Category: friday feature

By David G. Firestone

1-#56 Tricon Garage Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 1

GPA: 4.00

2-#67 23XI Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 3

GPA: 3.77

3-#19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 9th of 10

Number of Schemes: 5

GPA: 3.40

4-#54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 10th of 10

Number of Schemes: 5

GPA: 2.80

5-#45 23XI Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 5th of 10

Number of Schemes: 15

GPA: 2.65

6-#23 23XI Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 4th of 10

Number of Schemes: 18

GPA: 2.56

7-#43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 6th of 10

Number of Schemes: 13

GPA: 2.56

8-#11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 2nd of 10

Number of Schemes: 12

GPA: 2.56

9-#42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 7th of 10

Number of Schemes: 12

GPA: 2.23

10-#20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 8th of 10

Number of Schemes: 14

GPA: 2.01

11-#84 Legacy Motor Club Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: 2nd of 10

Number of Schemes: 2

GPA: 2.00

12-#35 23XI Racing Toyota Camry

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 7

GPA: 1.43

Next Week, The Final 2025 Paint Scheme Leaderboard.

By David G. Firestone

1-#22 Team Penske Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 6th of 16

Number of Schemes: 9

GPA: 3.67

2-#01 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 3

GPA: 3.67

3-#2 Team Penske Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 5th of 16

Number of Schemes: 15

GPA: 3.63

4-#51 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 10th of 16

Number of Schemes: 17

GPA: 3.61

5-#17 RFK Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 12th of 16

Number of Schemes: 25

GPA: 3.50

6-#15 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 4th of 16

Number of Schemes: 2

GPA: 3.50

7-#21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 10th of 16

Number of Schemes: 11

GPA: 3.36

8-#12 Team Penske Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 2nd of 16

Number of Schemes: 21

GPA: 3.33

9-#60 RFK Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 3rd of 16

Number of Schemes: 27

GPA: 3.32

10-#6 RFK Racing Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 8th of 16

Number of Schemes: 18

GPA: 3.26

11-#4 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 5th of 16

Number of Schemes: 16

GPA: 2.91

12-#38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 12th of 16

Number of Schemes: 15

GPA: 2.87

13-#34 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 16th of 16

Number of Schemes: 17

GPA: 2.77

14-#41 Haas Factory Team Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 11th of 16

Number of Schemes: 11

GPA: 2.70

15-#66 Garage 66 Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 14th of 16

Number of Schemes: 15

GPA: 2.38

Next week, the Toyota Leaderboard.

By David G. Firestone

1-#87 Trackhouse Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 1

GPA: 4.00

2-#40 JR Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 1

GPA: 4.00

3-#13 Kaulig Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 8th of 20

Number of Schemes: 1

GPA: 4.00

4-#5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 6th of 20

Number of Schemes: 5

GPA: 3.54

5-#9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 5th of 20

Number of Schemes: 12

GPA: 3.45

6-#7 Spire Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 12th of 20

Number of Schemes: 13

GPA: 3.21

7-#24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 9th of 20

Number of Schemes: 11

GPA: 3.18

8-#16 Kaulig Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 14th of 20

Number of Schemes: 11

GPA: 3.17

9-#8 Richard Childress Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 2nd of 20

Number of Schemes: 15

GPA: 3.12

10-#78 Live Fast Motorsports Ford Mustang

Rank Last Year: 3rd of 20

Number of Schemes: 5

GPA: 3.00

11-#50 Team Amerivet Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 1st of 20

Number of Schemes: 2

GPA: 3.00

12-#91 Trackhouse Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 1

GPA: 3.00

13-#44 NY Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 4th of 20

Number of Schemes: 13

GPA: 2.88

14-#10 Kaulig Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 18

GPA: 2.78

15-#62 Beard Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 17th of 20

Number of Schemes: 5

GPA: 2.74

16-#3 Richard Childress Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 10th of 20

Number of Schemes: 15

GPA: 2.69

17-#88 Trackhouse Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: N/A

Number of Schemes: 9

GPA: 2.52

18-#48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 20th of 20

Number of Schemes: 7

GPA: 2.44

19-#1 Trackhouse Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 14th of 20

Number of Schemes: 22

GPA: 2.37

20-#99 Trackhouse Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 15th of 20

Number of Schemes: 16

GPA: 2.08

21-#33 Richard Childress Racing Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 18th of 20

Number of Schemes: 2

GPA: 1.85

22-#47 HYAK Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 11th of 20

Number of Schemes: 14

GPA: 1.81

23-#71 Spire Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 16th of 20

Number of Schemes: 14

GPA: 1.76

24-#77 Spire Motorsports Chevy Camaro

Rank Last Year: 19th of 20

Number of Schemes: 12

GPA: 1.56

Next Week: The Ford Leaderboard.

