The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix is back for 2025, and let’s just say, it’s not your typical NASCAR snoozefest at Circuit of The Americas. Nope, this year it’s flipping the script with a bold, gutsy change to the track and the action.
Mark your calendars for Sunday, March 2, because the Grand Prix—now the third race of the season—will ditch COTA’s 3.41-mile Full Course. That’s right, forget the traditional layout with its sprawling backside; it’s all about the tighter, meaner 2.3-mile National Course. NASCAR is throwing the drivers a curveball, shaving off about a mile, chopping lap times by a minute, and dialing up the chaos. FOX will air it at 2:30 p.m. CT, but let’s be real—this one’s worth seeing live.
It’s not just the Cup Series that’s going short-track chic. The Xfinity Series joins the fun with the Focused Health 250 on Saturday, March 1 (1:30 p.m. CT on CW). Both races promise to pack nearly 50% more laps into the tighter layout, which means more racing, more action, and more chances for your favorite driver to either shine or embarrass themselves in front of screaming fans.
Speedway Motorsports CEO Marcus Smith isn’t pulling punches about why this move makes sense. “The National Course is going to blow the roof off the fan experience,” he said. “Shorter laps, more action, and brand-new pavement? It’s like giving the fans a turbocharged racing spectacle.”
Of course, the drivers aren’t exactly strolling into familiar territory. The National Course is a new beast. Even Ross Chastain, the 2022 winner and COTA veteran, admitted it’s like heading into uncharted waters. “It’s basically a new track,” Chastain said after running it on iRacing. But don’t think that’s slowing him down. The guy thrives on challenges like these, calling the Cup Series “scary as heck” but the pinnacle of motorsports. You don’t ascend to this level unless you’ve got the guts to stare down a revamped COTA layout.
Oh, and let’s not forget that COTA’s had a full repave since last year, adding another layer of unpredictability. So, between the fresh pavement, the snubbed backstretch, and the compressed chaos of the National Course, expect the unexpected.
This shake-up sets the tone for a 2025 NASCAR season that starts with the Daytona 500 on Feb. 16 and heads to Atlanta Motor Speedway the week before COTA. It’s early days, but if the revamped EchoPark Grand Prix is anything to go by, this season’s about to hit with the subtlety of a freight train. Buckle up.
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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