“Just chasing ratings…Is that the best thing?” That is how Denny Hamlin and others criticized NASCAR for the delay on Michigan weekend. After almost a month-long respite, Mother Nature came uninvited to the racetrack again, prompting the sanctioning body to delay the race, and then call it off after 51 laps. The situation seemed circumstantial, driven by the whims of the weather gods.

But now drivers and experts are questioning NASCAR’s faulty timings altogether. They often conflict with the loyal fanbase’s convenience and availability. As a result, the popularity witnessed a clear decline when the second half of the Michigan race played out on Monday. This may continue in the future, as an insider warned.

Is NASCAR shooting itself in the foot?

After the economic recession of 2008, NASCAR took a large hit in ratings and popularity. It took over a decade to stand on its feet again. Last year in November, the sanctioning body roped in a wealthy media rights deal of $7.7 billion with bigwigs like Amazon and TNT. But even as the sport is regaining its position, it may be losing common sense in some aspects. Unlike the early afternoon timings of the NFL games, NASCAR holds late afternoon races to comply with its TV partners, as Dale Earnhardt Jr. emphasized.

This has tested the patience of loyal fans, who were handed an incomplete race on Sunday. Then they had to toil through the working hours of Monday and keep abreast of the Michigan race simultaneously. That is what ‘Door, Bumper, Clear’ host Brett Griffin highlighted as the team sat down to discuss the late-race caution call, their bold takes on championship contenders, and Corey LaJoie’s fatal flip. Discussing the timing and reasons in specific, he said, “I think they need to move that race up. A, you don’t have lights, B, it’s the middle of summer. A couple of showers here and there and you end up in the scenario we’re in. Had they moved it up an hour, or started at 1 ‘o’clock, we would have got the entire race in yesterday.” 

Known for his unfiltered approach, Brett Griffin openly bashed NASCAR for hurting itself. At some point, the TV deal needs to meet halfway with fans’ convenience.  Griffin further launched his criticism, saying, “But man, that place was packed yesterday. You gotta cater to the fans, man. You’re gonna have more fans on the stands there if you run on Sunday, more fans watching on Sunday,” dropping a three-word verdict that NASCAR “lost all that,” adding, “when you raced on Monday.”

Even Denny Hamlin, whose Michigan run ended poorly due to aerodynamic challenges, brought up the same criticism. “Man, we have chased ratings for so long. We’re willing to be on different networks and we’re going to streaming and our start times are all over the place. Just chasing ratings. Chasing it. Is that the best thing for the sport versus having you know at Sunday, 1 o’clock you have a race to watch?” However, there was one positive side to delaying the race to Monday, as Griffin further pointed out.

The playoff picture is secure

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Tyler Reddick earned his second win of the season in spectacular fashion, beating William Byron in an overtime victory. The 23XI Racing driver also holds the first position on the point standings, with a ten-point advantage over Chase Elliott. But this opportunity might have slipped through his fingers had NASCAR decided to resume the race on Sunday itself. As we know from the Chicago Street Race, wet conditions can create havoc for even the best of the lot, like Shane van Gisbergen.

That is why Brett Griffin also applauded NASCAR, as it took the right call to postpone it to Monday altogether. “I applaud NASCAR for not putting us back out there. Because if they put us back out there, we were going to race till dark and it was going to change the playoff picture. It was gonna screw or help somebody tremendously. We weren’t gonna have enough time if we were going back green at say 7 and race till 8:20…It was a good thing for the playoff format.” 

Currently, four open spots are up for grabs in the playoffs, and two regular-season races (Daytona and Darlington) are where drivers will fight it out. As we recover from the closed chapter of Michigan, let us wait and see what fresh excitement the next races bring. Hopefully, it would cater to the fans’ convenience, of course.