NASCAR officials are considering replacing the rear wing with a spoiler on Sprint Cup cars, with the aim of enhancing the race-ability of the “Cars of Tomorrow.”
“We are currently meeting with drivers and owners to discuss a number of options,” NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston said. “Going back to the spoiler is one of them under serious consideration. We'll make an announcement in the coming weeks.”
Wind tunnel testing of the spoiler design is expected in the coming weeks, although it is unlikely that NASCAR would effect such a major change before the season-opening Daytona 500 next month.
Concerns have been raised by NASCAR teams since the introduction of the CoT, which replaced the traditional rear spoiler with a wing, that a resulting lack of downforce has had a negative impact on the racing. However, Poston said this consideration of a switch back to a spoiler is not related to recent incidents in which CoTs became airborne, most notably at Talladega last April, where Carl Edwards' car flew into the safety fence on the final lap, resulting in injuries to seven fans in the grandstands.