NASCAR Cup Testing Rules Change Coming Soon? Yes! All testing BANNED in 2009!

[MattSRD28]

Pilots in the NASCAR tour's "Air Force" are braced for overtime next season, shuttling drivers and crews between race tracks and test tracks, as NASCAR dramatically expands its pre-race testing rules.

Testing is a pain, time and money consuming, but NASCAR teams have to endure it and in 2009 there will likely be more mid-week Sprint Cup testing than in the past 10 years.

NASCAR hasn't delineated the exact testing policy, but apparently it will allow teams to test at any of the tour tracks, for a total of about 24 days a team per season. There are 23 tracks on the tour, so teams should be able to test everywhere.

The day after teams run the February race at California's Fontana track they'll be shuttling fast back to Atlanta to test instead of just driving three hours up the road to Las Vegas, the next tour stop. And then they'll shuttle back to Vegas. And then back to Bristol to test and then to Atlanta to race and so on and so on.

Now, I don't know about anyone else, but when I read that, especially what's in bold, this was my reaction: :shocked:

The reason? Because I remember the last time testing rules were changed to create the current situation, and why they did it, and this move would be a move completely in the other direction from that one.

Before the current system was in place, teams had a fixed number of tests at NASCAR-sanctioned tracks per team. So multi-car teams started popping up, and they all said one of the pros of a multi-car team was "more tests." In response to that, NASCAR banned all tests at NASCAR-sanctioned tracks except for a fixed schedule of tests like this one:

NASCAR announced the 2008 testing schedules for its three national series. NASCAR determined the test schedules based upon the input and cooperation from each of the teams’ crew chiefs. The Sprint Cup Series testing sessions begin at Daytona with NASCAR Preseason Thunder, starting Monday, Jan. 7 and running through Wednesday, Jan. 9 for approximately half of the teams.

Thursday, Jan. 10 is the rain date, if necessary. The following week, the remaining teams will test Monday, Jan. 14 through Wednesday, Jan. 16, with Thursday, Jan. 17 as the rain date. Test sessions at Daytona are scheduled for 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., weather permitting, with an hour lunch break from noon until 1 p.m. The remaining five tracks that will host test sessions for the Sprint Cup Series include:

* Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Jan. 28-29
* California Speedway – Jan. 31- Feb. 1
* Phoenix International Raceway – March 3-4
* Pocono Raceway – May 27-28
* Lowe’s Motor Speedway – Sept. 23-24

source

The idea was to prevent top teams from outspending their competitors on testing. But to get around the rules, teams started testing at non-NASCAR-sanctioned tracks like Virginia Int'l Raceway and others, and were even willing to do it on non-Goodyear tires at their own risk.

That brought about this change announced in January 2008:

Beginning this season, NASCAR will allot Goodyear tires for non-NASCAR sanctioned tests. Sprint Cup teams will get 50 sets, Nationwide teams 40 sets and Craftsman truck teams 30 sets. Previously, teams could not purchase Goodyear tires for tests at non-sanctioned tracks.

source

This is where NASCAR got it way wrong & contradicted themselves IMO. That was a decision in favor of safety, but was also an endorsement of the outspending that they'd previously been trying to curb. I guess they felt like escalation of testing was going to happen whether they wanted it to or not, but the game was lost at that point.

That was the point where the game was lost, but this is truly waving the white flag of surrender:

NASCAR hasn't delineated the exact testing policy, but apparently it will allow teams to test at any of the tour tracks, for a total of about 24 days a team per season. There are 23 tracks on the tour, so teams should be able to test everywhere.

