The NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen was another typical road course race, but in more ways than one. Shane van Gisbergen won by a massive margin, and the racing itself was lackluster, to say the least.
Steve Letarte, broadcaster for NBC, wasn’t upset about the mundane action on the track. What he saw, and it was in all four races at The Glen last week, is a track not being used the way it was designed.
On Inside the Race, Letarte broke down what he saw as a major issue in the NASCAR races. Do track limits need to be enforced?
“So, I hate track limits that have to be officiated,” Steve Letarte said after the race. “Because I like tracks that you should just stay on the track. I didn’t think it mattered. Now, I am Team Get-Them-Back-on-the-Race-Track-at-Watkins-Glen. I don’t love the Watkins Glen that I see. … I think Turn 1 is not as great of a corner with no exit respect or responsibility. You just blow the exit. I think the carousel is a much easier corner, being able to just go driver’s left.
“I also think Turn 6 is going- let me add, that I think the Zilisch, SVG wreck between the last two corners happened because they left the track, and the Austin Hill wreck with Michael McDowell happened off the race track. Now, both could have been avoided, we can talk about who’s at fault. What I’m saying is, I’ve never driven a lap at Watkins Glen. I can analyze what happens between the white lines.”
NASCAR Cup Series needs something to improve road course product
Steve Letarte has spent decades in NASCAR in various roles. He has seen the sport change and develop into what it is today. With how much the Next Gen car kind of stinks on road courses overall, is there any way, outside of changing the car itself, that can fix it?
Last year, NASCAR and Watkins Glen did make a change to the track. Basically intense rumble strips were put down in Turn 1 to prevent drivers from using the runoff area. Well, they didn’t pay any mind to that last year or this year.
So, what’s the solution for NASCAR? Letarte doesn’t know exactly, but something has to be done.
“I’m not trying to penalize them. I just want the driver to feel like being on the race track is the preferred line,” Letarte continued. “So, we as an industry have to come up with a way that’s not more dangerous to the driver, not devastating to the race car; we’ve seen the turtles that destroy the race cars, that’s silly, too. So, I don’t know the answer. I don’t know if it’s a strip of Astroturf that’s like ice, you know? … I want to see race cars stay on the race track because I think it will be a better race!”
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