Minimal change for chiefs after Talladega spoiler test (cont'd)

Another factor to consider: visibility. Some drivers have complained about not being able to see through the windows of the car directly in front of them because of the rear wing. Truex said that may not be as much of a problem with the spoiler, although it presents a different set of issues.

"I think you can see better out of the rear of the car," Truex said. "The only thing I noticed -- and we haven't drafted yet -- the cars will travel more in the rear when we're out on the track. So sitting behind somebody on pit road, you could definitely notice it was harder to see on an angle in front of the car ahead of you because the spoiler's so big on the corners and it's so wide. When we get out there in the draft, the cars will travel a lot more and the back of the car will be a lot lower in front of you, so those are all things we're going to look for and feel it out."

A total of 24 cars made the trip to Talladega for the day-long test. Kurt Busch turned the fastest single-car lap of the morning session at 189.320 mph. But late in the session, five cars -- those of Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Brian Vickers, Scott Speed and Tony Stewart -- began drafting, and immediately picked up nearly two seconds a lap.

Truex explained what that feels like, from a driver's perspective.

"You just really feel the air hit the car, and that's what we have with these cars -- with the big spoiler and the big nose and the big greenhouse of these newer cars," Truex said. "And when you pull out of line, it's like throwing out a big parachute. You just really feel the air slow the car down. But when you're behind someone, obviously it feels like it's got two engines in it. That's kind of what we feel out there."

And what about bump drafting, which was banned last fall, only to be reinstated before the Daytona 500?

"If the cars suck up well here, which I think they will, there will be plenty of bump-drafting practice going on," Truex said. "As far as losing the pack, I don't think there's any way that'll happen. I think you could probably catch the pack by yourself. I don't think losing the draft's going to be an issue. It's going to be tough to be the leader. You're not going to lead long, not like in years past, where a guy could get in the lead and if he had a really strong car, he could stay out there."

And that's fine with Truex, who felt like the racing at Daytona was the best he'd ever witnessed.

"I thought everybody raced really aggressively and really hard, but didn't cross the line and kind of policed themselves," Truex said. "I didn't see guys out of control or doing something they shouldn't have. At the end of the day, everybody did a good job of keeping their heads screwed on and not making mistakes and really going to that edge and not crossing it.

"When we come here to race, it'll be a little different. Obviously, it's a lot easier to get around here, as far as the cars handling. It's easier to stay in a big pack of cars. You can go in the middle, you can go three-wide, you can go four-wide fairly easily here. The pack is going to be big and tight, and guys are going to be able to race really hard."