So now we'll have test teams and major investments in spending, engineering, and all the technology in the world since there are no rules about on-board technology during testing like there are for racing. Goodbye level playing field. Goodbye entrpenuering teams trying to rise up to the ranks of Roush/Hendrick/Gibbs and others. They won't possibly be able to compete if this all happens. NASCAR used to know that. I'm disappointed that they might make another decision in the complete opposite direction. :spinny:

 

[LeoTravis80]

NASCAR bans all sanctioned testing in 2009

Found this on Jayski:

NASCAR to ban testing? UPDATE: NASCAR executives are moving toward perhaps a virtual ban on all testing through the early months of 2009, until the economy settles down, according to NASCAR teams. That's a reversal of the plan just a few months ago to open up testing for 24 days per team at Sprint Cup tour tracks. Currently teams can test en masse at seven official NASCAR tests at Cup tour speedways. And teams can test anywhere else at any time. NASCAR could bar teams from testing at any NASCAR-sanctioned tracks, such as Kentucky.(Winston Salem Journal)(11-10-2008)
UPDATE: hearing that NASCAR told the teams at Homestead on Friday that testing in all forms would be banned in 2009.(11-14-2008)
11-14-2008)
UPDATE 2: In an effort to help teams manage costs, NASCAR is suspending testing for its three national and two regional racing series for the 2009 season. Testing for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR Nationwide Series, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, as well as the NASCAR Camping World East and West Regional Touring Series at tracks hosting any of those events are included in the 2009 policy. NASCAR reached this decision following several months of discussion with the teams regarding testing, coupled with the current economic conditions. The suspension of testing should save the industry millions of dollars. "This is a significant move during an unusual time for all of us," said NASCAR President Mike Helton in making the announcement. “NASCAR has routinely adjusted its test policy over the years to reflect current conditions. This is another example of that.”(NASCAR PR)(11-14-2008)
UPDATE 3: Teams said they were told that the testing ban is to be reviewed in June. NASCAR president Mike Helton said that the plan is for the ban to run the entire year. NASCAR says more details will be coming.(Winston Salem Journal)(11-15-2008)

These are tough times, and in my opinion it's both good and bad. On the good side, it saves teams lots of money in these chaotic financial times. But in the bad side, up and coming rookies lika a Joey Logano or a Marcos Ambrose won't have a chamce to get some more seat time in a track like a Las Vegas or a Daytona. Any comments are welcome on this.

 

[scottw73]

that's a shame, but with sim-racing (NR2003) these drivers usually get a feel for the track before they even set foot on it, perhaps NASCAR will give the rookies an extra practice session so they can get a little more time.

 

[Batman1138]

If they open the track up all day on Friday for testing this would be one of the best ideas EVER. But thats probably not gonna happen. Test all day Friday. Qualify the cars Saturday, impound them. Race on Sunday

 

[jgegner]

that's a shame, but with sim-racing (NR2003) these drivers usually get a feel for the track before they even set foot on it, perhaps NASCAR will give the rookies an extra practice session so they can get a little more time.

I agree that it is a shame, but then again, I don't blame NASCAR for taking this step. At least now all the teams are in the same situation. Just my$.02.

James

 

[SilverFox41089]

That Would Not Be Possible. Because There Is So Much Going On At A Track On A NASCAR Weekend That The Schedules Would Be Conflicting. Like The Trucks Need Time To Practice And Qualify And Race. Nationwide Needs The Same Amount Of Track Time For Practice Qualifying And The Race. Plus There May Be Other Series Racing There That Weekend. Like At New Hampshire The Camping World East Series Races Friday Afternoon and The Modifieds Go To New Hampshire I Am Pretty Sure Both Times NAScAR Goes.

 

[MattSRD28]

GOOD! This is exactly what I had hoped for after the mega-testing rules that were being considered (see first post of thread).

Now we won't have multi-car teams with a test team and test driver while other teams are trying to survive as 1 or 2-car teams that can't find sponsors. Sure it'll only mean more money invested in house by the big teams on creation of simulator-type machines like 7-post machines, but it won't mean some teams will be running all over the USA to various tracks.

 

[LeoTravis80]

Maybe they would come back to North Wilkesboro to test for the short track races or Rockingham for the bigger tracks. This doesn't mean that teams would stop testing, but it is a cost cutting measure for the long term health of the sport. Also, why not try race simulators or extending practices on Friday and Saturday?