NASCAR issued 40 penalties at COTA in a single outing from all three, i.e., Cup, Xfinity, and Truck Series, last weekend. This automatically raises a concern for the track. The Senior Vice President of Competition at NASCAR, Elton Sawyer, already mentioned that they are reviewing their procedures for the facility. He also hinted at leaving out this track for any races next season.

Additionally, Sawyer observed that taking a shortcut by running straight through the esses could reduce a driver’s lap time compared to one who navigates the correct path through that section of the course. However, such corner-cutting was penalized due to the unfair advantage it provided. At the same time, the Cup race winner at COTA, William Byron, opened up about his experience of the track.

“I hated the track limits,” says William Byron

William Byron opens up to Dale Jr in a recent episode of his renowned podcast Dirty Mo Media. Bringing the reference to these heavy penalizations, Junior, representing many other NASCAR drivers expressed disregard for the officiating of the COTA track as he said “I talked to Kevin Harvick a little bit this morning about this as well, what is the answer we want? We don’t want NASCAR in the officiating of track limits, we don’t want to be in the race track where we even have to say the word. ” “So what do you think is the answer to this?” he continued in curiosity of Byron’s views.

Following Byron’s second Cup Series victory of the 2024 season, Dale Earnhardt Jr asked if unlike him, William Byron cared about the problems faced by his fellow drivers after he secured his win. In reply to this, Byron said “Yeah, I mean so I agree on that a lot of times. You know you win and your judgment is a little different, but I do feel like, so during the race for me like I hated the track limits. Because as the leader I felt like I was at a disadvantage like if I’m if I want to be aggressive with my line and make time, if I’m in second or third like I’m going to push that stuff a lot more.”

“So I hated that that’s the case because I feel like as a leader you’re in a spot where you don’t really wanna make that mistake and you don’t know how aggressive they’re gonna be in calling it.” continued Byron. He, despite being in an advantageous position, did not consider it to be so.

NASCAR’s officiating of the COTA track

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NASCAR focuses on enforcing track limits, specifically in the esses section at COTA (Turns 3-5). The rationale behind this decision is to ensure that drivers maintain the intended left and right maneuvers throughout a lap. By keeping drivers on track through the esses, NASCAR aims to prevent shortcuts that might straighten out the course and potentially provide unfair advantages.

NASCAR’s decision to focus on the esses is strategic. If they allowed drivers to take shortcuts through this section, it could alter the dynamics of the race. Straightening out the esses by cutting across rumble strips or going off-track would provide an unfair advantage. Drivers could gain speed and potentially leapfrog each other.

By keeping drivers within the defined boundaries, the organizing body maintains a level playing field and ensures fair competition. If drivers were allowed to exploit the esses, it would lead to confusion and penalties. Officiating at COTA is indeed challenging due to the unique layout and penalties associated with exceeding track limits.

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It would be interesting to see if NASCAR authorities decided to run races on this track next season. If they do, what are the changes that they will implement?