NASCAR Thursday announced that Friday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole qualifying session at Richmond Raceway will see the first two rounds shortened from 10 minutes to five minutes.
The first round will see all cars go out in group style for a lap or laps with the top 24 moving to Round 2. The top 12 from Round 2 move to the final round, which is also five minutes in length.
This is not a permanent change to qualifying, as discussions are continuing to take place regarding the qualifying format for NASCAR’s top series. The format for NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying at Richmond is unchanged.
The enhanced weekend schedule will see inspection take place Saturday afternoon and that will officially set the lineup for Saturday night’s Toyota Owners 400 (7:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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