Rules Package for Daytona Leaves Questions About Competitiveness

Copper Hill, VA(January 28, 2013) — Everybody should be excited about taking a Late Model to Daytona International Speedway during the week of the Daytona 500, right?

While some drivers and teams are very excited about the UNOH Battle at the Beach for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, others are not so sure what results the rules package will have on the competitiveness.  Of course, the majority of drivers and races that we cover here on RACE22.com are of the Late Model Stock Car variety.

The term Late Model is a very generic term and describes a wide variety of Late Model type race cars both on asphalt and on dirt.  While the majority of those cars are straight rail types that compete as “Super Late Models”, the division we cover the most is a perimeter chassis.  In this race at Daytona, NASCAR has created a set of rules to try and accommodate both types of chassis.

However many of the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car competitors are worried that the straight rail chassis’ will have an advantage.  According to many of the Late Model Stock Car teams, the straight rails are a more “purpose built” race car and have weight in all the right places to give them an advantage over the much heavier Late Model Stock Cars.  One multi-car team owner feels strong enough about the questions involving the rules package that he’s staying at home.

“I’m just not sure about how the rules will play out with these two totally different types of cars racing against one another,” said Jamie Yelton, owner of Fat Head Racing.  “I can’t, in good faith, tell my clients that we can go down there and have a chance to win.  No one knows how these rules are going to play out, so we’ll watch it and see what happens.”

Yelton’s Fat Head Racing team has become one of the top driver development programs in Late Model Stock Car racing.  Yelton’s program has helped spawn the careers of drivers such as ARCA Racing Series winner Brennan Poole as well as fielding cars for former NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Steven Wallace and mutli-time UARA winner Ronnie Bassett, Jr.  Yelton was set to enter as many as three cars but has since decided to stay at home and get his cars ready for the upcoming season locally.

Yelton isn’t alone in his thoughts about the rules apparently.  NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Champion Lee Pulliam is reportedly looking to rent a car from chassis builder Jay Hedgecock for this one event.  Hedgecock, like other Late Model Stock Car chassis builders, also builds straight rail cars and Pulliam is likely to be behind the wheel of his house car come February 18th.

Two time and defending NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Tennessee State Champion, Nate Monteith is also planning to utilize a straight rail chassis at Daytona.  Monteith, who has won the championship the last two seasons at Kingsport Speedway, is planning to step aside this season and has youngster Blake Jones filling his seat.  Monteith will still compete in select races such as the Daytona and the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown in the Late Model Stock Car but will compete in several straight rail races as well.

Another Late Model Stock Car regular who may compete with his straight rail car in this race due to the rules package is NASCAR Whelen All-American Series South Carolina State Champion Anthony Anders.  Anders conducted a test for NASCAR with both his Late Model Stock Car and straight rail chassis at Greenville Pickens Speedway during the summer.  He is planning to take both cars, but like many believes that the rules may favor the straight rail chassis toward the end of the race.

While some Late Model Stock Car guys are going ahead and taking their regular rides to Daytona, some other Late Model Stock Car drivers who don’t have the option of taking a straight rail just simply aren’t going.  No one knows what the car count will be as it’s still too early to even get an entry list but one things for sure that the rules package for this race will make things interesting with different types of chassis’ and drivers from all over the country.