CONCORD, N.C. — Before the start of the NASCAR season, there was a word that was often uttered by industry members when describing the supposed impact of the Next Gen car: Parity.
Team owners, drivers, executives and crew chiefs pointed to the potential for the new car to equalize the competition to an extent. All teams — big or small, established or new — were staring into the same void of the unknown together, and with common parts manufactured by single-source suppliers rather than teams, the gaps between them would supposedly shrink.
This was theory until Sunday, when Ross Chastain shoved his way into first place to give a young Trackhouse Racing its first-ever victory early into the Next Gen era. The win was proof that more team parity is, in fact, reality.
