While several NASCAR fans and critics believe that the sport is declining steadily, reigning Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney feels just the opposite. In a recent episode of The Kenny Wallace Show, the Team Penske icon opened up about his frustration when people blame NASCAR for its apparent declining popularity.
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“It grinds my gears a little bit when people just say, oh, the sport’s just going downhill,” he said. “Like, what are you talking about? It’s going uphill! In the negative world that we live in, I guess you’re going to have that all the time.”
“NASCAR’s doing it right. And I think they are pushing really hard for growth. They have been doing a great job. I’ve even seen it from the start of my Cup career how they’ve been progressing to the heights that they’re at now,” he added.
Blaney feels like NASCAR should keep their drivers on their toes by continuously tweaking the rules to make racing even more challenging. According to him, other organizations like the NBA and the NFL do the same too. After all, it is their job to bring out the best in their athletes, and simultaneously promote them. Blaney concluded by expressing how excited he was to see the heights that NASCAR is going to continue to grow to.
2021 Cup champion Kyle Larson resonates with Blaney’s opinion
In the same interview, Wallace asked the 2021 Cup Series champion Kyle Larson what he thought of the current situation of NASCAR. Even Larson agreed that there are a lot of negative people who are constantly downgrading the sport for no reason.
“I believe NASCAR is in a great spot. They are really thinking outside the box,” said the Elk Grove native. “I think for so long NASCAR just did the same thing year after year where they’re trying to shake up the schedule a lot, which I love.”
According to Yung Money, the Next Gen car has brought about a new business idea for the team and the owners. Every car today is almost identical in terms of components and specs. Hence, to win races, the teams need to work together more on strategies than anything else. This unmistakably brings the teams and the drivers closer. Larson also pointed out that NASCAR is a lot more forward-thinking now than it once used to be and when everyone works together as a team like they already are, it could only mean good things are about to happen.
