There have been regular conversations in recent years ranking the best drivers in the world. Landon Cassill has weighed in with some interesting comments about Formula One and the NASCAR Cup Series.
Cassill provided the comments on April 30. He clarified that he wasn’t saying that one racing series has more talented drivers than another. His purpose was to focus on the versatility factor and create conversations that could help people enhance their knowledge of different motorsports series.
“NASCAR drivers are the most versatile professional racing drivers in the world,” Cassill tweeted on April 30. “More surfaces, racing styles, track types, than any series. F1 driver is a true specialist-focused on singular style of racing, while a modern Cup Series driver must be a jack of all trades. Discuss.
December 14, 2008: Carl Edwards defeated Michael Schumacher in a head-to-head race in the Race of Champions at London’s Wembley Stadium.
Edwards had already beaten Jaime Alguersuari in round 1 but lost to David Coulthard in the semi-finals.
“I would say IndyCar drivers are more versatile than F1 drivers, V8 supercars, Rally, and probably most other forms of motorsports,” Cassill added while responding to another person. “But not more versatile than a Cup Series driver. Not debating who is ‘better’ or ‘more talented’ or ‘outstanding.’ Just focusing on versatility.”
Obviously, there are areas where the Cup Series drivers could make some progress. They excel on ovals, but the races at Circuit of the Americas and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course showed that they don’t particularly race with respect when a win is on the line. Instead, they have used their cars as battering rams during past events.
The Cup Series Has a Unique Schedule
GettyCup Series drivers race at Texas Motor Speedway.
To Cassill’s point, the NASCAR Cup Series has a unique schedule. There are 36 points-paying races, multiple track configurations, and different package setups that rotate throughout the season.
The 2023 season, in particular, has four standard superspeedway races split between Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway. There are two races on a “mini-superspeedway,” Atlanta Motor Speedway.
The list continues with short track races at Bristol Motor Speedway, Martinsville Speedway, and Richmond Raceway. Then there are road course races at a variety of tracks and intermediate events on ovals ranging between one mile and two miles in length.
Many of these track styles are fairly standard for the Cup Series drivers, but there are also other unique additions in the dirt race at Bristol Motor Speedway and the upcoming inaugural street race in Chicago. There is also the exhibition Busch Light Clash which takes place inside the LA Memorial Coliseum.
The IndyCar Series Has its Own Unique Schedule
GettyIndyCar Series drivers race at Texas Motor Speedway.
The Cup Series schedule is one of the most varied with its mix of traditional ovals, superspeedways, road courses, and a dirt track. Though the IndyCar Series has its own unique schedule that tests the drivers on a weekly basis.
There are only 17 events on the 2023 NTT IndyCar Series schedule, but they present an interesting variety of layouts. There are street courses, such as Nashville and St. Petersburg. There are road courses like Indianapolis and Portland.
The IndyCar Series schedule also includes some interesting ovals. There is one race at Texas Motor Speedway (1.5 miles), the Indy 500 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval (2.5 miles), a doubleheader at Iowa Speedway (.894 miles), and a trip to World Wide Technology Raceway (1.25 miles).
Like the Cup Series drivers, the IndyCar Series drivers have to adapt to a variety of tracks while battling for the championship. The big difference is that they have to be far more technical while avoiding contact that could knock multiple vehicles out of the race.
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Landon Cassill Highlights ‘Most Versatile’ Drivers in the World