speed down the straightaway. However, when someone shifts, they can miss a corner and still regain their momentum.

But either way, it’ll be interesting to see what strides NASCAR makes to improve the racing product where it needs to be improved. One would hope there will be strides, but they could be in both directions, forwards as well as backwards.