Penalties
2021 To The Back: NASCAR by the Numbers
Our 2021 to-the-back roundup honors those teams that managed to incur penalties before the green flag. Let’s look at who got their knuckles slapped by NASCAR this year. […]
Penalties
Penalties
2021 Penalties
2021 penalties were down, but let’s take a deep dive into how and why, including how the change in schedule impacted penalties. […]
Drivers
NASCAR Numbers 2019: Part 2 — The Drivers
Sixty-four drivers in 46 different car numbers ran for 37 full-schedule and 10 limited-schedule teams in 2019. But how did they do? And how does that compare to 2018? In my last post, I examined […]
Penalties
NASCAR’s Penalty Box: Uncontrolled Tires
NASCAR changed the ‘arms-length uncontrolled-tire penalty’ after pressure from fans and drivers who complained that the rule was too subjective. Does the new rule solve those penalty problems? Does NASCAR Need an Uncontrolled Tire Rule? […]
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. […]
Drivers
Do Less-Experienced NASCAR Drivers Get More In-Race Penalties?
NASCAR has assessed 376 in-race penalties after 34 races. Do less-experienced drivers make more of these mistakes? Let’s check the data. […]
Building Cars
NASCAR’s Laser Inspection Process: Confidence and Accuracy
There Will Be Rules… The last time I was at the R&D Center, I was given a copy of the official NASCAR rule book for 1948. It was about a quarter of a page. Now there’s […]
Digital Dashboard
Is Stricter Enforcement of Pit Road Speed Limits Making Pit Road Less Safe?
The Purpose of Pit Road Speed Limits NASCAR implemented pit road speeding rules in 1991. The year before, Mike Rich, a tire changer for Bill Elliott, had been pinned between Elliott’s car and the car of Ricky Rudd when […]
Collisions
NASCAR Drivers’ Risky Behavior and the Peltzman Effect
The introduction of automotive safety innovations is usually accompanied by concern about the side-effects of those innovations. For example, when seat belts were introduced, people worried that the belts would keep them from getting out […]
Auto Club Speedway of California
A Band Aid for NASCAR’s Tire Bleeding Problem
There are three things you don’t mess with in NASCAR: engines, fuel and tires.
Tuesday, NASCAR handed down a P5 penalty – the penultimate penalty on the books – to Ryan Newman’s 31 team. Crew Chief Luke Lambert was suspended six races, fined $125,000, and Newman and his owner Richard Childress were each docked 75 points. The tire specialist and team engineer were suspended for six races as well. RCR is appealing the penalty, but I wager they’ve got an uphill battle.
NASCAR’s made its stand loud and clear in the last few weeks. Tire bleeding will not be allowed. If you persist in trying, they’ll come down hard on you. […]