Baker recalled a lengthy meeting with . Stages are currently present in all NASCAR point races. Fans get more action, and televised events fit commercials in better than interrupting green flag racing. Stage racing is simply NASCAR's way of bunching the field up a couple of times and trying to create something interesting. The drivers have something to race for, even when it's just lap 20. In his free time, you can find him tinkering with his own vehicles, trying to make them faster and more exciting. The stage points drivers win can add more energy and excitement to races that used to only have one race winner per event. What NASCAR Track Has the Steepest Banking? Stage racing wasn't always a thing in NASCAR, and is probably one of the newest changes the sport has made over the years. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. It all just comes down to excitement and incentive at the end of the day. 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Depending on the course, the first stage can be anywhere from 25 to 30 percent of the races overall duration. Here is the all-aluminum 2017 F-250 Super Duty, Tune-Only Challenger Hellcat puts down 705WHP, Behind the scenes: Lamborghini Aventador LP 750-4 SV (Superveloce) promotional video. Joe is the owner and creator of this website. Is it really too old school or too much to ask for a race to be run without scheduled breaks that create manufactured strategy for which planning for the entire race generally becomes much simpler? Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Kyle Busch will lead the field to the green flag after qualifying was canceled Saturday by rain. How NASCAR Stages Work. So, its kind of pathetic. Although it has caused quite a controversy, stage racing is now a standard feature of NASCAR competition, and its something we all need to deal with. MORE: NASCAR outlaws Ross Chastain Martinsville move, MORE: Hendrick Motorsports president says no changes in driver policy. NASCAR Cup Series: Jimmie Johnson could return in 2021, Broncos' Derek Wolfe to Get MRI on Elbow Injury; Vic Fangio 'Not Optimistic'. Where the Term Came From NASCAR has had a set term of race format for almost 100 years, and the premise of stage racing greatly affects established team strategies. Each race is divided into three stages (four for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway), and points are awarded to the. This applies to all top 3 levels of NASCAR competition: the Cup Series, the Xfinity Series, and the Truck Series. This creates more drama and crashes while preventing breakaway victories. NASCAR competition officials announced rules changes Tuesday with the intent to slow Cup Series cars by approximately 7-10 mph at superspeedway events. *Added a required . But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Here's a sampling of some of the changes for 2004. Similar to an ordinary NASCAR event, both the Cup Series and Truck Series races will be divided into three stages, but changes to the format were implemented after Friday practice produced a . The final stage goes off the points listed above. (Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, which has an extra stage) These stages are not equal in length in miles and are divided based on the total length of the track and the mile goal of the event. Stage racing was implemented in NASCAR to remove the chance of race domination by single race drivers. The formula for NASCAR has been pretty simple in terms of race format. But while stage racing likely isnt going anywhere following its first three seasons in the sport, you really have to wonder why its here, what purpose it serves, and above all, whether or not NASCAR should just do away with it. NASCAR awards a playoff point to the stage winner along with 10 points. They talk about giving points for qualifying. Stage points are only handed out for the first and second stages. Stage racing is simply NASCAR's way of bunching the field up a couple. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Stages split NASCAR races into 3 segments and afford the opportunity for more points if a driver runs well all race. There were heat races to select the field for this race, but there were no stages for the main event. Instead of the field being strung out halfway through a race, the leaders are suddenly brought back together, creating more intensity. When comparing to the five-year averages of the races from 2013-17, 11 races have exceeded the five-year average, but only three by more than 10 minutes. The closer the pack is together, and the more incentives they have to go for the lead, the better the entertainment will be for all the fans. The reasoning behind the change in how the NASCAR races were set up all boils down to one thing. Been in and out of cars of varying speeds since i was a child and sharing what i have learnt here. And current drivers seem to have quickly grown accustomed to stage racing and accepted it. Adding stages breaks up these types of leads and brings the audiences attention back to the field every time the next stage of green-flag racing starts. Earnhardt was a legend. NASCAR created stage racing in 2017 to increase competition throughout the race. Drivers now earn bonus points by finishing in the top 10 at the end of the first and second stages of a race. Stage 2 ends at Lap 250. Want to know the most dangerous tracks this season? It usually takes about 40 to 50 percent of the whole races duration, making it nearly invariably the longest stage. