Corey Day came to NASCAR racing with glittering credentials in the dirt-track sprint car world.
His adjustment to pavement racing in a full-bodied stock, however, has been difficult, to say the least.
Driving the No.17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet—the organization’s first full-time entry in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series since 2005—Day has drawn his share of criticism for on-track incidents from both fellow competitors and motorsports pundits.
On the positive side, Day has finished fourth, fifth and ninth in his last three starts and is eighth in the standings.
On the other hand, Day has left a trio of Hendrick-affiliated JR Motorsports drivers in his wake. At EchoPark Speedway, he slid up the track and collected Justin Allgaier and Carson Kvapil.
At Circuit of Americas in Austin, Texas, Day turned Connor Zilisch off the nose of his Camaro moments after Zilisch had passed him for fourth.
But those who know Day’s talent from the sprint car side of things urge patience with his acclimation to stock cars.
“From me versus Corey, it was similar but different,” said reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson. “I’m very fortunate, I believe, to have gotten my start in NASCAR the way I did. I came in, signed with Chip Ganassi Racing, ran a year of K&N East, which was only 12 races.
“The next year I transitioned into the Nationwide Series at the time (now NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series) with Turner Scott Motorsports. For me, I though that was great, because I didn’t have the pressure, I felt like, because I was with an underfunded team, if you want to call it that…
“I also went through a lot of the things I feel like (Day is) going through on that side of it, but social media wasn’t as big back then as it is now, and I wasn’t racing for a top team that everybody expected me to go light the world on fire and automatically live up to these big expectations.”
Larson thinks that, given time, Day will learn what he needs to learn.
“It’s a lot to take in in a very short amount of time, especially when you feel the pressure of being at Hendrick Motorsports,” Larson said.
Gio Scelzi, who competes against Day in 410 winged sprint cars, likewise believes Day’s talent will prevail.
“When he goes from 410 sprint cars to ARCA cars, Trucks and (O’Reilly Series), it’s a completely different realm, and nothing you do in a sprint car—how it handles—translates whatsoever to a stock car,” Scelzi said.
“I think he’s doing a great job, and I think you guys will have a treat seeing how he develops over the next 10, 15 years.”
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