By David G. Firestone

So this will be my last regular post before December Paint Scheme Leaderboard. I desperately need a break. I’m physically, mentally, and emotionally burned out. As much as I love doing this, I have to pull back at times, and this is one time. Working in the grocery industry during November is taxing and exhausting. That’s why I take a content break in December.

The Paint Scheme Leaderboard will return in December, but I’ve decided to cancel the Paint Scheme Awards. I’ve grown to hate the Awards, and haven’t been happy with it for some time. It’s officially dead. I’m also not bringing back Wheel Reviews, for the same reason.

Moving forward, Friday content won’t be up every Friday, as I have bitten off a lot more than I can chew with all my projects and work. When it comes to The Driver Suit Blog, I want quality, not quantity, so I will focus on better columns, not more. The Paint Scheme Tracker, and Paint Scheme Grades will not go anywhere.

With that, 2025 comes to an end, and I look forward to 2026.

By David G. Firestone

I was about ready to call it a year on The Driver Suit Blog. I’d written what I thought was my final posts for the year. I was already to enjoy Chicago during the Christmas season. Then…it happened. The day drag racing fans thought would never arrive…arrived. 16 time Funny Car champion John Force announced his retirement on Thursday.

Love him or hate him, it’s impossible to underestimate the impact he has had on drag racing, or even the impact he had on auto racing. His dominance in the 1990’s and 2000’s will never be replicated. Hell, 1992 and 2003 were the only seasons he didn’t win the NHRA Funny Car Championship between 1990 and 2004! 13 Championships in 14 seasons. Then, he went on to win three more, 2006, 2010, and 2013.

He also has 157 NHRA National Event wins. To put that in perspective, you could take the next two drivers, Ron Capps and Robert Height, add their collective win totals, and only get 141 wins, and 6 championships between the two. No matter how you feel about him as a person and as a driver, he is the GOAT in the NHRA. Nobody in Formula 1, or IndyCar has as many wins, and only Richard Petty has more wins in NASCAR.

This news hit me hard. I’m an NHRA fan, and an amateur racing historian, and for me, this is the end of an era. Looking at auto racing across the board, John Force was the last of the old school, hard-nosed, tough as tungsten drivers. He fought through crashes and injuries that would have killed lesser men. The fact he came back after his 2005 wreck is amazing, but the fact he went on to win three more championships shows that he is tough as tungsten.

Sadly, Father Time waits for no man, and his wreck last year would be the final time he raced in the NHRA, or ever. He’s now focused on his family, and spending time with his grandchildren. With Britney Force’s retirement, there is no longer a full-time Force in John Force Racing, for the first time in…ever. Like many racing fans, I wish John the best in his retirement, and he is missed, and will be missed!

By David G. Firestone

I had a short column on Formula 1 moving to Apple Tv+ scheduled for last week. I wish I had time to push it back, Last Friday, I woke up to devastating news. Uni-Watch, the sports uniform blog that was instrumental in creating The Driver Suit Blog announced that they would be shutting down as of November 1st.

The reasons given were primarily financial, with an internet wide loss of revenue from advertising. The webmaster was also dealing with health issues. Though selling the site was, at one point, an option, things changed, and it was not an option anymore.

This hit the Uni-Watch community very hard. We are a small but dedicated group of sports uniform enthusiasts. We supported Uni-Watch through thick and thin, and this news hits us hard, especially me.

