CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The NASCAR Cup Series schedule will look very different from what you have normally seen from the top stock car series in the world.
Over the last few years, NASCAR has been fiddling with their schedule. Trying out new races and move races around to different dates to try and find the best fit to keep the sport appealing to fans.
“We developed the 2021 schedule with one primary goal: Continue to take steps to create the most dynamic schedule possible for our fans,” said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president, and chief racing development officer.
Dynamic is certainly a good word to describe it. The schedule next season will feature the most road course races ever on a NASCAR Cup Series calendar. It will also see the series return to racing on dirt for the first time since 1970.
These changes are among many races being moved around to different dates and some noticeable omissions of tracks that have been on the schedule over the last two decades.
Races on road-courses this year will include the Circuit of the Americas for the first time ever, Road America, Watkins Glen, Sonoma Raceway, and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
The Cup race at IMS will be a doubleheader weekend coupled with the NTT IndyCar Series, says IMS President Doug Boles.
“Our first NASCAR-INDYCAR weekend was a big success last July, with positive feedback from our loyal fans who watched the races on NBC and from the drivers, teams, and participants involved,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “So we know the teams and drivers of the Cup Series will put on a great show as they turn left and right for the first time at IMS.
The move also means the Cup race on the oval at IMS will not be happening for the foreseeable future, putting an end to the race’s 27-year run on the oval.
Road America will be the new location for NASCAR’s Fourth of July race. Other new additions to the schedule include the Nashville Superspeedway in Tennessee and a doubleheader at Pocono Raceway in late June.
Chicagoland and Kentucky are among the big tracks that have been removed from the schedule.
The series normally races twice at Bristol Motor Speedway every season. This year one of those races will be on dirt. That last night NASCAR’s top series raced on dirt was in 1970 at the North Carolina Fairgrounds Speedway. Richard Petty won that race.
The NASCAR All-Star Race will be run at Texas next season. Darlington Raceway is getting a second race weekend and Homestead-Miami Speedway will be moved from the season finale race to the second race of the year.
The finale will now be run at Phoenix Raceway Nov. 7.
