NASCAR no doubt made the right move in reducing the downforce in the Sprint Cup Series racecars this weekend at Kentucky Speedway. Drivers seem to be in favor of it, though Goodyear did not have enough notice to compliment the setups with softer tires. Good drivers in Saturday night's race and fast racecars seemed to drive from the back to front. Denny Hamlin did after tire trouble and a speeding penalty and Brad Keselowski did also after separate slow pit stops. Talented wheelmen (and women) should have their fate more in their hands and that is exactly what this new package made strides to do. Ask Kyle Busch, the race winner. He was able to chase down and pass leader Joey Logano without nearly as much of the aero-push that hurts cars' ability to pass. That is a great sign.

But there are some downsides. For one, the change came late and kind of suddenly. While it had been rumored for several weeks, the rules change this past weekend did not come about in time for Goodyear (who had already tested tires at Kentucky with the older package) to make a tire to fit the new handling characteristics. NASCAR talked as early as January about running this "2016 package" in the All-Star Race. They did not and that race and its lack of passes for the lead was a big spring board for this dramatic mid-season rules change.

NASCAR has had a propensity lately to respond to opinion, instead of simply staying the course. This is both good and bad. But in this case, NASCAR could have acted even more swiftly. The governing body could have "saved" the racing action at Pocono and Michigan in June - and even the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway the week after the All-Star Race. Before the season even began, drivers warned of the higher corner speeds and the potential that the 2015 rules package would not spice up the action as much as advertised. NASCAR could have listened even better and earlier to its constituency.

NASCAR also made a perplexing announcement at the same time as the Kentucky and Darlington rules package announcement. The Sprint Cup Series cars will run with higher drag, but higher downforce at both Indianapolis and Michigan in a few weeks. Several drivers, namely Carl Edwards (who has been a big advocate for lowering the downforce in the cars for a long time), have said they do not understand why those races will have a higher downforce package. NASCAR seemingly wants to lower the speeds at those tracks to improve the racing (hence the higher drag), but if this move confuses the drivers, then something could be wrong.

Consider this about Saturday's race. Who has been struggling before and suddenly did well? Joe Gibbs Racing cars took four of the top five positions (including the win), after struggling for speed all year. The abysmal Roush-Fenway Racing trio of teams finished 11th (Ricky Stenhouse Jr.), 13th (Trevor Bayne), and 16th (Greg Biffle) - that certainly gives their stable a shot in the arm.

And who of 1.5-mile stalwarts struggled? 2015 Cinderella story Martin Truex Jr. ran in the top 10, but dropped out of it after halfway in the race and only managed to get back to 17th. Kevin Harvick cracked the top 5 midway thru the Quaker State 400, but hovered in the back of the top 10 late and finished 8th. Jimmie Johnson struggled outside the top 20 for the middle third of the race, but did rise finally back to 9th at the end. None of the three led a lap.

Jeff Gordon's 2015 farewell tour has seen him struggle most weeks. Many think this rules change should work in his favor, but the No. 24 did not lead a lap and placed 7th. Tony Stewart has been outspoken about his inability to adjust to how the 2014-15 Sprint Cup cars race. He has had a horrible season and even the new rules package didn't save him Saturday night. He got caught up in someone else's crash while running outside the top 20. He was never a factor.

At least for now, NASCAR plans on returning to the previous rules package for the 1.5-mile tracks in the Chase in the fall. This likely means that Truex Jr., Johnson, and Harvick will be the threats yet again. And the racing action in the Chase may not be so thrilling, if it starts looking like slot cars racing again.

NASCAR made the right move in adjusting the rules package and needs to continue looking at ways to improve the on-track product. Putting the steering wheel back in the drivers' hands, instead of all the way inside the engineers' computers, will undoubtedly bode well for the future of the sport. But do not place your faith completely in this low-downforce setup as the savior of today's NASCAR racing. We have seen just one race and NASCAR and its teams may still be far off from really diagnosing and fixing the sport's passing problem.