If, in 2012, I hadn’t decided to write a column for Uni-Watch, I wouldn’t be where I am today. The Driver Suit Blog wouldn’t exist, and I wouldn’t have had some of the opportunities. I wish the best for all the staff, and the readers. Via con dios Uni-Watch.

By David G. Firestone

Greetings. The construction projects continue. Earlier this year, I discussed the moves F1 is making in 2026. Specifically, the notion that Monaco has been moved, and the Canadian Grand Prix will take over Memorial Day Weekend, and run opposition to the Indy 500. I talked about how it’s going to fail, and that most American fans will watch the Indy 500, but I also thought with the ABC/ESPN family of networks, they would do a decent number.

Well, that’s officially out the window, as, starting in 2026, Apple TV+ will be the exclusive home for F1 broadcasts. Yup, rather than stay on ABC/ESPN, where they can get big numbers, F1 chose to go to Apple TV+. So instead of being part of basic cable, where you can get many more viewers, you choose a streaming service that has no momentum or buzz whatsoever.

Seriously, outside of Ted Lasso, Fraggle Rock, Peanuts, and Friday Night Baseball, you’ve never heard of any of these programs. They could be amazing, but they have no buzz whatsoever. While I get that Apple TV+ needs a boost, and this is great for Apple, will this work out well for F1? Well, I promise that they WILL lose viewers, that’s a given.

This highlights a bigger problem in modern broadcasting. The rise of paid screaming platforms. With all the paid platforms, I have to choose which platforms I can afford. I’m missing out on contest simply because I can’t spend $300 a month on streaming and YouTube. I’m also not going to spend money on a platform for one specific show. I have Peacock and Prime TV, since they are free with deals. I also have Netflix, as my family has it as well. Other than that, I don’t have the funds for anything more.

While it has been shown that the new Neilsen rating system is seeing many sports telecasts getting better ratings, this doesn’t really apply to streaming. Formula 1 had the chance to take over as the top racing series in America, and they chose the bargain basement version of a streaming service to do it. Am I shocked? No, this is the way broadcasting has been going for years. Am I disappointed? Yes, this will hurt ratings in the long run. It will run fans off. It’s happened in NASCAR, with Prime TV, and it will happen here.

Source Cited:

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/apple-becomes-broadcast-partner-for-formula-1-in-the-united-states.gtHt80hxS64ZMYxi36wAB

By David G. Firestone

Given all of the construction issues going on in and around my house, I wasn’t going to post this week at all. I need a break, and unless something major happens, I won’t be posting next week. With that said, something happened this week that warrants all of our attention.

To quote Jayski:

“USA Network receive a .84 rating with 1.717 million viewers for Sunday’s South Point 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The race was the number 2 sporting event of the day and the best viewership since Darlington on Labor Day weekend.”

Oh really? Second most watched sporing event of the weekend? Bullshit! First off, any of the NFL games on Sunday did more viewers than NASCAR at Las Vegas. Second, and I can’t believe I’m saying this…THE NHRA OUT DREW NASCAR BY 348,000 PEOPLE! Seriously, the Texas NHRA FallNationals was the most watched racing event of the weekend, and the most watched NHRA televised event of all time!

For those who want to cry about how NASCAR is on cable, whereas the NHRA was on broadcast, save it. Both NASCAR and the NHRA were running opposition to the NFL, and their numbers are so much better than either one. Here is the fact of the matter. NASCAR has proven that they are not the draw they once were. Between the NHRA and F1, NASCAR has to reexamine all of their current strategies, since it isn’t working.

I also don’t want to hear about the new ratings system. If this is in fact a more accurate system than the previous version, then even fewer people are watching NASCAR than previously thought. Sports ratings are up almost across the board, almost. If I am in a position in NASCAR, I’m really worried right now.

While there are rumors to changing or even eliminating the playoff system, it’s clear the damage has been done both internally and externally. All the old school fans that NASCAR has alienated are gone, and will never come back. With the fact that in the last 20 years three new generations of Cup Series cars have been implemented, to the financial detriment to the teams. If Hendrick Motorsports can’t turn a profit, how do the smaller teams fare?

20 years of bad moves, bad decisions, and bad leadership have come back to haunt NASCAR, and the TV ratings reflect it. The end may be in sight, and I’m wondering how soon it could arrive.

