Best Pokemon Champions Builds (Early Meta Tier List & Guide)
The Chaos and Controversy of NASCAR’s Superspeedway Racing
Publish Date: February 25, 2024
Share via Whatsapp Share via Facebook Share via Twitter
Whenever NASCAR heads out to Daytona or Talladega, it provides a unique racing experience. High speeds, big packs, and big crashes are expected. This style of racing has been around for decades, helping make superspeedways one of the biggest draws on the schedule.
However, something has changed over the past seven years. Superspeedway races have suddenly turned into complete wreckfests. Big crashes have always been a threat, but never have they been as common as they are today.
The Daytona 500, NASCAR’s biggest race, has fallen victim to this. Since 2017, nearly 80 percent of cars that entered the 500 have been involved in some sort of crash. The numbers are astonishing.
Only one other Daytona 500 prior to 2017 has featured as many crashed cars as the ones in this list, that being 2011 with 29.
The most obvious difference between pre and post 2017 seasons is the presence of stages. NASCAR introduced stage racing in 2017, dividing the race into three sections. This caused a handful of incidents, as drivers made more aggressive moves to maximize points at the stage end.
However, this impact was marginal in the grand scheme of things. One of the key differences lies in the superspeedway package.
In 2019, NASCAR introduced radical changes to horsepower and downforce on the car across all tracks. Superspeedway cars dropped to 550 horsepower. The rear spoiler was set to eight inches, a height so tall that the top half of the spoiler was made clear to prevent it from blocking the view out the mirrors.
Immediately, there was a visual impact on the racing. Trailing cars could get runs so large, the car ahead was practically helpless. Blocking these runs was incredibly dangerous, and resulted in numerous incidents.