1. In Case You Just Tuned In, You Missed Nothing
NASCAR is a sport full of ironies. One of the most peculiar was just on display over the first two races of 2025.
Daytona International Speedway has long been a venue for tightly packed, white-knuckle racing as drivers run hundreds of miles in tight packs unable to progress without help and thus bunched up two or three-wide at high speeds. Atlanta Motor Speedway isn’t exactly the same but has more similarities than differences since its 2021 reconfiguration.
Races at either track sound like the kind you can’t walk away from to get a snack unless the caution flag is out. Instead, fans can generally catch just the last 20 laps, maybe even less, and rest assured that most of the drama is yet to come.
Consider what we know will happen at a drafting race with the current NASCAR Cup Series cars. There will be wild runs, and someone will make an ill-advised decision to block or possibly to avoid said block. Sometimes it’s both. A late crash will either lead to an overtime or happen after the white flag and bring about this season’s early topic du jour; a NASCAR decision on whether to end the race under caution. A few favorites will end up with torn up vehicles while a few dark horses will end up with unlikely top 10s.
Rinse. Repeat.
Maybe that’s a little unfair. There are certainly stories that unfold before the mad dash to the finish at superspeedways, and there are races at other types of tracks that still fit this template.
This is similar to a criticism sometimes levied at NBA basketball games; that because it tends to be a game of alternating runs, you can tune in for just the fourth quarter and that’s all you need to see. It’s not 100% true in that sport either, but it’s something NASCAR probably doesn’t want to lean into.
2. Kyle Larson Sure Didn’t Look Thrilled About Falling Just Short of a Superspeedway Breakthrough
The crazy but true stat that came from the Atlanta Cup race was that by winning the second stage, Kyle Larson recorded his first stage win ever at a drafting track. Such has been his futility at superspeedways during what has otherwise been an exemplary career demonstrating mastery on all kinds of circuits.
At Atlanta, Larson had everything going for him for once. His No. 5 Chevrolet looked fast, he made all the right moves and no wreck swept him up when he had nothing to do with it. That’s really the ideal superspeedway formula for success.
So, you’d think he would be overjoyed at finally breaking good at the type of racing that has long been a thorn in his side. Based on his post-race interview, not so much.
So close for Kyle Larson in Atlanta tonight. He brings it home P.3.@NASCARonFOX | #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/RKrVzzAZue
— Jamie Little (@JamieLittleTV) February 24, 2025
I’ve long thought the glummest driver after a good finish was Christopher Bell dating back to his NASCAR Xfinity Series days, but of course, Bell was in victory lane in Atlanta and rather cheerful as a result. Larson will almost certainly get there someday with this particular finish as evidence — even if it didn’t show much in his demeanor.
3. Everyone Is Mad at Carson Hocevar, But He Might Still Be Fine
Remember what we said about irony in NASCAR? When FOX made a big show at the end of the Atlanta Cup race about drivers waiting to, ahem, discuss some things with Carson Hocevar, the first one the cameras zoomed in on was Ross Chastain.
You may recall it was just two seasons ago that the Melon Man was the one drawing ire from his fellow competitors. There was even a direct parallel to Hocevar’s Atlanta experience as Kyle Busch also let out a series of profanities directed at Chastain over the radio at Kansas Speedway that May.
All of which is to say that a driver being at the center of an “Is he too aggressive?” controversy is nothing new. People said the same thing about Dale Earnhardt back in the day as well as (so I’m told) Darrell Waltrip. They turned out alright.
No one is ready to suggest Hocevar is or will ever be a legend of the sport, so let’s set the bar lower. When he was in the lower series, John Hunter Nemechek caused some of the same furor that Hocevar is now. Considering Nemechek’s the only Cup driver besides Ryan Blaney to finish in the top 10 at Daytona and Atlanta in 2025, he’s obviously learned something about when to push the envelope over time.
Your favorite driver is likely pissed at Hocevar right now. They could be completely justified for feeling that way. Just remember there’s every chance they’ll have moved on to swearing at someone else a few seasons from now, and Hocevar might even be on their side.
4. How Far Gone Is Too Far Gone?
The NASCAR season is crazy long, so even in the playoff era, there’s time to make up for a slow start. Winning just one race can make up for a multitude of misfortunes.
That said, the FOX broadcast team reminded us all that with two drafting tracks followed by road racing at Circuit of the Americas, there are three unpredictable races to start the 2025 Cup Series season. It’s not possible to lose a chance at the postseason this early in the year, but there is a chance you’re looking at needing to win a race to have a realistic shot at the playoffs pretty quickly.
Is anyone there yet? I’ve taken the arbitrary but defensible position that anyone behind Jimmie Johnson, who only started one of the two races, is likely in trouble with a DNF at COTA. That group includes some drivers you would expect to be in the playoff hunt, like Daniel Suarez, Ty Gibbs and Brad Keselowski. Also fitting that description is Cup Series rookie Shane van Gisbergen, but he’s a special case since the very real possibility of him winning at a road course begins this weekend.
Then there’s the special case of Chase Briscoe, currently at -51 points thanks to the L2 penalty assessed to his team after Daytona. Nothing would surprise me more than the No. 19 making the playoff field on points.
Trust that all of us pundits will be writing thought pieces on drivers who must win a race to compete for the championship soon enough, and we may have an intriguing cast of candidates in just a few days.
5. Will Fans Shell Out for a Prime Video Subscription for Just 5 Races?
It’s still a few months away, but NASCAR is about to embark on one of the more fascinating experiments in live sports streaming. From May 25 to June 22, five consecutive Cup Series races will be broadcast exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
Other sports have done similar things. The NFL, for one, has its Thursday night prime-time games on Prime Video.
The difference is that the rest of any given week of NFL contests is still available via traditional television. The only way viewers will be able to catch Cup Series races is if they subscribe.
How many NASCAR fans already have Prime Video subscriptions? Probably a lot considering the service reportedly has more than 100 million subscribers in the U.S. But that’s not everyone.
How many people will subscribe just for the early summer? How many others will be confused and angry? It’s going to be fascinating watching to see how those questions get answered.
