Hello, motorsports enthusiasts! Welcome to another edition of Seven Points with Kobe Lambeth and Kenneth Lee Jr. We will provide a weekly discussion each Wednesday on various topics in motorsports. Most content will focus on NASCAR but other racing series will be discussed as well.
Lambeth is a student at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, who is a Communications major with a concentration in mass media and minor in journalism. He is a contributor for The Podium Finish and RockinghamNow. Lee is a graduate of Tuskegee University with a bachelor's degree in Communications, an alumnus of the NASCAR Diversity Internship Program, and an Associate Producer in Content Development for the Motor Racing Network. 1. McLaren Racing announced its intentions to enter the NTT IndyCar Series full-time in 2020, forming a partnership with Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and Chevrolet. The team will be renamed Arrow McLaren Racing SP. What are your thoughts on this new alliance? How will it affect the driver market? Lambeth: After tons of speculation, McLaren Racing is officially joining the NTT IndyCar Series full-time. Partnering a team such as Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports is a smart decision. The team is a series regular and they know the championship inside out. This should be beneficial for the folks on the McLaren side of things. I am very curious to see how the rebranded Arrow McLaren Racing SP squad builds their program moving forward. This move pretty much sent IndyCar silly season into pure chaos. Will James Hinchcliffe return to the team? Without a doubt, Honda likely does not want to lose one of their factory drivers to rival Chevrolet. The domino effect is likely to put Marcus Ericsson on the market and lead to a long list of phone calls from drivers seeking the pair of McLaren seats. The next few months will be interesting as driver lineups fall into place for the 2020 season. Lee: People have been talking about this happening so much it only appeared to be a fantasy to many. However, it has finally happened and in 2020 we will see McLaren Racing as a full-time entry. They’ve picked a great team in Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports to help them get started. Of course, the biggest question now is what will happen to James Hinchcliffe since he is a Honda factory driver. I’m sure they don’t want to lose a driver but it will be interesting to see how the driver lineup shapes up for 2020. 2. Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton were unable to secure a playoff berth this season. Are you surprised that neither full-time KBM driver could find their way to victory lane? Lambeth: If you told me that Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton would miss the playoffs, prior to the season, I probably would not believe it. Gilliland and Burton have found success moving up through the ranks, but 2019 has been a disappointment by KBM standards. In my opinion, both drivers need more time to develop in the Truck Series. This team always has a truck in the Championship 4 at Homestead. It will be strange not seeing one in contention, at the end of the season. As we look towards the 2020 season, we need to keep a close eye on this particular team. Will they bring back Todd Gilliland and Harrison Burton? Or will KBM move in another direction? Only time will tell. Lee: It’s been a tough season for the KBM team. If you told me at the beginning of the season BOTH and I mean both trucks wouldn’t make it in, I’d be calling you crazy. However, it’s quite surprising when you think of KBM, you automatically think the team will have at least one truck in the Championship 4 in Miami. It’s been rough on both Todd and Harrison this year, despite the amount of pressure they’ve faced. They’ve been solid but not KBM good. Next year, hopefully Kyle understands that he has two very young drivers with a ton of potential but may just need more time. 3. The 2019 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series playoff grid: Grant Enfinger, Ross Chastain, Brett Moffit, Johnny Sauter, Stewart Friesen, Austin Hill, Tyler Ankrum and Matt Crafton. Who is your early championship favorite? Lambeth: I think Ross Chastain and Niece Motorsports might be the early championship favorites. The most improved team in the Truck Series continues to show up to the track with significant speed and determination to win. Despite a disappointing end to their Michigan race, I believe that the entire group will be tough to beat. Call me crazy but I think Tyler Ankrum could be the championship dark horse. The rookie has progressed well throughout the season. Nobody really had him winning at Kentucky but he did. If he can limit the mistakes and continue growing as a driver, anything is possible for the reigning NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion. Lee: With the playoff grid set after Michigan, it’s a tie between Grant Enfinger and Ross Chastain for me as championship favorites. I think Grant’s year long consistency should pay off for him and the ThorSport entry. Of course, you can’t forget about Chastain, who captured three wins in 2019. I think Ross and Niece Motorsports have found a nice rhythm all season and it should continue in the playoffs! 4. Austin Cindric won his second-consecutive NASCAR Xfinity Series race, putting together a spectacular drive on his way to victory at Mid-Ohio. How much growth has Cindric shown as a driver, in comparison to last season? Lambeth: Stability. Driving for a single team in a full season is a better situation than jumping back and forth between three cars, like Cindric's 2018 schedule. When Brad Keselowski's truck team closed, Cindric basically had no choice but to jump up to Xfinity. He probably moved up the ladder a year too soon. However, in 2019, Cindric is putting together more consistent runs and making fewer mistakes. He is developing into a solid driver. It does not surprise me watching the road course ace take the checkered flag at Watkins Glen and Mid-Ohio. I believe that Cindric has potential to sweep the road course schedule, claiming Road America and the Charlotte Roval too. Looking towards the future, it will be interesting to see if he can win an oval race. Lee: Austin Cindric has grown tremendously as a driver in the last year or so. He put on a world class drive at both Watkins Glen and Mid-Ohio. A full-time team definitely helps his situation because quite clearly they’ve found a great level of chemistry this season. He’s been a solid road course driver since he started and will keep improving as time goes a long. Once again, this may give him an advantage when he gets to the playoffs when Xfinity hits the Roval. While there is Christopher Bell and Cole Custer, I think he’s got a good chance of being in the Championship 4. 