NASCAR eyes a fourth automaker as RAM shakes up Truck Series competition
After RAM made its return to the Craftsman Truck Series this season, NASCAR EVP John Probst recently hinted at adding more OEMs to the Cup Series. The EVP revealed that the governing body has got a new lead from another manufacturer "out of the blue" for the Cup Series.
RAM made its comeback in the Truck Series with Kaulig Racing this season. The North Carolina-based team became the first to feature two OEMs under the same governing body. Additionally, the team features five entries in the following series with Brenden Queen, Mini Tyrrell, and Justin Haley as full-time drivers. Followed by AJ Allmendinger and Corey LaJoie as part-time drivers, along with the #25 entry with a rotating group of free agents.
RAM became the fourth OEM in the Truck Series, while the Cup Series still has three manufacturers: Chevrolet, Toyota, and Ford. Following that, the NASCAR EVP highlighted RAM's comeback to the Truck Series, which encouraged other manufacturers to join the sport. However, Probst didn't reveal the name, but he stated (via Adam Stern on X):
"We have, as recently as about two hours ago, had what was a lead come in on a new OEM out of the blue almost. So we are excited for that one, so that will obviously right now have a lot of energy from me and my colleagues as we get through that. We're always excited to welcome the possibility of a new OEM coming into our sport but are very cognizant of the investment and commitment that our existing OEMs have already made for decades with us, so we're very respectful of that as well."
Adding a new OEM to the Cup Series could increase competition, attract more investment to the sport, and attract a much wider audience worldwide. Also, a new car manufacturer might change the competitive balance in the series. However, NASCAR doesn't want to disrupt relationships with the existing OEMs while adding a new one to the sport.
NASCAR MD pointed out that the new 750-horsepower package at Bristol Motor Speedway exceeded the expectations.
NASCAR Cup Series MD Brad Morgan appeared in an interview with SiriusXM post the Bristol Motor Speedway race. During the conversation, Morgan opened up about how the 750-horsepower package performed well at the 0.533-mile short track.
The Cup Series MD highlighted that the teams were also excited to compete with the new package at Bristol. The qualifying session gave everyone an idea of what the main event was going to look like. Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney took the pole position, while Toyota filled the rest of the top-five spots.
Speaking on that, the NASCAR executive stated:
"I think all the teams were excited going in there. And from what we saw there on Saturday during practice of qualifying, we were all pretty pumped up about what we thought we were going to have on Sunday. And it actually, it actually did happen the way we planned. We went thinking we were going to see something on a Sunday."
The 505-lap race witnessed the closest margin finish since 1991, with Ty Gibbs crossing the finish line 0.055 seconds ahead of Ryan Blaney. Meanwhile, Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson led the most laps (284) and secured a third-place finish.
