Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
NASCAR has quietly asked teams if they'd be interested in running the Car of Tomorrow in an exhibition race at Daytona next February - possibly the Budweiser Shootout - as a warmup for its October [restrictor plate] debut at Talladega Superspeedway. The COT will be phased in next season, starting with the March race in Bristol. The car was tested at Talladega earlier this week, and NASCAR wouldn't mind another on-track session with restrictor plates before running it in a race that counts. Many crew chiefs support the idea. Although the idea makes sense, many car owners are against it because of the additional costs it would require to prepare two regular plate cars for use in the Daytona 500, and another two COT models for an exhibition race. And, NASCAR isn't convinced it will be ready to run the entire inspection process on the COT by February. Series officials have also ruled out running the COT in Talladega's spring race. That means its first plate race will be during the Chase for the championship - a questionable time for a debut considering at least 10 drivers will be running for a title then. But NASCAR official Brett Bodine shrugged off concerns about the timing of the debut. "Talladega is a no-brainer," he said. "All you do is show up there and run wide-open. Handling isn't even an issue."(FoxSports/AP)
