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Daytona International Speedway will not be one of the tracks considered for the NASCAR championship weekend, a senior executive said Tuesday.
So, no, the season will not start with Daytona and end up for those who suggest it.
But what tracks can be considered for the season final?
Nascar announced on Tuesday that Homestead-Miami Speedway, a 1.5-mile track, the season final for Cup, XFinity and the Craftsman Truck series on November 6, 2026. Homestead hosted the championship weekend of 2002-19.
Nascar will start turning for the championship race in 2026.
Phoenix, who has hosted the title races since 2020, will be among the tracks that will turn to host the season final.
Ben Kennedy, executive vice president of the NASCAR, chief room and race innovation officer, said not to expect Daytona International Speedway to be under the tracks in the rotation for the championship weekend. He said the focus is on short tracks and intermediate traces where Nascar will crown his champions.
“Never never say, but I think we unanimously agreed that (the title race) should look and feel like we would expect traditional NASCAR races to look and feel,” Kennedy said. ‘So short cuts, intermediate cuts, mile tracks are all on the board. Superspeedways, I think, we all feel the moment we wouldn’t consider it a championship place, not that Daytona is not a championship scaliber.
“… we want to make sure that when we go to Homestead-Miami or Phoenix or wherever it is in the future, that there is a lot of strategy and that many of our championship managers also face at the end of the race.”
From Jimmie Johnson’s Record Type Seven Cup title to Chase Elliott who becomes the latest Xfinity champion, Homestead has seen a lot over the years.
Kennedy also noted that road courses fall into a similar category to Superspeedways not to be a candidate to host a championship event.
It will eliminate the following traces of consideration: Daytona, Talladega (Superspeedway), Atlanta (Superspeedway style races), Circuit of the Americas (Road Course), Sonoma (Road Course), Watkins Glen (Road Course), Charlotte Road (Road Course) and Mexico Course (Road Course). This is the third and final year of the current contract for the Chicago Street race and no expansion has been announced.
Nascar will look at other factors to choose his host for the championship weekend.
“While thinking of a championship race, ideal for a hot weather of the climate,” Kennedy said. “You can’t run anywhere in the world in the world, especially not in early November, so there are a handful of venues and properties that we tend to follow.”
Other traces that are probably eliminated due to the weather or another factor are Michigan, New Hampshire, Pocono, Dover, Indianapolis, Iowa, Richmond and World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis.
Darlington is unlikely to be considered because the Southern 500 is traditionally held on the Labor Day weekend. Nascar knows the wrath of fans with the way of the weekend and will not repeat it.
Nashville Superspeedway, a 1.33 -mile concrete track, can use the excitement of the city, but the track is about 30 kilometers from the city and can also use additional facilities.
A look at the winners and losers from Sunday’s cup race at Texas Motor Speedway.
Martinsville would be interesting, but the weather could be a problem and the limited number of suites on the historic track, and not to be in a big city would be factors.
Bristol has the facility to host a championship race, but the weather in early November could be a question.
If the Nascar season can end in mid-October, it can consider Bristol stronger-and others. But how to end the season early will be difficult in the coming years, especially if the NFL adds an 18th game in the usual season and the Super Bowl moves back a week when the Daytona 500 is typical. This will affect the rest of the series schedule. Nascar tried in mid-week races and TV viewers were not strong enough to continue.
Among the tracks, along with Phoenix and Homestead, it can be considered the season final:
-Alas Vegas Motor Speedway, a 1.5 -mile track that has offered a playoffs since 2018 when it started two cups dates.
-Texas car Speedway, a 1.5 mile cut that offered playback races from 2005-23.
-Kansas Speedway, a 1.5 -mile track that has hosted play -offs since 2004, but the weather can prevent it from hosting the title race unless the end of the season is moved up.
-Charlotte car Speedway, a 1.5-mile cut that offered on the oval from 2004-17 before the play-off match was moved to the track’s Reval. Any final there would be on the oval.
