[Mahler9th]

Hey Matt, hope that you are well. Did you ask Tony C., Rich W. or Mat L. this question? Anyway, a weld in cage is most appropriate in my opinion given all of the variables. As to effecting performance, that is a more in depth topic. For example, the cage in my car (built by Mat) does not come out to the front shock towers. Would the car be faster if they were tied in? Not measurably. Stiffer? probably yes. Are there cage changes I can make that would effect performance? Yes, but fractions of seconds... and that is in aggregate.

The real reason to got with weld-in is safety and optimization, in my opinion.