Ever since NASCAR launched its new race machine, the Next-Gen car, it has been mired in controversies. The new car took away the ability of a race team to design and engineer their race car. Unlike the good old days, now all the teams had to rely on NASCAR’s affiliated third-party dealer to get the parts for their race cars.

In theory, this was supposed to help the smaller and newer teams to be competitive against the top dogs while promoting parity racing. Seeing the likes of Trackhouse Racing and 23XI Racing battling it out against top teams like JGR, Hendrick Motorsports, and Team Penske, the idea of parity racing seems to be a success. However, this one aspect is overshadowed by the tons of new problems this car has delivered.

From lack of horsepower to a dismal short-track racing package, drivers and the racing community haven’t shied away from highlighting the deficiencies of the Gen-7 car. However, Mark Martin has found another flaw, and this one isn’t performance-related but rather about the aesthetics and look of the race car. It all started with one of the racing enthusiasts sharing a photo of Tim Richmond’s bright red Pontiac race car on X.

Now Mark Martin didn’t directly call out NASCAR’s newest invention but opted for a cryptic jibe. In response to the X post, the veteran driver wrote, “Wouldn’t it look better if the number was all up on the front tire?” We all know how the number element on the Next Gen car is pushed to the front tires. The sponsor branding usually covers the door panel, and it seems like Martin isn’t a fan of this new change.

For the most part, NASCAR fans have been in unison in demanding change to the Next Gen car for better racing output. However, this time around they had contrasting views on Mark Martin’s criticism of the Next Gen’s car’s visual appeal.

NASCAR fans divided over the number placement on the Gen-7 car

Fans have been accustomed to identifying their favorite drivers and teams on the racetrack with the big numbers. But with the numbers on the side panel of the race car being pushed up front, it’s hard for the viewers to recognize the cars. To make matters worse, there are new schemes with multiple partners onboard with the teams. Therefore siding with Martin, this fan wrote, “Lol. Hell, it takes half the race to figure out which sponsor and which color all the cars are from week to week. I miss those big numbers.”

This ardent NASCAR fan didn’t even feel the need to compare the current cars to those of the good old days. Rather, he felt that race cars from the last decade even looked and performed better than NASCAR’s new race machine. “Idk about anyone else but I think the car they ran in 2011-2012 looked and even sounded better than the current car 🤷‍♂️”

The comment made by this fan was arguably the best one, as he sarcastically trolled the Next Gen race car. He made a connection between the number placement and the dismal short-track package. As we all know, the tires on this race car do not wear out easily on surfaces where it is supposed to. Richmond, Martinsville, and Bristol—all of these tracks do not produce the quality of races they once used to. “😆 yeah take away about 400 horsepower to make sure the tires don’t shed rubber down the side. Gotta protect that great number placement.”

Meanwhile, not everyone in the comments section was sold on the idea that anything and everything on the Next Gen car is inferior to its predecessors. Arguing against the popular opinion, a user on X wrote, “I think the NextGen cars look good. The numbers weren’t always under the window net. Sometimes things move on. 🤷🏻‍♂️ 🏁”

Well, more people started chiming in support of the current design. While the older generations had better performance on the racetrack, the design of the Gen-7 is futuristic, and the number placement blends well, keeping in mind the sponsors on the car are represented well. Supporting the argument made by the user in the comment above, a fan replied, “Nope…. Nope .. Nope … And no.”

Where do you stand on this raging debate? Do share you opinion in the comments section.