why nascar so few road course

Some NASCAR fans have been pretty vocal about how strange it is that NASCAR includes road courses but never integrates them into the championship schedule. Talladega is famous for their restrictor plate track and that gets used but NASCAR never uses a road course for the season. That is about to change just in time for next year.

Full Answer

How often does NASCAR race on a road course?

NASCAR never considered adding a road course and short track into their playoffs before. According to NASCAR Senior Vice President of Racing Operations Jim Cassidy, this was a new conscientious decision. NASCAR has long heard from their fan base about evolving the motorsport a bit.

Why is NASCAR so popular these days?

Feb 23, 2021 · Daytona was the first of seven road course events this year. The original 2021 schedule consisted of six road course races, but Daytona became a fallback when it was decided early on that Fontana was out of the question. Still, it was a healthy increase from the traditional three road course races that had been on the schedule. And so, seven it ...

How did NASCAR get its first following?

Sep 30, 2020 · For decades, road racing at NASCAR’s highest level was a twice-a-year experience. In the last two seasons, the Cup Series competed on three road courses each year, adding an extra dose of right ...

How many road courses are there on the NASCAR 2021 schedule?

Mar 07, 2020 · Seven road courses NASCAR should race at. Mar 7 2020. More. An announcement regarding the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is due any day now and it’s expected to bring about a number of sweeping changes. Among the alterations expected are a condensed schedule, and the introduction of more road course races.

Does NASCAR have any road courses?

Existing tracks on the schedule, including Daytona International Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway, now have an interior road course or “roval” race, while other road course races have been contested at venues added to the calendar, including Circuit of the Americas and Road America.Aug 13, 2021

How many road courses are there in NASCAR?

The NASCAR Cup Series currently races on 26 different tracks, with the Charlotte Roval and Charlotte Motor Speedway oval officially counting as two separate tracks. Additionally, the NASCAR Xfinity Series races adds one track not on the Cup Series schedule, with the Camping World Trucks adding on an additional three.

Why is NASCAR doing more road courses?

NASCAR said the addition of new tracks was based on fan feedback. Logano said he thinks it's the “right for the sport.” “We listen to the fans,” Logano said. “The fans said they wanted more road course racing, boom, you got it.Feb 28, 2021

Why is NASCAR not having practice?

Once a standard part of race weekends in NASCAR, practice and qualifying sessions were largely absent for most of the 2020 and 2021 seasons as NASCAR sought to reduce travel days and on-site personnel during the COVID pandemic.Nov 19, 2021

Will NASCAR Cota be in 2022?

Race fans will experience another unforgettable weekend of NASCAR in Austin, Texas, when the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series return to Circuit of The Americas, March 25-27, 2022.

Who is the best NASCAR road course driver?

Chase Elliott has the most road course wins among active drivers with six career victories, including the inaugurual event at Circuit of the Americas. Kyle Larson is the most recent road course winner after he took the checkered flag at Sonoma Raceway on June 6.Jul 2, 2021

What NASCAR driver has the most road course wins?

The driver with the most wins on a road course track in NASCAR history is the legendary Jeff Gordon. Gordon won a total of nine times on these circuits; four race wins at Watkins Glen and five race wins at Sonoma.Dec 30, 2021

Is Formula 1 better than NASCAR?

The main differences lie in the cars used, with open-wheel F1 cars being more technology-driven, much faster and more powerful than NASCAR vehicles, while also being about half as heavy. NASCAR tracks are usually shorter too, while F1 tracks come in all shapes and sizes.

What's the average speed in NASCAR?

The average top speed of a NASCAR car is just over 321km/h, or 200mph. Compared to a Formula 1 car, this is quite a bit slower, as they hit speeds of 360km/h (223mph). Indycar – another major American racing series – is faster still, reaching speeds of 380km/h (236mph).Jun 11, 2021

Will NASCAR ever have practice again?

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- NASCAR will return practice and qualifying to its weekend schedule for all three national series in 2022 after the on-track activity had been mostly scrapped the past two seasons amid the coronavirus pandemic.Nov 19, 2021

When did NASCAR stop qualifying?

Standard procedure. Single-car qualifying has been used for most of the sport's history other than a five-year span between 2014 and early 2019 where a knockout system similar to Formula One was used. NASCAR returned to single-car qualifying at ovals in all three national series in May 2019 at the Dover spring race.

How is NASCAR doing qualifying?

Qualifying Round 1: All cars participate in a single-car, one-lap qualifier, and the top-10 drivers will transfer to the Final Round. Qualifying Final Round: The top-10 cars will run a single-car, one-lap qualifier with the fastest starting on the pole.Nov 19, 2021

Is Sunday's NASCAR race a road course?

The NASCAR Cup Series has been a fixture at Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 1994. But on Sunday, the premier division will run Indy's 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course for the first time after 27 years on the famous oval.Aug 14, 2021

When did the Brickyard 400 change to a road course?

