Chastain’s wall-hugging move banned
NASCAR has essentially banned the “Hail Melon” video-game move driver Ross Chastain used at Martinsville Speedway to race his way into the championship finale.
Chastain mashed the gas and deliberately smashed into the wall so that the energy would speed his car past his rivals.
But his fellow competitors thought Chastain’s trick was both dangerous and not in the spirit of fair competition. NASCAR on Tuesday said the wall-hugging, jaw-dropping pass Chastain made on the final lap will be a penalty in 2023.
Other notable changes for the Cup Series in 2023:
Losing a wheel will no longer be a four-race suspension to the crew chief and two crew members. It will be a two-race ban for two crew members if it happens beyond pit road.
There will no longer be stage breaks at road courses. NASCAR will still award points at the end of stages, only without the caution.
NASCAR will give teams seven minutes on pit road to work on their cars if they are damaged in an accident. It was six minutes last year before being increased to 10 minutes for the Cup playoffs.
Restart zones will be increased by 50 percent — 25 percent more room before the start/finish line and 25 percent more at the end. The change goes into effect for the first five events of the season and will be reevaluated from there.
NASCAR removed the top-30-in-points requirement for drivers trying to make the playoffs. Drivers will still be required to participate in every event unless granted a waiver.
Mufflers will be used in the season-opening Clash, an exhibition that will take place at L.A. Coliseum. They will reduce noise and create an atmosphere better suited for fan conversations.
NASCAR tweaked language in its rulebook to mandate fire-retardant underclothing from the neck to the wrists to the ankles. It had previously been recommended.
NASCAR will use new
systems in cars that will provide more powerful crash data. It’s a significant upgrade from the black box technology first used in 2002 following Dale Earnhardt’s death at Daytona.
NASCAR will have a “large increase” in the number of drivers who will wear mouth-piece sensors at races. Data recorders measure what cars experience; this would provide data directly from drivers and what they go through during races, specifically in crashes.