5. IMSA driver Jack Hawksworth made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut last weekend at Mid-Ohio, driving the No. 18 iK9 Toyota Supra for Joe Gibbs Racing. In the end, the British racing driver earned a 15th-place finish. How would you rate his stock car debut? Lambeth: In my opinion, Jack Hawksworth did a solid job in his shock Xfinity debut. For someone who has never driven a stock car, he transitioned to the foreign discipline seamlessly. I love crossovers in motorsports. One of my favorite parts is watching a driver challenge themselves to a form of racing that is entirely different than what they are used to. The AIM Vasser Sullivan Lexus driver represented IMSA well and even won Stage 2. With a single NASCAR race now under his belt, I would be interested in watching the British racing driver give it another go. Lee: People were very excited about Jack Hawksworth making his debut in the Xfinity Series. Coming home with a 15th-place finish at Mid-Ohio, you can chalk that one up as a pretty solid day for the British driver. It’s great to see “road course ringers” pop up here and there, especially during this time of the year for the Xfinity Series. He had a solid day and I’m sure he’ll be getting the nod to run a road course again. 6. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Thunder Valley for racing under the lights at Bristol Motor Speedway. Why do you always look forward to the Bristol Night Race? Lambeth: There is something special about night racing at Bristol. The cars glow beautifully under the lights. You will see close racing, contact and occasional tempers flaring. For me, it always signaled the end of summer, before heading back to school. This is the perfect way to end the summer with a bang. It's Bristol Baby! Lee: Easily one of my favorite races on the calendar, just like many other race fans. Bristol at night is a spectacle and one that I have on my bucket list to attend in person. As the summer comes to a close, this is one of the best ways to end the summer and make the transition into the fall! 7. Red Bull Racing demoted Pierre Gasly as the Frenchman returns to Toro Rosso, due to a string of disappointing performances. As a result, Alexander Albon got promoted to Gasly’s seat, becoming Max Verstappen’s new teammate. Do you think Red Bull made the right decision? Are you a bit surprised that Daniil Kvyat did not receive the promotion? Should Red Bull regret letting Carlos Sainz walk? Lambeth: To be honest, nobody should be shocked by Pierre Gasly getting the boot from Red Bull Racing. With the team losing valuable points to Ferrari in the constructors championship, the team had to make a tough decision. Gasly has not been able to get comfortable with the team and perform similar to Max Verstappen's level. We all know that Formula 1 drivers are often compared to their teammates. This is a cruel, cutthroat sport. The pressure is enormous on these individuals to perform at a very high level. Sadly, Red Bull ran out of patience with Gasly and decided to give Toro Rosso driver Alexander Albon an opportunity to drive a competitive car. In my opinion, Albon is a talented, young driver with lots of potential to be a decent F1 driver. However, I am afraid that he was promoted too soon. In the past, he was dropped by Red Bull as they gave up on him. Following an impressive 2018 Formula 2 campaign, the team brought him back into the family and gave him a seat at Toro Rosso. I expected a driver swap at some point, but I figured that it would be Daniil Kvyat instead of Albon. I am surprised that Red Bull chose an inexperienced, rookie driver over Kvyat's F1 experience. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to learning if Albon can accomplish everything that Gasly could not. Going back to Gasly, the Frenchman is not a bad driver. He has talent but the Red Bull deal just has not worked out so far. You cannot win a GP2 championship and come close to winning the Super Formula title without having talent. It would be such a shame if he fizzles out of F1. Although the team will never admit it, I believe they made a grave mistake by letting Carlos Sainz slip away. The McLaren driver is having a career season, leading the midfield charge. He is within striking distance of overtaking Gasly in the standings. We can only wonder what if Red Bull kept Sainz in the family. Lee: The Formula 1 news that shook the world wide web as the iconic series heads into the annual summer break. I had a feeling that Red Bull was going to have to make a decision either at the end of the season or before the summer break comes to a close. I think Red Bull made a good decision overall because this just opens the door for them to choose between Albon and Kvyat at the end of the season. If Albon doesn’t perform as well as they think he may do it could lead to Kvyat returning back to that seat. Unfortunately, Gasly was in the line of the cutthroat industry. In all honesty, Gasly is a solid driver but just didn’t do enough for Red Bull. Perhaps he stays around Formula 1 or heads elsewhere. Going to another series isn’t always a bad thing, but it just shows how much you really have to perform when you are given such a great ride. I actually think Red Bull has a 50-50 thoughts on if they made a mistake in letting Sainz go away. There was no telling that he was going to dominate the midfield in the McLaren. Of course, kudos to him and the wonderful season he’s having right now. Bonus Point: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team Rick Ware Racing announced their plans to enter the 2019-20 Asian Le Mans Series season. They intend to field a two-car LMP2 program with the Ligier JS P2-Nissan. Also, the team could run a modern LMP2 car in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, which would be a massive boost to the category stateside. Any thoughts? Lambeth: Wow, this was a very unexpected yet exciting announcement. I have been following the Asian Le Mans Series for a while, even during the days when they could barely break car counts into double digits. This championship has come a long way over the years. It is very rewarding to see continued growth year after year. With NASCAR team Rick Ware Racing joining the series, I have a good excuse for staying up late here stateside in the winter. It should be interesting following their journey on the Asian tour. As for a potential IMSA program, the series needs as many LMP2 entries as they can get. Performance Tech and PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports need more competition. Lee: This is a true 2019 headline. I’m very shocked to see that this is even happening. I suppose Rick Ware Racing is really interested in making a push in another series and expanding their motorsport resume. I’m not sure where this will lead for these drivers but it will be something to follow with the two-car program.
0 Comments
|