Here’s Why NASCAR’s 2024 Schedule Is Facing Driver Backlash

Following NASCAR’s announcement in the past week, a lot of discussions have been popping up. In case you are unaware, the organization recently unveiled its detailed 2024 schedule, and that has taken over the conversation with prominent driver and NASCAR pundits giving their takes on the matter.

To be honest, the community is pretty much divided on this. Some, including veteran drivers like Denny Hamlin, cite that the sanctioning body’s alteration will make the situation all the more dire for drivers, making it a “game of chance.”

While NASCAR is positive that its efforts will pay off with the revamped schedule for its 76th season, offering a better and raw experience for fans as fan-favorite venues make a return, let us look at some aspects of the new schedule that don’t get along with the racers.

A short brief about NASCAR’s 2024 schedule

Well, the 2024 schedule has got a couple of major changes across the 3 racing divisions. First, let us look at the positives here. For one, the fan-favorite Iowa Speedway will make a return to the NASCAR schedule after a 5-year gap since its last race in 2019 for Xfinity and Truck. Other than these lower-tier races, NASCAR has a long history with the state.

Just about 30 miles south of Iowa Speedway is Knoxville Speedway, which is a major venue for Sprint races. The same venue also has an illustrious history of testing drivers and shaping them into better, capable drivers like the great 4-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon and HMS’ Kyle Larson.

The Vice President of NASCAR, Ben Kennedy, broke the news to the community, delivering what the community yearned for a long time. He said, “Really excited to bring the Cup Series there, the Xfinity Series and ARCA Menard Series it’s been 4 years since we’ve had the chance to go to Iowa Speedway, I guess 5 next year with one of our national series and I think it’s going to put on a great racing product. Frankly, I think it’s going to be a good blend between what we’ve seen on short tracks and intermediate-style racing which has been really strong.” 

Besides the fan-favorite track making a comeback, the organization, confident about its success, retains the 2.2-mile street course in Chicago. While the All-Star race is fixed to be held at the iconic North Wilkesboro track which will be repaved, bringing it back to speed, Daytona will no longer be the regular-season finale, moving to the penultimate race of the regular season.

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Darlington Raceway, which used to be the playoff opener, will now finalize the 16-driver format from 2024. Whereas Atlanta Motor Speedway and Watkins Glen will move into the postseason. They will be the first two races of the first round. Moreover, the Bristol Dirt race is now dropped from the schedule as Food City mayhem will return to the concrete pavement in the Spring while Kansas Speedway moves into the second playoff round.

NASCAR drivers make their displeasure known as Denny Hamlin sticks up for the entire roster

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Besides the above-mentioned changes, the organization got its ambitions crushed when it failed to strike a deal as the doors finally closed in on it, denying the sought-after Toronto fixture. With the officials failing to reach an agreement, Iowa Speedway was brought back to the schedule, delighting fans while NASCAR’s expansion plans have been held back.

Despite the organization doing its best efforts to strike an accord with the fans, widespread criticism has emerged from the community, especially from its drivers. With the venues being shifted around, if one is to take a closer look at the fixture, the round of 12 now has 2 back-to-back speedway races, which is not the case this season.

While the VP of NASCAR tried his best to rationalize the change and point out its positives, the idea of having 2 high speedways in a playoff round did not sit well with Hamlin. According to Motorsport.com, the JGR veteran openly said, “Obviously, I don’t like it, I think you continue, you know, to make this a game a chance. One of the common quotes that you’ll hear from leadership is that ‘We like to test our drivers.’”

The outspoken veteran also added in a stiff jab, saying, “That’s silly. You’re testing their luck. You’re not testing their skill.” Shortly after the #11 driver made his thoughts public, reigning Cup Series champion, Joey Logano also chimed in with his take. Unlike Hamlin, who gave a detailed analysis, Logano simply said, “I don’t know if I agree with putting two superspeedways in the playoffs.” 

Obviously, the shuffle affects fans, but more importantly, it literally changes the game plan of drivers and their teams. Above all, Hamlin feels like the last straw that broke the camel’s back is the rescheduling of Daytona, which was once the last hope of drivers to make it past the regular season. With that now being sent for a toss, the 2024 schedule is sort of an unknown territory for drivers as they’ll have to take on 2 speedways once they make it past the 1st playoff round.

The community’s mixed response to the organization’s reshuffle

NASCAR’s broth was both sweet and sour for the NASCAR community as they shared their takes on the modified fixture. While the return of the coveted Indy Motor Speedway oval for the Brickyard 400 garnered the praise of fans and drivers alike, Daytona’s change is the one factor that doesn’t sit well with most drivers.

On the flip side, with Iowa Speedway making its comeback, veterans of the sport like Kenny Wallace were ecstatic to see the track his brother (Rusty Wallace) co-founded and redesigned to make a return to the fixture. The re-pavement of the NWB also stirred up some debate as part-time Truck Series driver Kaden Honeycutt said, “Well, there goes the skill it took to drive around this place.”

Kevin Harvick’s legendary crew chief also posted his thoughts with a simple yet resounding tweet that mentioned his desire to see a points race in NWB instead of the All-Star race that has a cash prize attached to it.

The veteran SHR teammate also relayed the community’s long-lasting desire to see the Clash in some other venue.

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To conclude, the controversial yet intriguing fixture certainly has hit the spot, stirring up the talks and getting the community speculating and talking about the possible outcomes. However, considering the drivers’ plight, the new schedule does have put a chip on their shoulders, making things more dire and competitive.