“ NASCAR stock car racing is predominantly an oval-based series ,” said Dale Earnhardt Jr., sharing his blunt verdict on the inclusion of road courses. The veteran grew up at a time when the NASCAR calendar only had one such track, Riverside, as ovals dominated the stock car racing series. Then came Watkins Glen, and despite the venue’s addition, Junior admitted that “ being a road course racer wasn’t important ” at that time. For a driver making their way into the sport, succeeding on short tracks, running late models, and full-bodied cars on ovals was the route.

Fast forward to the present day, and Shane van Gisbergen has been dominating NASCAR’s road courses. While the sport has evolved since the ’50s, Dale Jr. believes the Next-Gen car doesn’t deliver at such venues, despite NASCA

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