2025 NASCAR February Review – Why Atlanta is a Better Superspeedway Than Daytona and Talladega

After the season-opening Clash at Bowman Gray, the real season kicked off with two back-to-back Superspeedway races: Daytona and Atlanta. Superspeedways in NASCAR are exciting because of the close pack racing, unpredictability with the crashes, and random names at the front. Despite this, watching a Daytona and Talladega race is noticeably different from watching an Atlanta race, and there is a good reason for this. Atlanta races better as a Superspeedway than Daytona and Talladega, and the key word to remember in this is: RACES.

  For any newcomers to NASCAR, how do Daytona and Talladega races go? Daytona and Talladega are tracks where the field is bunched together in mainly one giant pack racing two-or-three wide. Cars are lined up back bumper to front bumper for the entire race, and the only way to make passes is if one line gets greater momentum from more pushes or simply greater pushes. To generate a third line, a driver needs many other drivers behind him to create enough speed to get to the front and lead the pack. This issue is a lot bigger with the Gen 7 car because it has so much drag that drivers describe jumping out of line to create a third lane as unleashing a parachute. This is why drivers save fuel for 85% of a Daytona and Talladega race, because the only way to gain track position is to save fuel and take as little fuel on pit road as possible. All of this leads to the biggest issue with Daytona and Talladega; they are based on luck more than skill. Cars are restricted on power and only require keeping the foot on the gas pedal. This makes the racing feel illegitimate since the drivers have little control over their destiny. The racing package also leads to a lot of wrecks at the end of these races due to drivers pushing hard, trying to find their way at the front. More often than not, drivers will leave a Daytona or Talladega race after being involved in a wreck. This package needs a lot of work at Daytona and Talladega, but it needs no fixing at Atlanta.

  In 2022, Atlanta entered a new era where it was no longer the iconic worn-out surface which produced a huge challenge for the drivers, but it was now a mini-Superspeedway. After three years of racing on the new surface configuration, it is clear Atlanta is still a great track. Not just that, Atlanta is also now the best Superspeedway in NASCAR because of how it races. For lack of a better term, drivers are not truly racing at Daytona and Talladega since all that is required at both tracks is keeping the foot on the gas, but at Atlanta, drivers do not have to keep it in the gas the whole time. The cars are on edge in Atlanta, making it so the drivers have to let up in the corners. This allows the drivers to work for their runs without having the aid of ten or more cars behind them. With driver skill playing a role, it also allows for more spread-out pack racing. This lessens the chance for big wrecks and increases the chances of drivers finishing where they deserve to. For example, look at the winners of each Atlanta Superspeedway race: Byron, Elliott, Logano, Suarez, and Bell. Aside from Suarez, all the drivers that have won at new Atlanta are top-tier drivers who deserved to win the race. Races in Atlanta play out more naturally and end in less chaotic ways than Daytona and Talladega, making them more enjoyable and less frustrating to watch. All in all, Atlanta is more skill-based and in the drivers’ hands than Daytona and Talladega, which is why Atlanta races better as a Superspeedway.

  Technical Advisor – Scott Korowotny