From 1994 to 2020, the race was held on the 2.5-mile oval, for a distance of 400 miles. Beginning in 2021, the race will take place on the combined road course and run a distance of 200-mile (321.869 km)....Brickyard 400.NASCAR Cup SeriesSurfaceAsphaltLength2.439 mi (3.925 km)Turns1413 more rows

Who has the most road course wins in NASCAR?

The driver with the most wins on a road course track in NASCAR history is the legendary Jeff Gordon. Gordon won a total of nine times on these circuits; four race wins at Watkins Glen and five race wins at Sonoma.Dec 30, 2021

What is the longest road course in NASCAR?

Talladega SuperspeedwayThe biggest NASCAR oval is Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. It measures at 2.66 miles. For all NASCAR tracks, Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, is the longest. The road course hosts the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series once per year and is 4.048 miles.

Why did NASCAR stop racing at Darlington?

In 2005, NASCAR eliminated the Southern 500 altogether as a result of the Ferko lawsuit, offending many fans who had followed the sport for generations. The race was merged into the 400-mile (640 km) spring race, and moved to Mother's Day weekend.

Where is the Roval race track?

Charlotte Motor SpeedwayBank of America Roval 400NASCAR Cup SeriesVenueCharlotte Motor Speedway rovalLocationConcord, North Carolina, United StatesCorporate sponsorBank of AmericaFirst race196011 more rows

Why is Indianapolis Motor Speedway called Brickyard?

The simple answer is because it is literally a yard of bricks. At one time, 110 years ago, the whole track used to be paved with bricks, but to know how that happened, we actually have to go farther back in IMS track history.May 22, 2019

Is the Brickyard 400 no more?

Indianapolis Motor Speedway president Doug Boles said there is no plan to return the Cup Series to the track's 2.5-mile oval after a turnout that was up over 2019, the last time fans had attended at Brickyard 400.Aug 15, 2021

Has anybody won the Indy 500 5 times?

A.J. Foyt (1961, 1964, 1967, 1977) Al Unser (1970, 1971, 1978, 1987) Rick Mears (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991)

How many wins does Jeff Gordon have on road courses?

The all-time road course wins record belongs to Gordon: nine (in 47 races).Feb 21, 2021

Who is the best NASCAR road course racer?

Chase Elliott has the most road course wins among active drivers with six career victories, including the inaugurual event at Circuit of the Americas.Jul 2, 2021

Who is the best road course NASCAR driver?

Jeff GordonJeff Gordon Those numbers speak for themselves, and that's why Gordon remains No. 1 among NASCAR's road-course racers. Gordon's average finish of 8.24 in his career at Sonoma is the best of all active Sprint Cup drivers, as is his total of five victories.

What is the shortest NASCAR race?

Martinsville Speedway526 miles in length, Martinsville Speedway is the shortest track on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit.

What is the fastest track in NASCAR?

The Talladega SuperspeedwayThe Talladega Superspeedway is NASCAR's fastest track. The founder of NASCAR built this 2.6-mile track to be longer than Daytona, with higher top speeds. Banked corners make this tri-oval faster still. Talladega is the home to multiple NASCAR records, including the fastest ever official stock car speed.Sep 30, 2021

How fast can NASCAR cars go?

200mphThe average top speed of a NASCAR car is just over 321km/h, or 200mph. Compared to a Formula 1 car, this is quite a bit slower, as they hit speeds of 360km/h (223mph). Indycar – another major American racing series – is faster still, reaching speeds of 380km/h (236mph).Jun 11, 2021

How many road courses will NASCAR have in 2021?

Seven road courses NASCAR should race at. An announcement regarding the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is due any day now and it’s expected to bring about a number of sweeping changes. Among the alterations expected are a condensed schedule, and the introduction of more road course races. For many years the Cup series was all-oval bar ...

Is Indianapolis a NASCAR track?

Indianapolis road course. Believe it or not, Indianapolis Motor Speedway has only been on the NASCAR calendar since the mid-1990s, but it’s always been regarded as one of Cup’s crown jewel events.

Does NASCAR have a street race?

NASCAR is the only major motorsport category in the US to not have a street race, so where better to right that wrong than at America’s greatest street circuit: Long Beach? The Californian track has changed a fair bit over the years, but its current 1.96-mile layout has been used since 2000.

Watkins Glen International

This historic race track in New York State first hosted NASCAR's top racing series in 1957 when Buck Baker took the checkered flag on the winding, hilly road course.

Sonoma Raceway

Known as Sears Point Raceway until 2002 and then called Infineon Raceway until 2012 this winding race track in Sonoma California puts drivers to the test.

What Makes Road Course Races Different?

As opposed to the typical stock car racing tracks, which all but two of are exclusively oblong circles that drivers must driver nearly a hundred laps around to finish the race, road course races challenge drivers to navigate around sharp left and right turns on a winding track, often through hills or countryside.