When NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell spilled the horsepower secrets on Dale Junior’s podcast, the racing world practically hit the pit lane in shock. The jump from 670 to 750 hp instantly became the hottest debate on and off the track. Some, like three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Joey Logano, are buzzing with optimism, calling it “directionally correct,” while Kyle Larson warns fans not to expect fireworks just yet. But Dale Junior? He has got his own take on what this boost really means.

It all started when Larson’s feedback on the increased horsepower shocked everyone. His test at Kershaw failed to impress the 2021 Cup Series champion, as he was told after the practice run that he was actually driving a car with increased horsepower. This led him to urge fans to temper their expectations. Larson said, “ I never really realized it, so yeah, so I wouldn’t say it’s going to feel different or look. I think it’ll be better, but I don’t think it’ll be it’s not fixed.”.” However, Dale Junior pushes for people not to sleep on this step forward.

Speaking on the Dale Junior podcast, the NASCAR veteran trusts the process. “It’s going to be minimal, but it’ll all be good… It will not do anything bad,” Dale Jr. said. “But what we need to realize is, okay, yes, we are not getting all of the horsepower we want, but we are moving the ship in that direction, right? This is a massive, heavy, slow-a– boat, and we’re finally seeing it leave the dock and go in the direction we want it to go. So be excited about that because if it’s 750 today, it could be 900 tomorrow, right? It might take us another three years to get there, but we may see ourselves finally get back to building these, you know, 900-hp engines that everybody seems to think is going to be the way to go.”  

For Junior, even small progress still counts as progress. In fact, Christopher Bell also echoes the same belief. Bell uses the tire example to stake his claim. Goodyear is developing new tire compounds to accommodate this 80-horsepower jump. One example is the tire testing at Iowa Speedway.

Goodyear introduced new left- and right-side tire compounds to handle the sustained load and in an attempt to meet the challenges of the track. This definitely suggests that Goodyear is prepping to provide tires that can withstand 750 hp next year while keeping other aerodynamics in place.

Christopher Bell said, ” You know, a couple years ago we were talking about the road courses, the cars were just locked down, and I can promise you last week at Charlotte Road Course, those things were anything but locked down. And you add us you give us more horsepower. It’s what we had last week. We’re going to, it’s going to be, you know, a big deal. So, I think it’s definitely a step in the right direction.”

Joining Bell was Kyle Larson’s teammate, Chase Elliott, who called it a “good effort” and said that he just wants to see what direction it takes the car. However, as Kyle Larson remains skeptical about this, Kevin Harvick also seems to be sounding off on the same concerns.

Kevin Harvick believes that the 80 hp hike is not noticeable

Amid Kevin Harvick calling out NASCAR executives and demanding honesty about the reputations of NASCAR’s secrecy, the 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion has his doubts about the recent horsepower development. Speaking on his Kevin Harvick Happy Hour podcast, the veteran remains calculated about NASCAR’s move next year.

Agreeing with Kyle Larson, he said, ” I think that listening to the feedback from the drivers, they don’t notice the difference in the power, which you know, it’s 80 horsepower on paper, right? So, 80 horsepower, and I think that says a lot about the amount of increase that it actually needs. Now, there’s a counterargument to how much it would cost for everybody to go with more horsepower than this. So, my hope is they’re looking to go more horsepower down the road as they look at how things evolve…Kudos to them for giving the cars more horsepower. I don’t want to knock it, but I don’t think anybody will notice.”

However, as Harvick hints at an increase from the 750 as well, Steve O’Donnell has already given his reason for not increasing the horsepower. It all came down to costs, along with the need to make further fundamental adjustments to other aspects of the cars, such as aerodynamics and braking, as the power increases.

This is one seemingly shared by others within the sport, namely legendary team owner Richard Childress. According to Harvick’s podcast co-host, Mamba Smith, Childress had told him earlier in the year that major power changes would cost “millions of dollars in R&D.”

However, not every track will see this increase. Only 17 tracks will be affected by this rule, and it is safe to say that Dale Junior will be watching these particular races closely.