“You’re just going to have the best guys winning.” Denny Hamlin declared this after the conclusion of Sunday’s race in Bristol. The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran happens to be one of that elite group, being one of only three drivers to win multiple races this season. His teammate, Christopher Bell, was the cream of the lot – winning at Atlanta, COTA, and Phoenix in a row. Bell’s three-peat victory was unheard of since the Next-Gen era started – that should give you a hint of how the rest of the season will move.

NASCAR rolled out the Gen-7 car in 2022 expressly to raise parity. With less horsepower and more mechanical grip, drivers with less experience could easily maneuver the cars. However, that era is evolving as the dominators are getting an edge over the rest again.

NASCAR experts expect a slim glory field

Well, the Next-Gen era broke some records in 2022. Chris Buescher’s victory at the Bristol playoff race that season marked the 19th different driver to win in 29 races. This number tied 2022 with the 2001 season for the most in the modern era. This was all possible due to raised parity in the field. Even in 2024, we witnessed 18 different drivers taking checkered flags in the NASCAR Cup Series. However, we are barely two months into the 2025 season, and a drastic shift is visible.

The usual leaders of the series are finding novel ways to outmaneuver the rest of the field. Christopher Bell’s three-peat, Denny Hamlin’s Martinsville and Darlington glory, and Kyle Larson’s dominance in Homestead and Bristol all testify to that. So, experts are expecting the rest of the season to be at the beck and call of these select leaders.

In a recent episode of PRN Live, Performance Racing Network president Doug Rice raised a poignant question. With the likes of Bell, Hamlin, and Larson ruling the show, he said: “We have five different winners right now in nine races. Ten is the over-under. Are we going under this season for winners – 10, or over?” This starkly contrasts last season’s scenario, where the number was way above 10. NASCAR veteran Kyle Petty lamented about the age when they could be flabbergasted by the number of drivers breaking into Victory Lane. He said, “What happened to the years when we were like, we’re going to go 19! We’re going to go 20!”

Then PRN Director of Marketing and Industry Operations, Alexis Erickson, chimed in. She echoed Petty’s sentiment by talking about how their predictions would be bolder in the past as they used to say, “A winner is going to be shut out of the playoffs.” Now, the mood has flipped completely. Erickson continued, “I am going to go over, but not by much… I’m thinking probably more like 11, 12, maybe.” 

However, the facts still point to the powerhouse teams’ advantage. Joe Gibbs Racing’s off-season overhaul is witnessing wildly positive results. For example, Denny Hamlin‘s jackman, Joel Bouagnon, has a slick technique that led to a blistering 8.3-second pit stop in Darlington. They are making the most of the jack, which is one part of the Next-Gen car that is not sourced by NASCAR. So Petty said that the streak by the frontrunners will likely continue: “You know what, I’m going to say it’s going to be one of those streak years like this, so I’m going to say no…I’m going to take the under.”

Petty’s sentiment was also echoed by Hamlin himself in his recent Actions Detrimental podcast, where he said, “2022 when this [Next-Gen car] came out, we had 17 different winners… those days are done.” Hamlin also claimed that this is just a result of a lack of passing on ‘pure tracks’ such as Darlington and Bristol, due to less tire wear, leading to the best drivers just managing their tires and staying in the lead, like Kyle Larson did for 411 laps at Bristol.

As experts tout a slimmer victory field, let us dive into what the upcoming race looks like. With several winners in the past and a new sponsor, Talladega will probably drum up a lot of hype.

Trending

1

Ex- NASCAR Driver Announces Split From Wife of Over 10 Years With Exciting News for His Fans

2

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Limps Across the Finish Line as JR Motorsports Outmaneuvers 21 YO Phenom

3

After NASCAR, Tony Stewart Continues to Sever Ties With Nearly $40 Billion Giant

4

Joe Gibbs’s Downed Grandson Bounces Back with Denny Hamlin Revealing the Secret Behind His Comeback

5

Richard Childress’s New NASCAR Driver Makes Feelings Known on Bristol as Flop Grandson Hints Career Change

Will Dega break the trend?

Being the biggest superspeedway oval on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, Talladega already has a lot of attention. The 2.66-mile oval has pushed many drivers to Victory Lane in the past. Richard Brickhouse won that first race — and that was his only career win. Following him, 52 different winners and 28 multi-time winners followed. Dale Earnhardt Sr sits atop this chart with 10 victories, but the number of single-time victors is also huge – 24. So will the upcoming Dega race on 27th April break the leaders’ hot streak? Time will tell. Either way, the race is going to be popular, especially with a new sponsor on board. The title sponsor of the Talladega spring race was Geico since 2015, which held the naming rights. That has changed for 2025.

Jack Link’s took over as the title sponsor of this race from Geico. Now, we are looking forward to the Jack Link’s 500 race in two weeks. When the US-based snack company announced its arrival last October, Talladega Superspeedway president Brian Crichton showed his enthusiasm. “Joining up with Jack Link’s for our spring Cup Series race is the perfect match for Talladega Superspeedway and allows us to have some creative ideas throughout the partnership. I’m looking forward to hanging out with Sasquatch, and also the amazing team at Jack Link’s, as the possibilities are endless for what we can do with this prestigious brand.”

With the major half of the Cup Series schedule looming ahead of us, we are yet to see how the parity situation will pan out. If the experts are right, then it would be a battle of the leaders!