NASCAR has finalized the new stage lengths for the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega on April 26, which it hopes will cut down on the pack falling into dull fuel-saving runs.
The Talladega and Daytona superspeedway races don’t require as many long tire changes as other races and teams have discovered that, with the current generation Cup Series car, it’s often easier to make up positions on pit road with shorter fuel stops than it is to pass on the track. If a yellow flag comes out at the right time, it’s also possible to skip stops altogether.
Instead of the traditional 60/60/68-lap configuration, which typically required one green flag stop each without extreme fuel saving, the race will be broken up into 98/45/45-lap stages, with the final two short enough to drive flat-out without making a stop.
The hope is that this will amp up the excitement at the end of the race, although NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer John Probst told the Hauler Talk podcast no one is sure how the first stage will play out.
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“It could be interesting, as well, in that first stage, the length of it, if there’s some that try to do it on one stop versus some that try to do it on two,” Probst said. “We think that if there are some that try to do it on two, they may drag the group that tried to do it on one along with them to where they won’t be able to do it in one, so it’s got the potential there for some pretty interesting strategies.”
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If the plan works out, NASCAR will likely implement changes for the regular season finale at Daytona and the fall Talladega race. While Atlanta is now considered a superspeedway, the shorter track hasn’t seen this issue arise.
