Car of Tomorrow frustrates Gordon

Gordon claims that the car doesn't handle as well as the current specification because of its characteristics, but also because of the limits that NASCAR has placed on what the teams can do to set it up.

"From the drivers' standpoint, like here for instance, the car doesn't have as much downforce," Gordon said.

"So you get a little bit looser getting into the corner, it doesn't turn as good when you get to the middle of the corner and you get a little bit looser off the corner because the car is heavier, it wants to carry more.

"The whole mass of the car wants to drift out on you. So it's definitely been challenging. It has been a frustrating day for me.

"Right now, I just see things that we are locked down on with this car that I feel like it's going to be a little bit too challenging (to work with), that may need to bend a little bit. I think (series director) John (Darby) and NASCAR understand.

"If they hear the same comments from enough teams, they might be willing to make some adjustments so that is why we are here and why we are going to race this car a number of times this year before we can really say what we do next."

Gordon, a five-time winner at Bristol, claims his opinion on the the Car of Tomorrow has nothing to do with how competitive he and his team expect to be with it.

"We're competitive," he said. "I'm not complaining about speed, I think we are going to be one of the best cars and one of the teams to beat when the [Car of Tomorrow] comes around to race."

As the owner of the No. 48 car of Jimmie Johnson, Gordon also believes it is still to early for the teams to commit to a full switch to the Car of Tomorrow for next season, as Darby has suggested.

"I think it is too early to commit to that," said Gordon.

"I understand from a financial standpoint, especially because I think there are a lot of teams that are behind because of the schedule that we are on with building both cars, but I think until we get through some races, it is too early.

"The teams that are excited about this car because they think it is going to bring them closer to the front, I think they are going to be surprised about how much more engineering you are actually going to need with this car.

"The smaller the box they put you in, the more work that it takes to figure out how to find the speed that you need."

Jeff Gordon is one of many drivers and team owners who have openly said they dislike the Car of Tomorrow.

However officials may still push for an ealier implementation of the car, which is the result of seven years of development from NASCAR's Research and Development Centre.