CONCORD, N.C. — This is the time of year when you look back and say, “Dang, where did 2021 go?”
By the time you read this we’ll have crowned most all the champions and be in the middle of banquet/celebration season … which is good for the soul if not the waistline!
So what did 2021 teach us in terms of racing?
It taught us that nothing can stop the sport, truth be told, not even a foreign-born pandemic, mass (and mask) hysteria and significant changes in the way we go about our daily lives for much of the year. There was some trouble with the mandates early, specifically here in North Carolina, but for the most part there was a gradual return to something close to normality.
The big story in NASCAR was the return of Kyle Larson to the ranks of the Cup Series. All he did was win nine races (pending the championship race as of this writing) and look as dominant as Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson at times.
When he wasn’t winning Cup Series races, he was winning every sprint car, midget and late model race he could find, which speaks to me on a basic level because the cars are so different and the tracks are as well.
Hendrick Motorsports returned to the prominent organization it’s been for the past 25 years, with four drivers winning races and two (Larson and Chase Elliott) qualifying for the Championship 4. There was a return of the rancorous past at times this season, always good for ratings and buzz, which is even better from an interest point of view.
The NTT IndyCar Series saw Scott Dixon try to tame the young guns and nearly succeed again, only to be outdone by Spanish driver Alex Palou, which made team owner Chip Ganassi smile because both Dixon and Palou drive for him.
The big story, to me, was the return of Helio Castroneves to the ranks of winners — and the ranks of four-time Indy 500 victors. That is a small, small club, featuring just A.J. Foyt, Al Unser, Rick Mears and now, Helio.
As is my habit every year, I watched every lap of the 2021 500, and Helio put on a clinic in the final circuits. Fence-climbing, running around everywhere after it was over … pure Helio. Had to love the buzz and excitement it generated too, even if the traditional winner’s ceremony was delayed.
The Indy cars put on a whale of a show at the new Music City GP on a street course in downtown Nashville, too. Marcus Ericsson won it despite having two of his four wheels off the ground early in the race on the tight confines of the course. He tracked down race-long leader Colton Herta to win the inaugural event.
One of the intriguing aspects to the season was the last full campaign of Corvette Racing’s tenure in the GTLM category of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Series. For 2022, the venerable ’Vettes will race in the GTD Pro Series while efforting a switch to the GTE FIA WEC series and GT3. That’s a big change, but it will allow the marque to continue competing on the international level. Le Mans wouldn’t be Le Mans without them — at least in my opinion.
It’s been a year of fits and starts, mostly due to the pandemic, but it’s been a good year, nonetheless.
Every time the calendar flips, it’s a new beginning in this sport. Tony Stewart is going to field two NHRA entries next year, which is going to be interesting. Is there room in NHRA for both John Force and Tony Stewart? You bet, and it will be interesting.
F-1 will have a new car for ’22, and that will have some growing pains, I would wager.
The World of Outlaws, USAC and the other open-wheel, short-track organizations will be back in business to provide the nightly battles for which they are known. NASCAR has a new car too, and the NextGen cars will require a teething period before we get to know them well. It will be fun to watch, how the strategies change with single-lug wheels, composite bodies, etc.
The year just past had its highlights and 2022 will provide its own. I’ll be here to see it all along with the SPEED SPORT staff.
Merry Christmas and happy new year. We’ll see you on the other side.