NASCAR and industry stakeholders are considering significant competition changes to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series that could be implemented as soon as this season, according to several sources. Sources said that stakeholders across the industry including teams, drivers, tracks, media partners, Monster and NASCAR have been meeting to discuss the prospective changes. Sources said this includes a meeting that was held in Las Vegas during Champion’s Week and a meeting held last week in Charlotte. Sources added that the prospective changes involve the format of the races themselves and how points are awarded for them. If implemented, the changes could address the length and format of Cup races and may result in race breaks, similar to other series where “heat” formats are used to break up the competition to feature multiple, shorter races rather than one longer one. NASCAR declined comment. NASCAR introduced heat races to its secondary series, the Xfinity Series, last year, although only for a handful of races. It could not be determined how far along the discussions are, but timing is of the essence as NASCAR’s season starts in mid to late February. Its season-opening media tour, when major announcements are often made, is in two weeks in Charlotte.
