“It’s Unfair”- Racing Fans Voice Concerns Against NASCAR’s Controversial System Robbing Drivers’ Capabilities

It is no secret that NASCAR Cup Series drivers find it extremely difficult to pass each other on the track. This holds true even if it is a track they excel at. It has led to a lot of fans being disappointed as the racing action is directly affected. Therefore, NASCAR came up with a unique “data” solution that would make racing a bit more interesting.

Apart from being one of the most competitive, motorsports is also one of the most intricate sports in the world. The volume of data that goes into and can be taken from one car after one race is massive. So throughout the season, teams collect an unimaginable amount of data to help them prepare for the following season. However, according to fans, NASCAR has a serious flaw when it comes to sharing of this data.

Data integration has revolutionized viewing experience for fans with one glaring loophole

The company that collects and integrates data from each NASCAR race for each car is SportsMEDIA Technology. SMT has revolutionized the viewing experience for fans as well with never-before-seen stats on their television screens. However, one of the issues that fans have with this data is the fact that it is made available to every single team.

Numerous types of data are captured by SMT, including camera, location, and telemetry data (speed, throttle, brakes, gears, and RPM). A real-time digital record is created using the data and distributed to different systems that provide on-air graphics. The Data Matrix Switchboard (DMX) from SMT is a data hub that gathers, processes, and delivers real-time data streams such as on-board feeds, time codes, timing and scoring, pit and location, and historical statistics. It is what makes this data integration possible.

While it may seem like a good way to keep cars on level-pegging throughout the season, it is something that fans cannot get behind. At the end of the day, if a driver or a team figures out something unique about running on a particular track, their competitors will have that data the very next race. Or worse, during the same race.

This not only undermines the driver and the team’s efforts but also makes the racing, at times, tedious, since passing even a single car becomes a massive challenge. They made their feelings clear under a Reddit post that suggested that SMT data should not be made available to all drivers.

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Fans and Cup Series driver raise their voice against contentious NASCAR system

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It was not just NASCAR fans who agreed with what the Reddit post said. Stewart-Haas Racing driver Chase Briscoe was also one of the people who commented, and he had a relatable perspective.

“I’d be all for this. Its so frustrating to keep hearing what other guys are doing when your car won’t allow you to do it,” he commented after a winless season.

Other fans believed that the whole data-sharing aspect of things took away from drivers’ abilities to figure out the best course of action on specific tracks.

“I just hate the fact that you’ll figure something out and then everybody will try it 5 minutes later. It’s unfair IMO,” commented one fan.

“Love this take. Put it back in the drivers’ hands to figure out,” wrote another.

Some fans believed that the easily available SMT data made it a lot easier for drivers to get to a higher level compared to the ones who figured out what needed to be done on certain tracks.

“This person gets it. If you want to be the best, figure out how to be the best,” one fan wrote.

Another fan believes that if the SMT data isn’t shared, much of the responsibility would fall on the spotters.  “Would also benefit teams with the best spotters which is cool,” they wrote.

The fans have made their thoughts clear over how things should work out when it comes to SMT data, but will it cause more harm than good? Or can the playing field be made more driver performance-based?

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