Denny Hamlin was happy about the new short-track package being slightly better than what the NASCAR Cup Series ran in 2023 after winning the pole for Sunday's race at Phoenix.
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He sure has to be biting his tongue after spinning out during the race and ending the day in 11th place. His teammate Christopher Bell, meanwhile, won the race.
Although the racing was much different from last fall's season finale, it still felt as if it lacked something.
Hamlin says he has a much easier solution to finally fix the short-track package for good.
According to Dustin Long from NBC Sports, Hamlin said increasing horsepower would be the easiest improvement for all racing in the Cup Series.
It would be so easy to do, he said, that it could be done with "one phone call."
Drivers in the Cup Series have long pleaded for an increase in horsepower. But NASCAR has made cuts to it, describing it more as a cost-cutting move and a way to keep the competition close.
That's all good — but at some of the tracks, all the cars are the same and the product sucks. You hardly see passing, and a driver can lead the whole race without ever having to face competition.
Long asked Hamlin how he would handle the increase in horsepower in his role as owner of 23XI Racing.
"You just call up Doug Yates (who oversees Ford's engine program) and (Toyota Racing Development) and say we are going to go back to our old 750 plate. It can be before next weekend, and they said it won't change any of the durability that they've got. It can be done with one phone call with no additional money," Hamlin said.
"It is hard to pass because we are all in the gas so much," Hamlin continued. "You have to get us out of the gas, either through the tire or the horsepower. That combination is what makes passing so difficult. The more you can get us out of the gas — which means if we have more horsepower, we have to let off sooner — that gives the opportunity to overtake for the car that's behind. Fifty horsepower, while it may not be a game-changer, any horsepower gain from here on out will be an advantage for passing."
Goodyear brought a new tire to the race in Phoenix, and that didn't do much to help passing. The sport has gone the wrong direction in that regard, because these tires don't wear out whatsoever, no matter what NASCAR or anyone says.
Hamlin has been in the sport long enough to understand what would make the racing better or not. It's clear adding more horsepower wouldn't be a bad idea.
