NASCAR has been receiving praise all over owing to the success of the Netflix series ‘NASCAR: Full Speed’, and how the 2024 season keeps delivering action-packed races one after another. But the NASCAR world has also been actively talking about one other aspect. The officials recently abandoned practice sessions at all Super Speedways barring the Atlanta Motor Speedway, causing many drivers and insiders to call out the sport for not giving rookies adequate opportunities.

So once NASCAR gave the fans and drivers what they wanted by having a 50-minute practice session for the weekend at Phoenix Raceway, many fans thought the sport had done the right thing. But for some veteran drivers, like Chase Elliott, this makes little to no difference.

Are practice sessions truly important? Chase Elliott reveals his take

The debate surrounding the requirement of practice sessions first sparked in Atlanta, with rookies in the Truck, Xfinity, and Cup series all missing out on better finishes or getting involved in wrecks owing to a lack of practice. Naturally, many stakeholders were vocal about the need for a practice session to fine-tune things, owing to which NASCAR did so for the Shiners Children’s 500 this weekend at the Phoenix Raceway.

While many were expecting the more inexperienced drivers to fare better owing to the 50-minute practice session, when the clock stopped ticking at the end of final practice, the usual contenders were once again back on top. Amongst these was one of the Cup Series’ biggest stars, Chase Elliott, who felt practice made no difference to the finishing order at the end of the day.

Shedding light on what he thinks of the 50-minute practice session over the usual 20-minute session, Elliott shared; “I mean, it certainly gives you some more time to kind of digest things overnight but the same people are going to be good. It ain’t going to change because we had, you know, another half hour of practice, in my opinion. I haven’t seen a huge difference and the really good teams and drivers whether we have four days of practice or five minutes, or none, I don’t think it’s a huge needle mover.” 

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While practice may not be vital for some, it certainly is for Martin Truex Jr

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With the introduction of the new Camry XSE and the Mustang Dark Horse, benchmarks are being recalibrated as we get a better idea of which car is better with each race. With that said, the Fords seem to have an edge over the Toyotas in qualifying, with TRD teams eager to improve their positions within the top ten. So for Martin Truex Jr and the Bass Pro Shops Toyota, the added 30 minutes in practice proved to be vital.

During the pre-race interviews, Truex Jr reflected on the importance of the session – “It’s nice to have a practice under our belt you know, to be able to try a few things and it made a difference for sure, it got better. Just ran out of time, ran out of things to change and time so hopefully we can make some more adjustments here before tech and this afternoon and you know, get it right for Sunday.” 

The practice session helped Truex Jr understand where he stands against the competition, with the #19 Camry XSE slotting into 12th place on the final practice order. It seems that even veteran drivers are divided on the vitality of practice based on how their cars are performing, as Elliott’s Camaro ZL1 has been competent throughout the first few races.

While it is true that the usual contenders will come out on top owing to their consistency, what makes practice important is not just how valuable it is to veterans, but also to the newcomers looking to get as much time behind the wheel as possible.

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