Changes coming to NASCAR All-Star Race (3rd Update)
They involve truck trailing arm and crossmember assembly, electric fans used for cooling purposes on the cars and rear wheel toe alignment.The trailing arm issue was actually addressed previously with a change put into place before the series competed earlier this month at Kansas Speedway. Teams must now weld truck trailing arm mounting brackets (and mounting tabs, if used) to prevent movement. That change will remain in place for the remainder of the 2016 season.
Limiting the number of cooling fans will provide "a good efficiency improvement as far as managing or attenuating some costs … and it also gave us a downforce reduction," he said. "So it was a win-win. Some of those fans were driving things like bigger fans, bigger alternators, bigger batteries … that kind of thing."
Rear toe alignment changes will decrease the amount of skew (slant) allowed in a car's setup. "We currently allow them to set up the car with some skew that provides not only a turning advantage but also a side force advantage," he said. "Usually the way a team would set that up is on the right side they take 0.6 degrees of toe out and on the left side they do about 0.3 degrees of toe in. We're going to change the specifications so it's going to be neutral; it will be zero setup. That will take some of the skew out of the car, which will take some of the side force off the car."
It is also expected to reduce corner speeds approximately 3 mph at a track such as Charlotte. Because the Sprint All-Star Race is a non-points event, it provides officials and teams the opportunity to observe the impact of the changes without the fear of upsetting the integrity of the regular season. "Depending on how the journey goes and what we find out, that could be something we could consider for '17." NASCAR.com
05/15/16 More behind the scenes are the changes to the aero rules to try to improve the already much-better racing this season. There have been minor tweaks a few times this year, and it sounds as if there will be more set for the Sprint All-Star Race next week.
"It seems everything is changing for that race — we have race cars and the format is different," said Joey Logano when asked about the All-Star Race.
"I am sure you guys in the media center will be plenty busy with plenty to write about."
In light of the Logano remarks, it would seem that the NASCSAR drivers know something that hasn't been announced. NASCAR won't confirm nor deny that it will introduce new rules for the Sprint All-Star Race, but the garage is buzzing about a potential change that will impact the aerodynamics and side forces of the car. It wasn't clear if the changes Logano alluded to will be for the All-Star Race this year, will be used in points events or looking ahead to 2017.
NASCAR last year had hoped to experiment with some new rules for 2016 at the 2015 All-Star Race and then scrapped that decision. ESPN.com
05/06/16 This rumor is upgraded to 'fact' today. Charlotte Motor Speedway will host a new, thrilling format for the May 21 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, the biggest all-star event in all of sports, that will see the brightest stars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series dueling for 113 laps to decide the winner of a $1 million prize. The unique format for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race includes two 50-lap segments with mandatory green-flag pit stops destined to shuffle the field. It all culminates with a 13-lap trophy dash that promises to deliver breathtaking racing, with a wrinkle sure to add intrigue. Prior to the start of the final segment, a random draw will decide whether the top nine, 10 or 11 cars will enter pit road for a mandatory four-tire pit stop. The rest will stay out on older tires and lead the field to green for the final segment. Cars with four new tires will line up behind those with older tires. It all adds up to a gripping fight-to-the-front finish for $1 million.
The new format is a throwback to the early years of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, when longer segments put more racing in the drivers' hands, while the final 13-lap sprint offers the thrill of the unknown as teams battle to the front on fresh tires. The 2016 rules package for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, which has provided two of the closest margins of victory in NASCAR history so far this season, also lends itself favorably to the updated format.
NASCAR SPRINT ALL-STAR RACE FORMAT (MAY 21):
· Segment 1 (50 laps): Field set determined by qualifying, mandatory green-flag pit stop for a minimum of two tires;
· Break 1 (3-5 minutes): Mandatory pit stop with a minimum two-tire change before Segment 2;
· Segment 2 (50 laps): Field set determined by pit-road exit, one mandatory green-flag pit stop for a minimum of two tires before lap 85;
· Break 2 (3-5 minutes): Random draw to decide whether the top nine, 10 or 11 cars must enter pit road for a mandatory four-tire pit stop, pit road closed for all other cars, pit-road exit determines Segment 3 starting order, cars leaving pit road line up behind cars that did not pit;
· Segment 3 (13 laps): Only green-flag laps count (NASCAR Overtime procedures apply).
SPRINT SHOWDOWN FORMAT (MAY 20):
· Segment 1 (20 laps): Field set by practice speed, winner advances to NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race and does not continue in Showdown;
· Segment 2 (20 laps): Field set by pit-road order after mandatory minimum two-tire pit stop, winner advances to NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race and does not continue in Showdown;
· Segment 3 (10 laps): Field set by pit-road order after mandatory minimum two–tire pit stop, winner advances to NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race (NASCAR Overtime rules apply).
ELIGIBILITY:
Drivers who have won a race in the current or preceding year, past NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race winners, past NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions, Sprint Showdown Segment 1, 2 and last-chance qualifier winners and the Sprint Fan Vote winner are eligible to compete. The final order of the Sprint Fan Vote will fill any remaining spots until the field reaches the minimum of 20 cars. Sprint Fan Vote balloting ends prior to the Sprint Showdown on May 20. NASCAR
05/06/16 With just over two weeks remaining until the Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a format for the May 21 exhibition race still hasn't been finalized. Until a few weeks ago, it seemed the 2015 format – four 25-lap segments ending with a 10-lap shootout – likely would remain in place this season. But multiple people with knowledge of the discussions have told NBC Sports that Charlotte and NASCAR officials have lobbied for significant changes to add drama to an event in which the winner has led all 10 laps of the last segment for the past three seasons. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the talks publicly. Among the changes being considered are:
-Varying the length and number of segments;
-Adding a mid-event inversion (which has been tried in past editions of the All-Star Race);
-Dynamic pit stop strategies, such as requiring the top 10 to pit for tires before a final segment while allowing the rest of the field to remain on track. NBC Sports