NASCAR mailbag: Is Darrell Wallace Jr.’s rookie season fulfilling expectations?

SB Nation’s NASCAR reporter, Jordan Bianchi, answers your questions every week about the latest news and happenings within the sport. If you have a future mailbag question, email jordanmbianchi@gmail.com.

Is it too soon to think Darrell Wallace Jr. is like so many other young drivers who has one good race, then doesn’t do anything else and will just live off that moment for the rest of his career? Everyone was all excited for him and Richard Petty after the Daytona 500 but what has he done to justify that excitement since? I like Darrell but I was hoping and expecting more.

--Trevor

If you were expecting a rookie driver with a moderate-sized team in the midst of rebuilding to instantly be a world beater, then your expectations were out of whack. Because of the volatility of restrictor-plate racing, it is important to also take everything that happened coming out of Speedweeks with a grain of salt instead of attempting to glean definitive conclusions.

Although there was no doubt an abundance of enthusiasm following Wallace finishing runner-up to Austin Dillon — made all the more so by Wallace and his mom having an emotional post-race embrace, him further breaking down during his press conference, Petty’s spirited walk through the garage searching for his driver — it did not change the fact Wallace and Richard Petty Motorsports were facing significant hurdles this season.

Not only is Wallace a first-year driver in the Cup Series, but RPM underwent a manufacturer switch, entered into a new technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing, and relocated shops. This is a lot for any team to overcome, especially so for a team lacking both sponsorship and resources.

And yet Wallace is still atop the Rookie of the Year standings, has run better most weeks than he’s finished — he had top-20 efforts going at Atlanta Motor Speedway and ISM Raceway ruined by circumstances beyond his control — and has injected much energy into an organization that badly needed it. With the caveat that there will be inevitable bumps along the way, there is a lot to like about what the No. 43 team has already accomplished and where it is headed both this season and the years ahead.

For a long time I used to think NASCAR changing so much about its fundamental structure was what’s caused the drop in TV ratings and attendance and overall decline in popularity. But recently I’ve come to believe NASCAR actually hasn’t changed enough. What I mean is that I look at the schedule and it’s mostly the same even though many fans are begging for it to be blown up. If this is what fans badly want, why the reluctance? It’s like the one change NASCAR won’t give us. Don’t you think this would go a long way to making NASCAR popular again?

--Jack

Race fans rarely agree on anything. Yet, near universally race fans are clamoring for a schedule featuring fewer intermediate speedways and a greater number of short tracks and road courses.

To NASCAR’s credit, it has made strides to satisfy this demand by restructuring the Cup Series’ 10-race playoff schedule with the addition of a second short track race and shifting from using the oval at Charlotte Motor Speedway to its 17-turn road course. The sanctioning body deserves a big gold star for its efforts.

Still, few would argue additional changes aren’t needed. Specifically, pertaining to NASCAR getting away from how many mile-and-a-half tracks clutter the schedule — 11 of 36 points races — and with too many tracks having second dates that shouldn’t hold them. The sport also isn’t helped by its overly lengthy season spanning from mid-February to mid-November.

In a perfect world, NASCAR would, as Jack suggests, take a stick of dynamite to the Cup Series schedule. Then, starting with a clean slate, it would condense its calendar by getting rid of the redundancy, add a midweek race or two during the summer, increase the number of short tracks and road courses. Such a sweeping overhaul would go a long way to recapturing the attention of those who’ve turned away.

The reality, however, is the sanctioning agreement with its tracks through 2020 prevents a seismic overhaul for a few more years. Until then, everything remains largely as is despite the widespread consensus that mass adjustments should’ve already occurred.

With Jimmie Johnson struggling and not having a sponsor for next season, do think he’ll be forced to retire? This feels like this might be the Matt Kenseth situation all over again where things beyond his control end up pushing Jimmie out of his ride before he’s ready to hang it up.

--Traci

Comparing Kenseth and the circumstances he encountered a year ago to what Johnson is now facing is understandable considering the similarities. And like Kenseth, Johnson is adamant that he wants to continue racing and is not ready to retire any time soon despite the uncertainty now surrounding him.

The one noticeable difference related to their respective situations: Hendrick Motorsports doesn’t have a young, inexpensive driver in its pipeline who’s shown worthy of a shot in top-tier equipment. Were Erik Jones not under contract to Joe Gibbs Racing and needing to be in a JGR car for contractual reasons, there was a good chance Kenseth could’ve kept his seat at least another year. But Jones being a viable alternative performance-wise on a reduced salary virtually cemented Kenseth’s future with JGR, essentially forcing the team to move forward without him even though most within the team would’ve preferred he stay.

There is no young driver staring over Johnson’s shoulder. Now, had William Byron not been promoted to the Cup Series, maybe a miniscule chance exists that Hendrick jettisons Johnson to save money? Even then, Johnson is a pillar of Hendrick, has a contract through 2020, and his seven championships and close relationship with team owner Rick Hendrick gives him a lot of leeway to weather a slump and sponsorship concerns.

Add everything together and Johnson will be back next season unless he decides otherwise.