Schedule changes will rattle NASCAR

Sport is looking for ways to keep and attract fans

—If a NASCAR fan hates anything, there’s only one person to blame: Brian France.

NASCAR has been under France’s stewardship since 2003, when he took over the CEO and chairmanship positions from his father, Bill France Jr. It’s been a rocky road since then, as the sport has struggled keeping traditional fans while failing to rope in millennials.

But at least you have to give France props for refusing to stand pat. The recently announced changes to the 2018 NASCAR Cup schedule are significant. And although certainly not a dealbreaker for the sport, it is an acknowledgment that changes are necessary for a sport struggling with attendance and ratings issues, even if it means alienating partners along some pit stops.

Those spurned include Chicago, which lost its kickoff spot as the inaugural playoff race, and New Hampshire, which gets downsized from two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup weekends to one.

The power of markets — or lack thereof — factors into this business decision. Las Vegas, an emerging NASCAR market, is hipper and cooler than Chicago, which is why it’s Vegas Baby for the first playoff race of the 2018 season. New Hampshire gets

bumped as part of the collateral damage by losing a race to Vegas.

There are more changes in place. Charlotte Motor Speedway’s playoff race will now be staged on the venue’s road course instead of its 1.5-mile oval. Martinsville keeps its place with an Oct. 28 date. That will also add a second short track to the 10-race playoff format, joining Martinsville.

“It’s a little unfortunate for the New Hampshire folks because there are tons of race fans up there and a lot of die-hard, short-track modified racers and families up there that like to come to the Cup race,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. said. “… But, Vegas is certainly a great market for us; and one of the West Coast markets that works really well. And I like the Vegas race track. It’s a fun 1.5-mile.”

Another change in the mix: Indianapolis Motor Speedway will move from its date in late July to Sept. 9, serving as the cutoff race for the playoffs.

“I can pretty much memorize the schedule where we’re at right now, so it’s definitely going to throw me for a loop next year not knowing where the hell we’re going the following week,” Kyle Busch said. “But all in all, it’s going to be interesting to see the Brickyard being the cutoff race. I think that’s going to be fun.”

Perhaps the most interesting twist starts right here at Charlotte Motor Speedway, on the road course setup called the “Roval.” Similar to the Rolex 24 course at Daytona International Speedway, it includes 13 turns, and also encompasses parts of the standard race track. It now becomes a Round 1 elimination race.

“I’m not sure what to expect. I haven’t run it,” Busch said. “I know AJ (Allmendinger) did. But the setup and what it’s going to take to get through the slow, small stuff that there’s not a lot of load, not a lot of downforce over here, and the short section is going to be entirely different than what you’re going to need entering Turn 3 at 165 miles an hour, you know.” Entirely different it is. You can thank Brian France for this. Or blame him for everything.

NASCAR fans, much like some race tracks, can be unforgiving.

France