NASCAR
2020 NASCAR Cup Series Schedule Features Big Changes
Late Tuesday afternoon, NASCAR unveiled the 2020 schedule for the Cup Series. The racing schedule for the 2020 season features a lot of major changes, more than many expected to see. The Playoff schedule has been shuffled; with more emphasis now placed on short tracks. There’s a new track hosting the regular season finale, as Indianapolis moves up in the year. A doubleheader weekend will also be introduced in late June. These are just a few of the many alterations to the Cup Series. Let’s take a further look at the schedule in-depth.
The entire 2020 NASCAR Cup Series schedule can be seen below. The season kicks off in similar fashion, with Daytona Speedweeks. The February tradition will conclude with the 62nd running of the Daytona 500. The first green flag of the 2020 championship will fall on Sunday, February 16 at Daytona International Speedway.
West Coast Swing Moves Forward
After Daytona however is when the changes begin, as Atlanta is no longer race 2 of the season. Atlanta has been pushed back to week 5. The West Coast Swing will then immediately follow Daytona. Week 2 of the 2020 season will take the Cup Series to Las Vegas. Vegas will be followed by Auto Club and then Phoenix’s ISM Raceway. Having the Atlanta race later in March will hopefully provide better weather for the fans and drivers alike.
Homestead in the Springtime
At this time next year, Cup Series teams will be going to Homestead. 2020 will mark the earliest time in any season that NASCAR will visit Homestead, the former home of the championship race. In the last 9 seasons, Homestead-Miami Speedway has seen 9 different winners. This time span includes 6 drivers earning their first South Florida victory.
Martinsville Under the Lights for 2020
After spending $5 million on lights in 2017, Martinsville Speedway will finally have a night race. The Saturday night short track show will fall on Mother’s Day weekend. A Martinsville night race is something that fans have wanted for years. Coming off of Martinsville’s spring race just last week, how will racing under the lights change this short track classic?
Pocono Doubleheader
Rather than hosting their 2 Cup races 6 weeks apart, Pocono Raceway will have a Cup Series doubleheader weekend on June 27 and 28. Both 400-mile events will become 1 ultimate weekend at The Tricky Triangle. This will be the first of any doubleheader in NASCAR’s modern era. Compressing the 2 Pocono race weekends into 1 will also shorten the Cup Series season by 1 week.
4th of July at Indianapolis
One of the more pronounced changes for the Cup Series will be moving the July 4th weekend race away from Daytona. The Firecracker 400 has been an Independence Day Weekend classic for 60 years, but that is no longer the case. Early July will now be home to the Brickyard 400, another one of NASCAR’s crown jewel events.
Off Weekends for 2020 Olympics
Following the race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 19, the Cup Series will have 2 consecutive off weekends. This time will allow teams to prepare for the Playoffs, as the break comes late in the regular season. In addition, this summer break lines up with the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. Following this break will be the August 9 race at Michigan International Speedway.
Regular Season Finale at Daytona
Another major change for the Cup Series will be the regular season finale. After 2 seasons of the Brickyard 400 being the last chance to make the Playoffs, it will now move to Daytona. Having a superspeedway race serve as the regular season finale should allow for several teams to have 1 last shot at making the Playoffs.
Revamped Playoff Schedule in 2020
Only 3 of the 10 Playoff races will remain in their respective positions on the 2020 Cup Series schedule. This major shakeup for the postseason introduces 2 tracks into the championship fight, Darlington and Bristol.
The Round of 16 for the Playoffs will kick off on Labor Day weekend, with the Darlington Southern 500 on September 6. Following Darlington are back-to-back short track races, at Bristol and Richmond. The famed Bristol night race enters the Playoffs for the first time, a fan favorite event. Richmond will serve as the first elimination race for the 2020 Playoffs.
Round 2 of the Playoffs has the potential to be the most unpredictable, starting off at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. After the 1.5 mile track in Nevada are 2 consecutive wild card races; Talladega Superspeedway and then the Charlotte Roval. For the third straight year, the Roval serves as an elimination race, but this time in the Round of 12.
The Round of 8 also has some slight adjustments, kicking off on October 18 at Kansas Speedway. Following Kansas is another 1.5 mile track at Texas, and then the short track at Martinsvile. Usualy the opening race of this round, Martinsville has a new home as an elimination race. Each of the 3 elimination races are now on either a short track or a road course.
Championship Race Comes to Phoenix
The final change for the 2020 Cup Series will be the championship race itself. After 18 years as the season finale, Homstead-Miami Speedway moves to earlier in the year. In Homestead’s place will be Phoenix’s ISM Raceway, the 1 mile oval that has served as the Round of 8 elimination race. With a newly renovated facility, ISM is a prime location to crown a Cup Series champion.
The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season will certainly have a new feel for much of its duration. From Daytona in February to Phoenix in November, there will be thousands of miles of action packed racing. Next season is still far away, but it will be upon us before we all know it.
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