NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin recently stirred up social media with a playful critique of racing at Bristol Motor Speedway. Following the Food City 500 on April 13, 2025, Martin shared a humorous tweet featuring a video of a car navigating an enormous speed bump, using the situation to poke fun at Bristol’s commotion — or lack thereof.
The tweet quickly went viral, coming in the wake of a race where Kyle Larson dominated by leading 411 of the 500 laps to secure his second win of the season. While Larson’s performance was impressive, the race drew criticism for its lack of competitive battles and limited passing opportunities, issues that have plagued NASCAR’s NextGen car since its introduction in 2022.
Mark Martin Speaks What Fans Are Thinking
Martin’s video showed exactly what happens when a car hits a ridiculously large speed bump — chaos. While he was obviously joking, his post hit on something NASCAR fans have been grumbling about for years: the NextGen cars make passing nearly impossible at short tracks like Bristol.
“Maybe if we had this at @ItsBristolBaby today? What do you think?” Martin said on X.
“Humpy would be all over this” one fan replied.
Another fan wrote: “Man anything would have helped.”
“Easier way to pass 😂😂😂 ” added someone else, pointing out how hard it was to overtake at Bristol.
The Food City 500 was held on Bristol’s all-concrete surface, which returned in 2024 after two years of experimenting with dirt races. Despite high hopes for better competition on concrete, the race once again highlighted challenges with NASCAR’s spec-based NextGen car.
The problem? Every team now runs almost identical cars. As driver Ty Gibbs put it after finishing third: “It’s gonna be hard to pass because everybody’s got the same exact stuff. … That’s what they wanted.”
When a respected racing legend like Martin speaks up, even with a joke, people listen. His silly speed bump suggestion actually sparked serious conversations about what is wrong with today’s races.
The cars do not wear out their tires like they used to. They stick to the track too well because of fancy aerodynamics. And that means races often become follow-the-leader parades where track position matters more than driver skill.
Even though Martin was just having fun, his post highlighted real issues that NASCAR needs to fix. Some think they should give the cars more horsepower, others want softer tires, and many believe that reducing the downforce would help.