No more stage breaks as NASCAR eliminates it for select 2023 Cup, Xfinity, and Truck races

In a bid to mix up strategic calls on the track, NASCAR has decided to get rid of stage breaks for the highest echelon in the sport, the Cup Series, for the entirety of the road-course racing schedule in 2023. The announcement came in conjunction with several other tweaks and rule changes the governing body announced over the past few days, in a bid to manufacture more storyline changes on the track with respect to strategy.

Along with the Cup Series moving away from stage breaks at all of their road-course events, junior categories like Xfinity and Truck Series will also do away with the green and white checkered flag waving at the end of a stage at select races. Stage points will be handed to the drivers on the designated lap as usual, and green flag racing will continue regardless.

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Senior vice president of competition for NASCAR, Elton Sawyer, elaborated on the thinking behind the rule change and elaborated on how stage breaks on road courses alter strategy in a much more defined way than on oval tracks and said:

“When we introduced stage racing, we took an element of strategy away from the event. Felt this (change) would bring some new storylines (to the event).”

Fans have often witnessed drivers pit right before stage breaks to position themselves higher up the order for the latter stages of the race, and NASCAR aims to switch things up with their recent revision of the rules in the 2023 season.

List of 2023 NASCAR Cup, Xfinity, and Truck races where there will be no more stage breaks

With the introduction of no stage breaks in favor of green flag racing during road course events in all three national series of the sport, NASCAR has decided to switch things up for the 2023 season of racing.

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The Cup Series will no longer see stage breaks for all six of its road course events, which are as follows: