zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Racing
/
NASCAR's Choose Cone Rule, Explained
NASCAR's Choose Cone Rule, Explained-April 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:11:04

Image for article titled NASCAR's Choose Cone Rule, Explained

If you’ve watched in recent years, you’re probably no stranger to the series’s and that seem to accumulate year by year. Now, starting at this weekend’s doubleheader at Michigan International Speedway, NASCAR has implemented a whole new policy: the choose cone rule.

Those of you who regularly attend your local dirt and short track events, you already know what I’m talking about. A safety cone is often brought out on restarts at these smaller events, but NASCAR is only just now permanently putting it into play.

Very simply, the cone—or, in NASCAR’s case, a bright V shape painted on track—gives drivers an opportunity to choose which lane they want to start in during restarts. At pretty much all tracks, there are at least two lanes: top and bottom. And at pretty much all tracks, one of those lanes is preferable to the other.

In the past, drivers didn’t really get a say in where they restarted; it a double-file restart based on their position on track. The leading driver generally got to choose his or her preferred lane, leaving the second-place driver to take the other. The rest of the cars would then line up behind them in order.

With the choose rule, though, drivers get to pick any lane. At today’s Cup race, you’re likely going to see most of the drivers at the front of the pack choose the preferred lane since that’s where the grip is. Drivers who would normally be restarting farther back will be more likely to choose the opposite lane in the hopes that it will give them a little extra boost in position or that they’ll be able to adopt an alternate strategy.

The choose rule was used once this season during the All-Star race at Bristol Motor Speedway as something of a trial run. Most drivers have been pushing for a choose rule for years are understandably stoked that it’ll be a regular feature.

“It definitely adds another piece to the strategy,” Joey Logano told . “And even more importantly, it has everyone not doing the whole stopping at the end of pit road and letting a car go by because, for one, it’s not safe to stop at the end of pit road for anyone jumping over the wall and having cars swerve like that.

“That’s not racing. The goal should be in front of whatever car is in front of you, not let one go at the end of pit road so you can have the outside lane or the inside lane.”

Of all NASCAR’s recent attempts to make the racing more exciting (some of you may call them “gimmicks”), the choose rule is one that actually makes sense and has a history in stock car racing. Stages, playoffs—I can take ‘em or leave ‘em. But the choose rule? It was awesomeat Bristol, and it's going to make the racing a hell of a lot more naturally exciting.

The choose rule will be used at all of the remaining 2020 races with the exception of road courses and superspeedways.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Racing
Race Team Would Rather Create A Fake AI Woman Rather Than Hire A Real One
Race Team Would Rather Create A Fake AI Woman Rather Than Hire A Real One
In another unsurprising example of motorsport’s inhospitable mindset toward hiring competent women, the Racing team has announced a new partnership with Ava Rose, a literal , who will... engage with fans? Share knowledge about technology? “Navigate the cutting edge of innovation to create positive change” (whatever that means)? I...
Apr 20, 2025
Get Ready To Spend All Your Money On Retro Formula 1 Merch
Get Ready To Spend All Your Money On Retro Formula 1 Merch
Fellow nerds, get ready to open your wallets, because I’ve found what may be the greatest store of all time. With designs from Formula 1 teams like , you’re sure to find something that fits your particular nostalgic niche. I’d like to introduce you to Racing Retro. I first...
Apr 20, 2025
You've Probably Never Heard Of The Coolest Canadian Car Ever Built
You've Probably Never Heard Of The Coolest Canadian Car Ever Built
Name a car from the early 1960s built by a famed racing driver with curvy, lightweight aluminum bodywork, a big American engine, and a reputation for being unruly and fast as all hell. Your first thought was probably the famed Shelby Cobra, did you know there was a who...
Apr 20, 2025
After Delivering 8 Seasons At The Back Of The Grid, Haas F1 Team Dumps Guenther Steiner
After Delivering 8 Seasons At The Back Of The Grid, Haas F1 Team Dumps Guenther Steiner
The partially North Carolina-based squad has determined that after , it needs to mix things up a little. The team’s firebrand has been following an abysmal 2023 season which saw the team score just four points-paying finishes. The team’s , where scored a fourth-place finish, but that season too...
Apr 20, 2025
Local Businesses Want Compensation After Allegedly Losing Money During Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix
Local Businesses Want Compensation After Allegedly Losing Money During Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix
If you listen to Formula 1 or local officials from Las Vegas and Clark County, you’d probably think November’s inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix was a success. Some sources estimated that the city of Las Vegas made over $1 billion in revenue from the event — but there were...
Apr 20, 2025
Listen To In-Car Audio From Race Cars While You Work
Listen To In-Car Audio From Race Cars While You Work
If you follow racing in the U.S., you probably already know about the . Most of the episodes are too much of a distraction to put on as background noise while you work, but a couple of recent entries in his series have been working incredibly well for me....
Apr 20, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved