Gordon defends drop in Daytona speeds

A new aerodynamic and engine package was brought in last autumn for the superspeedway races at Talladega and Daytona's 2.5-mile tri-oval following a consesus that the racing was becoming overly processional.

The changes, including roof strips and higher rear spoilers, were introduced at last October's Talladega's DieHard 500 and proved a major success.

In an attempt to keep speeds below the 200mph mark, NASCAR has used an unpopular carburettor restrictor plate at the two tracks for several years, effectively reducing power from 750 to around 525bhp and killing throttle response.

At Talladega, the bigger hole punched in the air by the cars running the new aero package, coupled with a miniscule relaxation of the restrictor plates, made overtaking easier and helped break the record for the most lead changes in a single race. But with the rules being introduced to Daytona for the first time for next Sunday's blue riband '500', concerns are growing that NASCAR's showpiece event has been emasculated by the drop in speeds - something Chevy star Gordon disagrees with.

"I've always said that speed at Daytona and Talladega doesn't matter," he said. " People look at those speeds and those numbers and I think what we'd all rather have is a good race.

"You know, people talk about restrictor plates," he said, "and right now if we didn't have them on the car, yeah, maybe we'd go 230mph and everybody would say wow. But then they'd drop the green flag and there'd be one guy half a lap ahead. I think that nowadays, we want to put on a great race, but we want to make it safe.

"When you've got 43 cars side-by-side, all bunched up together, you don't want them all doing 200-plus miles per hour. It's more about how the cars draft and how good a race you put on. And I think we're going to put on a good one."

Ironically, the most outspoken critic of restrictor plate racing is its greatest exponent, Dale Earnhardt. The seven-time Winston Cup champ has accused drivers who support reducing speeds as 'chickens'.

The latest aero rule changes have pulled lap times at Daytona and Talladega below those seen at the non-restricted Atlanta track. Speculation is mounting that NASCAR may introduce changes to reduce speeda t the Georgia oval, but Gordon says restrictor plates are not the answer.

"Evn though we run wide-open in qualifying," he said, "we don't do that in the race. Maybe we need a new aero package there, but none of us want to see restrictor plates anywhere else besides Daytona and Talladega."

NASCAR gets a dress rehearsal for the new rules at Daytona with tomorrow's (Sunday's) non-points Budweiser Shootout. The 18-car field will race for 70 laps (175 miles) in the made-for-TV spectacular.