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. The Daytona Duels are 2 qualifying races that set the field for the Daytona 500. At this point, why not just have 50-lap sprint races each week? Can You Go To A NASCAR Race While Pregnant? The main reason is there are no commercial breaks at live race events that can interfere with active racing moments. NASCAR announced the change Tuesday in a session with reporters at the NASCAR R&D Center. NASCAR racing did not always include stage racing. A stage is a division of the total race duration into usually three or occasionally four parts. The piece highlighted several factors explaining why stock car racing has yet to recover from the slump caused by the 2008-09 economic crash: A less affluent audience base than other major. Yes, stage racing adds the element of strategy. After all, keeping the pack together leads to more contact and more drama, Dragon Ball Super chapter 81 release time for English translation confirmed. The first two are about a quarter distance in length each, with the final stage making up over half the race. The race was Pooles first Cup start of the season. Stages also replace pit stops and give drivers a break they would never have been able to take during the old races. The Cup garage will open at 9 a.m. Bobby Allison flipped into the fence in 1987 and nascar flipped its shit. Since then, the winner of each Duel receives 10 championship points. Each race is divided into three stages (four for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway), and points are awarded to the top 10 drivers at the end of stages one and two, with regular points still awarded at the end of each race to each competitor as well. The final stage often accounts for between 40% and 50% of the entire distance, whereas the first and second stages typically make up roughly 25% to 30%. The longest stage of the race is always the final one. Answers to the 8 Most Interesting NASCAR Questions. The main reason is there are no commercial breaks at live race events that can interfere with active racing moments. Now the drivers do get credit for strong starts. ET Monday. The move comes in. The first two-thirds of 35 of 36 Cup races feel all but irrelevant. While there are usually three stages in each NASCAR race, the exception to the rule is the Coca-Cola 600, which is given a fourth stage due to the longer distance. Dr. Diandra: Fact-checking Kyle Buschs statement about late-season rank changes, Kyle Busch: Team communication working well at RCR, Friday 5: Changes lead Cup drivers to moonlight in other forms of racing, Dale Earnhardt Jr. latest added to NASCARs list of 75 Greatest Drivers, Dr. Diandra: Dont dismiss Trackhouse Racing or anyone else after only 10 races, Alex Bowman fractures vertebra in sprint car crash; out 3-4 weeks, NASCAR Power Rankings: Kyle Busch moves into top spot. Add to this stopping mid-way, and the crashes and bumps are sure to increase. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. In the area of fantasy sports leagues and sports betting, these points offer ways to create more action and build a rooster of winning racers. The average number of cautions per race (9.1) is well ahead of the first 18 races last year (7.5) but not a ton more than in 2015 (8.4). NASCAR instituted stage breaks and stage points for the 2017 season and has kept the system in place since. A racer that gets an early start will most likely not be ahead the entire race as race conditions change and the race stops and starts at least twice more. These points, different from the previous stage points, accumulate for a playoff-style race where each stage winner gets one playoff point. NASCAR is settling with people in the crowd who sustain life altering injuries like it's nothing. More viewers mean more money for the owners of the cars, which in turn gives them more money to secure top drivers in their classes, which means more wins and more points. Continuing its tradition of innovation, NASCAR, in collaboration with drivers, teams, and manufacturers, built a new generation of car the NASCAR Next Gen car aimed to further reduce costs. Race stages also break up speed top-speed races that push cars to their limits for 100s of laps. Though as of 2023 a race ends under caution with the field frozen if a caution occurs in the final lap of an overtime. Your email address will not be published. Playoff points are NASCARs version of home-field advantage seen in other sports: they are a way to reward regular season success in the playoffs. Advancing teams carry their playoff points all the way through to the Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway in November. So, now that you know what and why stages were included in NASCAR, you can enjoy the sport better. A pit road penalty