Sources Cited:

https://www.jayski.com/2025/10/14/las-vegas-tv-ratings-20/

.@USANetwork got a 0.84 rating and 1.717 million viewers for Sunday's @SouthPointLV 400 at Las Vegas; no direct comp to last year as that event was on @NBC.

➡️ That made NASCAR the No. 2 sport of the day on cable behind Broncos/Jets and was the best viewership since Darlington. pic.twitter.com/IVBe8RN6sU

— Adam Stern (@A_S12) October 14, 2025

https://www.nhra.com/news/2025/texas-nhra-fallnationals-fox-was-most-watched-nhra-telecast-record

By David G Firestone

So I’m very busy right now, between work, new YouTube projects, and construction going on inside and out of my house. As such, between now and December, my content on The Driver Suit Blog may slow down. I apologize in advance.

With that said, I’d like to discuss the current broadcast deals that NASCAR has. The current deals feature FOX, Amazon Prime, Turner, and NBC. FOX is the best, aside from Jamie Little in the booth during ARCA and Truck Series. Seriously, she has no idea what she is doing.

Turner’s coverage was mediocre, not Earth shaking, not awful. It wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but not as great as it could have been. Amazon Prime was the same as Turner, though I could have done without Steve Letarte explaining race strategy to a bar full of puppets. Seriously, who thought that was a good idea?

My big question is: Why did NASCAR resign with NBC? Well, it’s the latest move in a long line of NASCAR ignoring the fans, and their complaints. NBC’s coverage hasn’t been popular with fans, and this goes back to the NBCSN era. In the era when IndyCar and the NHRA both have one network deals with FOX, why resign with NBC?

Say what you want about Cracker Barrel as a company, but they at least realized how bad they looked, and reverted back to their original logo and design. It’s not bad to admit you made a bad decision, and reverse course. Doubling down on a failing strategy isn’t good for business. Yet the NBC deal is just another example of NASCAR doubling down on a failing strategy.

Add to that the fact that there is a new issue at play. Nielsen has changed their analysis, which, they claim will provide more accurate ratings and viewership numbers. Well, since this new system has been implemented, viewership numbers are down sharply. This is not a surprise, since AEW has suffered down numbers as well.

This does not bode well for racing moving forward. The 1990’s racing boom is gone, and will never come back. Viewers have left and will never come back. Advertising is down, and will only get worse. Could this lead to the end of racing? No, they are getting over a million viewers per race, and those aren’t bad, given the sheer amount of content we have access to. But long-term, this might lead to lower profits and worse media deals. Time will tell.

By David G. Firestone

With season three of Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head doing well, it got me to thinking, what’s next for nostalgic cartoons? There are a lot of people who think that there should be more 1980’s cartoons that should get the modern update. I’ve heard people wanting their favorite childhood cartoon brought into 2025.

Here’s the problem: What most of these people forget is that many of these cartoons were poorly animated dreck that was meant to peddle toys, primarily dolls and action figures. The plots were rarely anything more than “good characters stop evil characters from doing evil things.” Outside of the various characters, the sets and plots were very interchangeable.

If you think I’m being harsh, go back and watch some of them. Between He-Man, GI-Joe, and Transformers, you’ll barely get through the first few episodes, before the lack of animation, and plot predictably causes you to turn off. Toy companies justifiably figured out that producing a cartoon so cheap it can’t lose money was a good way to sell toys, and the majority of 1980’s, and some 1990’s cartoons were proof.

Some might wonder: “Why not find a forgotten gem? Surely, there are a few gems to be found.” No, No there are not. There are no hidden gems to be found. Most of the 1980’s cartoons that fell to the wayside deserved their fates. Seriously, who in 2025, is clamoring for a reboot of Defenders of the Earth? Is there demand for Wolf Rock TV 2025? Would anybody be sad if a modern version of The Little Clowns of Happytown never got made?

We all like nostalgia, but we have to remember that time moves forward, not backward. Just because something was popular for a while does NOT mean it has to be remade for modern audiences. Some things can be brought into the modern era, some things should stay in the past.