The NASCAR schedule has changed in many ways over the years, some good, some bad. IN 1995 NASCAR ran 4, mile and a half points races, that’s right 4. Those 4 were at the same tracks, 2 in Atlanta and 2 in Charlotte and the All-star race. The boom for mile and a half’s had not happened yet. They had 4 pack races, 2 in Daytona and Talladega. They also had 2 road races, Watkins Glen and Sonoma. They also went to Rockingham, North Wilkesboro, Bristol, Martinsville, Pocono, Richmond, Dover, Michigan, and Darlington twice. This is a great Schedule, lots of great and unique tracks.
Fast forward 10 years to 2005, NASCAR still has 4 pack races and 2 races in Atlanta, Bristol, Martinsville, Richmond, Charlotte, Dover, Pocono, and Michigan. They still have the same 2(Sonoma and The Glen) Road races. However Rockingham, and Wilkesboro are gone. Darlington is down to one race, and talks at the time in 2005 said the track was almost gone. However, New Hampshire and Phoenix now have a second date. We also have many new tracks, Fontana, Texas, Chicagoland, Homestead and Kansas with Fontana and Texas having 2 races. The problem here is 4 of the 5 tracks added are mile and a half’s, and they took 2 great tracks off the schedule completely.
Lets fast Forward again, this time to 2015. It looks mostly the same as 2005 with a few changes. Still have the 2 pack races, and the 2 Road races. Fontana and Atlanta each lost a race, Kansas gained a race and Kentucky was added to the schedule. At this time the fans don’t like all the mile and a half’s, Kentucky is another mile and a half. The fans were ready for a big change, could NASCAR deliver?
The 2023 Schedule just came out, and the fans are excited. We now have 6 pack races, With Atlanta getting a facelift and its 2nd date back. NASCAR now runs the clash in a football stadium, and we now have a dirt race at Bristol. We also now have 6 road races, The Glen, Sonoma, The Charlotte Roval, The Indy RC, COTA, and for the first time ever The Chicago Street Course. Kentucky is gone, and Texas, Dover, Pocono, Michigan, and New Hampshire are down to 1 race a year. This opened it up for new tracks, Nashville, and World Wide Technology Raceway. The biggest news for 23 is a return to North Wilkesboro for the All-Star race. NASCAR has made great moves but lets hope that they are not done.
In closing is 2023 perfect? No, but its a big leap forward from 2015. Atlanta being a pack race, Bristol on dirt, and the Indy RC all should be changed. Most fans agree that we now have too many road races. NASCAR has done a great job the last few years, but still has room to be better. Lets hope they keep listening, and keep improving.
Image Source – nascar.com
