Chase Elliott & Christopher Bell Give Polar Opposite Takes, Sitting Right Next to Each Other, as JGR Driver’s “Gutless” Comment Draws Attention

There’s no harm in admitting that the NASCAR Cup Series races are no longer as entertaining as they once were. And the reduction in horsepower might be the biggest reason for it. After realizing that the 550 horsepower package has ruined the races for several years, NASCAR finally announced that the cars will run at a 670 horsepower package. But is 670 enough?

It’s true that the decision of horsepower is affected by driver safety concerns. However, at the same time, many drivers have been requesting an overall increase in speed in order to bring back the thrill of the sport. And since then, constant debates surrounding the topic have made it to the headlines on multiple occasions.

Drivers like Tyler Reddick and Denny Hamlin had earlier suggested that an increase in speed might help make the races less predictable and, hence, more entertaining. Moreover, champion Richard Petty said “I feel sorry for the drivers that have to drive right now,” due to the lack of horsepower in today’s cars.

What does Chase Elliott think about the changes in horsepower

Earlier this year, NASCAR announced their latest aerodynamic rules package that was aimed at increasing the car speed by reducing the downforce by almost 30%. While asking Chase Elliott and Christopher Bell about the effects of the aero changes, a Loose is Fast Podcast reporter questioned if a change in horsepower can make a difference.

To this, Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott replied, “Yeah no, no. It’s not gonna change it a whole lot. I don’t think. Not unless they narrow the tire or something or take 3 or 4 inches off of the width of the tire. No, probably not in my opinion.”

Furthermore, he added that a drastic shift like an engine change cannot shrink the tire. He feels like certain other physical changes to the car might be the best way to go about it.

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But Christopher Bell has a different take on it

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Sitting right beside Chase Elliott, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell shared his take on the controversial horsepower debate.

Disagreeing with Elliott’s opinions, Bell said, “Yeah, I guess from my standpoint, everything that we’re doing is just a bandaid for the gutless engines that we have today. So, we keep taking downforce out because we try and get less grip in the cars. But if we put horsepower in it and I don’t think we’d had any problems today that we have.”

Just like the two, fans and drivers across the sport are divided on the issue of the Next Gen cars’ horsepower. However, almost everyone would agree that the sport is in need of more speed. After all, there is a reason why the governing body has been working so hard on the aero packages and other ways to improve car speed.

READ MORE: Denny Hamlin Proposes an F1-Inspired “Hybrid Technology” Idea to Solve NASCAR’s Horsepower Crisis