Busch, Kurt

NASCAR 2018: The Year in Charts and Graphs

This is the time of the year when everyone takes one final look back at the last year before turning to think about the new one. So, in this last blog of the year, I thought I’d summarize the season in charts and graphs. […]

Busch, Kurt
Busch, Kyle

NASCAR’s Final Four’s Performance on 1.5-Mile Tracks

A lot of sites have overall statistics about the championship contenders for the season, or their performance at Homestead. Given that the final race is at a 1.5-mile track, it’s worth looking at how the […]

Drivers
Busch, Kurt

Winning vs. Consistency: The Delicate Balance of the NASCAR Playoffs

The NASCAR playoffs determine the season’s champion. Is the champion the guy who wins the most races? Or the guy who runs up front the most?

There’s no scientific way to answer this question, but there is data. NASCAR has modified their playoffs to try to create a suitable balance between winning and consistency. Have they succeeded?

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Aerodynamics
Charlotte Roval

The Roval is Just a Really Fast Road Course

This weekend marks the very first time NASCAR has run a race on the Charlotte Roval: a combination of the oval track we run in May with select portions of the road course in the infield. It’s a unique situation because, unlike most road courses, this one is contained. Fans will be able to see the entire course. Everyone is looking forward to seeing something new on this one-of-a-kind hybrid track. […]

Drivers

The NASCAR Playoffs and Preordination

Preordination (n): The action of determining an outcome or course of action in advance; The fact of being determined in advance. The Oxford Living Dictionary You’d think with my interest in data that I’d be the […]

Aerodynamics

Sciencing Out NASCAR Rules Changes

Rules changes in NASCAR are tricky.  There’s really no way to test them before implementing them. You’re relying on the judgement and experience of the NASCAR team, with input from race teams, drivers, Goodyear and […]

Crew Chiefs

The Crew Chief of Tomorrow

I saw the tweet as I was hurrying toward the Goodyear tent at Michigan International Speedway: Chad Knaus says that, in the future, the Crew Chief will be a thing of the past. Here’s Knaus’s […]