Given how unique NASCAR, both the racing and cars, is compared to other series, you might assume experience from other categories of motorsport wouldn’t be useful in the stock car championship.
You would be wrong, however.
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson said the fact that the competition manager of Chip Ganassi’s Xfinity Series team, Nich Harvey, is British has been beneficial.
“He’s not only the competition side of it, but he really helps the drivers as well, and especially the younger drivers, Brennan (Poole) and Tyler (Reddick),” Larson told Mobil 1 The Grid. “He brings a different perspective just based on all the experience he’s gained in all the avenues of racing he’s been a part of. So anytime you can find somebody with experience outside of stock car racing, I think they’re good for your team.”
It’s funny that Harvey said Ganassi thinks the extra track time Larson gains by running in Xfinity races is “a big piece of that puzzle for him.”
Earlier this year, NASCAR lowered the number of races that Cup drivers will be allowed to enter in lower-tier series, as many fans feel racers, such as Larson, take away opportunities from young up-and-comers. The driver of the No. 42, however, has himself said he thinks having Cup racers helps the next-generation develop.
