HAMPTON, Ga. -- The Daytona 500 delivered a wild finish as William Byron won from seventh place due to a crash on the final lap. It also revived a hot topic among NASCAR Cup Series drivers.
What is the state of Cup Series superspeedway racing in 2025?
"It's just bumper cars," Kyle Busch said after winning Saturday's Truck Series race. "It's 200 mile an hour bumper cars."
What is better -- pure competition or entertainment for the viewers? Should drivers be able to make more moves as the field gets spread out, or should they run three-wide in a close pack and potentially spark multi-car crashes?
Will NASCAR make any changes to the rules package amid an outcry from drivers and hardcore fans? If so, how will the sanctioning body account for the differences between Atlanta, Daytona, and Talladega?
"Trying to balance that is going to be really, really tough," Denny Hamlin said about the future of superspeedway racing Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
The speed, the skill and the thrill.
That's the magic of @DAYTONA. pic.twitter.com/28mO4BrlRP
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 17, 2025
To Hamlin's point, there doesn't seem to be an answer that suits everyone right now.
Drivers have indicated that they don't control their own destiny in this current era of superspeedway racing. They are riding around at partial throttle for the vast majority of the race so they can spend less time on pit road getting fuel.
They are more along for the ride than they are out there making moves in the pack using lessons learned from past superspeedway aces. Being in the right spot to avoid the inevitable crashes is more of a priority than using a slingshot move to make a pass.
And these crashes are inevitable considering that once they can make it to the end of the race on fuel, they start making ultra-aggressive moves in the tight pack. This has been a recipe for disaster in recent races.
Welp, we knew this was coming. #NASCAR #DAYTONA500 pic.twitter.com/QA03BiHCjB
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 17, 2025
"I've talked to people about it -- we had less wrecks when we (tandem raced)," Ricky Stenhouse Jr. said Saturday. "If you don't want to have any wrecks...but the field was spread out. But we also got four wide finishes at the same time.
"I don't know what the right thing is."
Stenhouse has extensive experience racing on superspeedways. He has four Cup wins split between Daytona and Talladega -- two in the Gen 6 car and two in the Gen 7.
The experience continues with the Nationwide Series -- now the Xfinity Series. Stenhouse made seven starts at Daytona and three at Talladega in multiple styles of cars. He battled for wins with some of the best superspeedway racers in NASCAR history.
One race in 2010, in particular, featured him battling Dale Earnhardt Jr., Brad Keselowski, and Joey Logano on the final lap. Stenhouse finished third in that particular race, one that delivered excitement to the drivers.
"I remember in 2010 when we ran the new style car for four races in the Nationwide Series, back then, that race was tough," Stenhouse said. "You couldn't hold it wide open the whole run. Your tires were worn out. You're sliding around.
"And to me, that's what made superspeedway racing, I feel like, so good at Daytona for a long time, is there was a balance of drafting and holding it wide open."
While this era of superspeedway racing was compelling to Stenhouse, he also noted that it may not have been the most enjoyable for the fans. This highlights another part of the conversation that must be addressed.
What the drivers want may not be the same thing that the fans want. It may not be what NASCAR wants or what the TV partners want.
The TV partners and NASCAR may want the current style with three wide racing and fuel saving. This bores many drivers but also makes the race look more compelling on TV. That can help boost the ratings for some of the biggest events on the schedule.
"I think it's time to change the superspeedway package in general," Christopher Bell told Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass. "Like the entire rules package, start from ground zero. The way that the races have turned into fuel conservation 90% of the race, it's time to try something different.
"I would love to get the superspeedway package back to what it used to be. The Daytona 500 is a crown jewel because of what it once was. Now, the way that the superspeedway races are is not how it should be."