For years, NASCAR has had an issue with adapting to new automotive technology in a timely fashion. After all, the sport has only recently adopted such road technologies as unleaded fuel and fuel injection, common innovations that we take for granted these days. But a new partnership with technology giant Google may change that reputation and help bring NASCAR into the future before any other racing series.
Today, the company and sanctioning body announced a partnership with Google Racing, based on the same technology that has allowed Google to create a safe, self-driving car. The five Google Racing cars, sponsored by such varied Google properties as YouTube and Android, should be on track by the middle of next season.
According to the company, self-driving road cars have logged over 200,000 safe miles in years of testing around the state of California, with little to no input from the humans in the drivers' seat. The technology accounts for other cars and pedestrians on the road, allowing the car to automatically compensate for a changing environment. But adding this ability to avoid obstacles and incidents to the track has provided multiple drivers with the opportunity to restart their racing careers.
Sources within the team tell us that Google has sought not to bring in current Sprint Cup drivers, despite the availability of such potential free agents as Kurt Busch, A.J. Allmendinger, and perhaps even Denny Hamlin. Instead, to prove the efficacy of the technology, Google is looking to bring in drivers who have struggled at the Sprint Cup and Nationwide levels (preferably, drivers with a habit of hitting other cars or the wall) to "operate" the cars.
Steve Wallace, currently unemployed after a lengthy career for his father's team in the Nationwide Series, is reportedly at the top of the list, while John Wes Townley has also attracted some attention. But beyond that, the driver picture for the five-car stable seems hazy at best.
A handful of gainfully employed drivers are linked to the new organization, hoping for a chance to re-establish their Sprint Cup careers. The success or failure of Sam Hornish Jr.'s two-race return to Cup with Penske Racing will likely decide his fate in joining the team, while Brendan Gaughan and Elliott Sadler, both of whom have taken turns in Richard Childress Racing's fourth car this season, have merited consideration with their Cup runs this season as well.
Meanwhile, two independent teams have also put in phone calls to the Google Racing division in hopes of garnering sponsorship.
Inception Motorsports and driver David Stremme seem to have a good shot at folding their team into Google Racing, based on Stremme's past accomplishments, while Robby Gordon has said that his calls to the company have gone unanswered.
An anonymous Google Racing representative has said "(Gordon) will want us to do off-road stuff, and we're just not ready for that. Give us a few more years before introducing right turns and dirt into the equation!"
To anybody mentioned in the article that happens to read it, thanks for being a good sport; we're only playing around, no offense intended. Heaven knows you're all far more successful in the sport than I would ever be. To everyone else, have a happy April Fool's Day!
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