or bad pit stop early has consequences. Although these sometimes happen on their own throughout the race, there are other times where the opportunity doesn't present itself. The final stages decide the races placement, giving them even more points. These changes are a far cry from the original spirit of NASCAR races but are working to bring in a younger audience base and provide better value to sponsors. Exploring & Preparing. NASCAR deemed Stenhouse was in the lead when a caution was called on the final lap of the race.Ross Chastain topped Stage 2, while Brad Keselowski picked up a Stage 1 win. There are points assigned to each stage, and then the points at the end of the race are added in. NASCAR races were once run start-to-finish with no mandated breaks in the action. The winner earns 10 points plus 1 playoff point and each subsequent finisher earns 1 fewer point. Drivers have, on several occasions, finished races well outside the top 10 but still placed top five in total race points due to their stage results, and race winners havent always been the highest scorers pretty strange for a playoff system that supposedly rewards wins above everything. A crew chief can determine that after stage 1, a guaranteed 9 or 10 points outweighs the uncertainty of racing later in the pack. In those races, stage points will be awarded on a designated lap, but there will be no green-and-checkered flag and the racing will continue. Still, due to circumstances beyond either of their control, way back when, the Cup series left the city. The NASCAR racing stages are very easy to understand once you know how it works. Confused yet? In a stunning development, NASCAR announced Sunday evening that Chase Elliott has been declared the winner of the M&M's Fan Appreciation 400 at Pocono Raceway after both Denny Hamlin and Kyle . The higher the rank, the more points they earn, which is reason enough for most drivers to race hard.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'motorracingsports_com-banner-1','ezslot_5',114,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-motorracingsports_com-banner-1-0'); Al lifelong Motor Racing Fan, with a particular love of NASCAR and IndyCar racing. The racers in the lead change more frequently, which makes the races and, therefore, the season closer in points and more suspenseful for fans. 1991 The driver that passes the finish line first gets 10 stage points, while the 10th-place driver only gets 1 point. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". But its an unnecessary element of strategy that does nothing to enhance the on-track product. NASCAR instituted stages prior to the 2017 season in a dual effort to create closer competition on the track and make a better television product for fans watching from home. The race will be broadcast by FS1, Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Build your customFanSided Daily email newsletter with news and analysis onAll Racing and all your favorite sports teams, TV shows, and more. This immeasurable change would save many lives in years to come. Please logout and login again. But some drivers say it makes superspeedways even more dangerous; lets look at why NASCAR started stage racing and what the stage racing format is. The weather is better for Cup drivers to race Monday at Dover Motor Speedway after rain postponed the event Sunday. The length of stages at Phoenix Raceway will be different than the stage lengths at other major series races like Daytona. Manage Settings The 150-mile races are too short for stage racing, so NASCAR drivers race all 60 laps with no designated breaks. NASCAR isn't quite ready for that, aside from the Busch Light Clash, so in 2017 the sanctioning body came up with the ideas of breaking up races into three stages. The race can end at any time during Stage 3 at NASCAR's discretion . The shorter portions of races create different race day strategies that tend to make for a more explosive and action-packed race. This is the exploratory stage where fundamental questions are answered, such as what will actually be implemented. 06.06.2017. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". NASCAR also had a an issue when it red-flagged a stage at Pocono after the pits were closed and then issued a one-lap, green-flag dash to the end of the stage, which didn't allow time for drivers . The end of the race offers more significant points, and each driver that finishes the race will get at least one point. Let's say Chase Elliott won a race at Pocono Raceway, earning him a total of 40 points. The breaks in the middle of races also allow for food runs and snack breaks without any risk of missing exciting green-flag racing. The adjustments primarily involve reducing the number of laps in the third stage to ensure enough . The wreck happened in the first stage of the race, a fact both Larson and Poole pointed out after the crash. Stage racing also creates more restarts, sometimes the most action-filled laps of a NASCAR race at certain tracks. But NASCAR is, first and foremost, an entertainment entity and recent history has shown its decisions will most often reflect that reality.
