William Byron Backs NASCAR Sticking to Its “Traditions” Amidst Diminishing Road Course Appeal

The NASCAR schedule has always been a hot spot for debate. While many see a plethora of issues with how the schedule is structured, others tend to stand by the fact that the current format is the one they prefer. One other aspect of that back-and-forth has also been the positioning of road courses. In the current season, there are a total of five road course races which some have opined is too much. Perhaps the NASCAR fandom is not really feeling the appeal of such tracks anymore and would rather prefer oval tracks.

However, when it comes to Hendrick Motorsports’ star racer, William Byron, he seems to hold a different opinion altogether. When asked a somewhat similar question, the winner of the latest road course race had a simple, straightforward answer.

William Byron feels that it is a good balance nowadays in NASCAR race courses

Byron faced the media ahead of his Cup Series face-off at Richmond Raceway. The interviewer asked if he would want to add another street or road course race to their schedule, or if he’s satisfied with the current balanced structure. In reply to this, Byron decided to stand by NASCAR and mention how the current balance in the schedule is exactly what he prefers.

He said, “Yeah I like the balance of what it is right now. I think we can’t really oversaturate. I like that we have four or five road courses. When we started to go to five or six, I knew that I had to become a better road course racer. Always had speed on road courses, but it became a big priority. So I don’t know, I like the traditional tracks that we go to. And I think our schedule is fine the way it is. I think this year’s probably the most traditional.” “It’s been with having so many short tracks in a row and we’re kind of back to the roots there. So, I don’t know, I’m going to race wherever they tell me to go. But, I think it’s a good balance right now,” continued Byron.

Read More: William Byron Creates History, Showcases the Disparity in Performance in the NextGen Car With His COTA Win

And perhaps his recent win at the Circuit of the Americas race would explain his affinity toward street courses. The No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports driver showed great agility at the COTA, with a 42-lap lead. This marks his second road course win in the last three such events, with only a second-place finish at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course as an exception.

Further emphasizing the growing importance of road courses, Watkins Glen International made its debut in this year’s NASCAR playoffs too. Additionally, as of this current season, stage breaks have returned to street courses after being removed for the entirety of the 2023 season.

The recent change in the nature of road courses

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Although road and street courses account for only 11.5% of the regular-season schedule, they comprise 20% of the playoffs.  Among them was the recent EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at COTA. Additionally, there are four other such tracks to look out for this season. The Sonoma Raceway will be hosting the Xfinity series on June 8, and will be known as the Sonoma 250. Known to be the only points race during the regular season, this raceway in California will also be hosting the Cup Series’ Toyota/ Save Mart 350 on June 9, and will run for a total of 110 laps.

Following this, NASCAR will be returning for the second time to the Giant Park for Chicago Street Race on July 7. As a part of a minimum 3-year agreement, this race known as the Grant Park 200 will be 75 laps long. Additionally, as the first event of the 2024 Cup Series playoffs in Georgia, the Quaker State 400 Available at Walmart will be taking place on September 8. Later that month, the Watkins Glen International will be hosting the Cup series in the playoffs from September 13 to 15.

Read More: The Reason Behind William Byron’s Unprecedented Success in the Last Two Seasons

With such an exciting calender revolving around street courses, it will be interesting to see if bringing back stage breaks has been a good or a bad one. What do you think?