Defending Cup winner at Watkins Glen, Shane van Gisbergen, isn't fully sold on NASCAR's recent changes to the track. The changes were made as the series felt compelled to curb drivers from exploiting the open area beside the track to overtake or maintain track position.

Ahead of this weekend's race, NASCAR added new barriers at Turn 1 and to the Carousel section after Turn 5. The Carousel will feature a long tire wall that will be six meters away from the track's edge at the corner. As the drivers get back on the throttle, the tire wall tapers, with the distance reducing to 1.5 meters.

While in conversation with Speedcafe, SVG voiced his concern over these new additions. He has praised the changes made at Turn 1, but has voiced his concern when it comes to the carousel.

"The exit to the Carousel is a bit of a worry," he said. "The angle that it comes back on—my experience with those [tire] walls is that they grab cars and spit them out. I don’t like the look of that, but smarter people (than me) have come up with those things.” 

"In road racing, you want a barrier that either absorbs the impact or guides the car along it. This setup, especially how close it gets to the racing line, feels like a trap," the Trackhouse Racing driver added.

Given SVG's incredible road course mastery, his comments quickly gained the attention of NASCAR.

NASCAR defends the changes to Watkins Glen

In response to SVG's comments, NASCAR explained that the changes to police track limit violations were made keeping the safety of the drivers in mind.

NASCAR's senior director of racing communications, Amanda Ellis, said, "We had to find a way to police the track limits that didn’t involve subjective officiating or constant penalties. The tire wall provides a physical boundary that forces drivers to respect the racing surface."

Ellis acknowledged the views from drivers before adding that the tire barriers aren't the only changes. "Some drivers may like it, may not like it. SVG has let his thoughts known, but that won’t be the only change going into Watkins Glen," she said.

"We’re also going to have some tyre packs in Turn 1, and those are essentially in the run-off areas. If you go back and you watch parts of the race last year, the drivers were really starting to use that run-off area."

NASCAR believes that this will help the drivers in setting a limit and not rely on post-race penalties. Besides his concerns, SVG has also praised NASCAR for taking a step towards drivers' safety.

At Watkins Glen, SVG will do triple duty for the first time, as he will race in the Truck Series, the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, and the Cup Series. 

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!

Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Yask Kotak