Every NASCAR fan has felt at least once, particularly during the last season, that NASCAR has been unfair towards a team. Before the 2025 season starts, NASCAR has thankfully updated the rules. The current change has encompassed two aspects – what does one mean by race manipulation? In addition, NASCAR has implemented an overhaul of its Damaged Vehicle Policy, offering teams more flexibility in repairing their cars. 

But will that have any kind of positive impact on the reputation that NASCAR has already housed? Here’s what NASCAR insider, Kevin Harvick, has to say about the rule changes and how teams might perceive the same, now that there is more autonomy. 

Kevin Harvick details the new rule changes

NASCAR’s rules for the 2025 season were recently updated, focusing on damaged vehicles. This update came after the organization made significant changes. Previously, it was a mandate for teams to abide by the rule that damaged cars would be out of the race. The rule extends out to damaged vehicles that are both in the garage or have been towed. Moreover, the onset of the 2025 season sees cars continue to perform even after repair. 

The discretion will now be on the teams to decide whether they want to run a car or get it back to the stands. Race officials will enforce a strict time limit of seven minutes for pit road repairs. There will be an extended eight-minute limit for events at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The car must be moved to the Cup Series garage if repairs exceed this time frame. Teams can continue to work without a time restriction in this spot. However, there will be penalties if a vehicle attempts to rejoin the race but fails to exit the pit road before the time expires.

Additionally, any car that cannot reach the pit road because of crash damage or flat tires will be transported directly to the garage. Speaking of the new rules and the changes they might bring into the sport, Kevin Harvick said, “I’m glad that they took themselves out of what’s happening because now they can tow that car to the garage with flat tires. They can tow the car to the garage with a wreck and say, ‘Good luck, teams, hope you make it back out on the racetrack.'”

Kevin Harvick continued, “Let the team make the decision. And I’m glad NASCAR doesn’t have to be in the middle of it anymore because they weren’t going to win. Yeah, they were not going to win. The argument—whether it was right or wrong—somebody was always going to feel like there was favoritism… And we saw this come into play several times last year”.

Last season, at Watkin Glens, Ryan Blaney fell prey to an early Lap1 crash. However, the aftermath was a DNF that did not seem reasonable to several NASCAR fans. Further, to make things worse, NASCAR had sent a towing truck in the middle of the tracks. They wanted to remove Blaney’s car because he disagreed with NASCAR’s ruling.

Blaney expressed a similar wish after the decision did not go in this favor. He had said, “Give us a chance to fix it. How do they know if we’re done or not. They have no idea of the damage. It’s that I couldn’t drive it back to the pit box and we’re done. You get towed back to the garage, and you can’t drive it back!”.

With these changes, teams will have more control over their race outcomes. This has the potential to not only reduce frustrations but also minimize chances of friction. 

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Chase Elliott might breathe a sigh of relief with the new rule update

The 2024 Talladega run will forever be a nightmare for Chase Elliott. It was at this race Elliott got entangled in a 28 car wreck and the result was a DNF. But what happened after that was quite controversial. NASCAR towed the car back to the garage, an incident they had already done with Ryan Blaney.

The incident sparked intense debate, with many questioning NASCAR’s Damaged Vehicle Policy. Elliott’s removal from the race fueled further criticism. He openly condemned the rule and its enforcement. 

Speaking of the same, Elliott had criticized NASCAR’s move, “It’s unfortunate that if you have flat tires, that causes you to not be able to go anywhere without help… You’re just at the mercy of the track workers at that point”.

Given that NASCAR has finally reconsidered the rules, it is a sign that Elliott’s frustration was quite justified.

Even teams have welcomed the decision with open arms. In the recent episode of The Teardown Podcast, Jordan Bianchi and Jeff Gluck discussed the impact. Bianchi said, “This feels much more straightforward… I’ve kind of exchanged a lot of messages with crew chiefs the last few days…um, teams kinda like that they didn’t have to bring crash cards as much”.

So, what do you think of the new rule? Do mention it in the comments section below!