Ty Dillon and why NASCAR needs a Licensing System, Oct 13th

Yesterday in Vegas, Ty Dillon showed exactly why NASCAR needs a licensing system! Sure, he’s had his moments, like his in-season tournament run this year and the back-to-back stage wins back in 2019. But what if he forgot how to pitch, which might’ve cost Byron his shot at a title? Too far.

Why Some Cup Drivers Just Don’t Belong in the Cup Series

After years, he’s never had the results to back up his constant cup opportunities, and he isn’t even the worst driver in the season! Cody Ware is one of the most consistent drivers in the field, as nobody has finished in the bottom 10 or bottom 5 more than Mr. Cody Ware this year! With 11 total bottom 5 finishes and 23 bottom 10 finishes this year.

Almost double what anybody has had this season, with Ryan Blaney having eight bottom-five finishes and a three-way tie for second with bottom-10 finishes between Berry, Gragson, and Hocevar, with 14 total. There is no better example of a driver who wouldn’t be here without a proper licensing system.

The Issue with Drivers Like Cody Ware!

Sure, a lot of that is his ride, but many of the last RWR drivers show what a talented driver can do, even in some of the worst equipment in Cup. As Justin Haley, who was in the same ride last year, only had four bottom 5 finishes and 11 bottom 10 finishes last year in total, which means Ware has doubled him in both categories before the season has even ended.

Corey Lajoie had a near-even split of top 20 finishes vs finishes outside the top 30 in the seven races he did in the same car, which is a way better ratio than Ware this year. And lastly, Grala, who was almost full-time with RWR last year, only had five bottom-five finishes and 13 bottom-10 finishes. In a world with a proper licensing system, Grala or Lajoie, two talented drivers, would be in the 51 right now, and not Ware.

The 23XI Racing rookie, while impressing many with his progress in Xfinity this season, has shown he’s still not close to Cup level. As of all of 23XI Racing’s 27 total top tens so far this season, none of them have come courtesy of Herbst. Wallace has an 18.4 average finish, Reddick has a 14.5 average finish, and Herbst has a 26.0 average finish so far this year.

But the most damming comparison is that to the man who’s won 10 truck series races this year, Corey Heim! Heim has been Herbst’s teammate for 4 races this season, with only part-time experience so far this year. Similar to Herbst’s cup experience before this season. In the four races, they went head-to-head.

The man is currently breaking records in the truck series. Heim has beaten Herbst 3-1, with Heim outperforming Herbst by over 10 spots in two races this year, specifically at Kansas and Bristol. At Bristol, Herbst had 1 of his best races this season, but Heim earned his 1st career Cup Series top 10.

What Does A Proper Licensing System Look Like?

Because I can go on about all the bad drivers who shouldn’t be in the Cup, but that doesn’t solve anything. Nor does it address the concerns some would have with a licensing system to begin with. So, 1st things 1st, you can’t pay to move up a series. The primary reason for this to even exist in NASCAR is to prevent pay drivers from moving into seats that better drivers deserve. So, no way that would be allowed. The question is how it’s determined whether a driver is ready for any series.

They’d be given a series of tests. We’d average out specific metrics, such as the average time on all track types and the quality of their lane selection, required to complete these licensing tests. New drivers would be measured based on their test results, allowing for a comparison of these statistics with their actual test performance. Then determine which levels of NASCAR they’re allowed to be. Thanks a bunch for reading!