Cole Custer to Test Drive the Upcoming NASCAR Next Gen Car at Dover Next Week

NASCAR’s Next Gen car will finally see the light of day for testing this season. A test for the new Cup Series car is scheduled to take place at the Dover International Speedway on Monday and Tuesday next week.

This will follow NASCAR’s doubleheader race weekend at the track for the Cup Series.

NASCAR officials have confirmed that Cole Custer of Stewart-Haas Racing will drive the test car on August 24 and 25 at the Dover Speedway in Delaware.

More production parts will be used in the first test for the Next Gen car since the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic.

NASCAR had originally planned for the car to make its debut for the 2021 season. But they were forced to push back their plans to the 2022 season after scheduled testing was affected.

The industry is still dealing with the impact of COVID-19. An earlier test, scheduled for March 16-17 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, was also canceled, as a result. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Clint Bowyer was entrusted to run that test.

Austin Cindric will also test the Next-Gen car

Officials also confirmed that IMSA team Action Express Racing will be running laps with its own prototype of the Next-Gen car on Monday. The test will be run at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course. It will be conducted by Felipe Nasr and Austin Cindric.

Cindric won Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at the Daytona road course. Cindric is also the current championship leader in the Xfinity Series.

“The Action Express test allows a sports car team to learn about the architecture of the Next Gen car and explore any opportunities to adopt new technologies,” expressed John Probst, Senior VP of Innovation and Racing Development, NASCAR.

“The test also benefits NASCAR. It helps us check the durability of parts, helps with tire development and gives us data from a road course test,” Probst added on the development.

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Multiple drivers tested the car in the past

The testing for the Next Gen car began in October last year and four tests have been conducted since. The first test in October 2019 was conducted by Austin Dillon at Richmond Raceway.

The next by Joey Logano at Phoenix Raceway in December, followed by youngster Erik Jones at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in January 2020. The latest test was conducted by William Byron at the Auto Club Speedway in March.

The new Next Gen cars are expected to feature improved aerodynamics and downforce packages as well.

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