NASCAR race weekends will be different in 2025.
In a statement sent Thursday, NASCAR announced that testing and qualifying procedures will be varied the 2025 seasondepending on the type of track they are racing on for the race weekend.
The most significant changes for testing and qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and Craftsman Truck Series include:
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Group practice lasts 20 to 25 minutes.
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Single-lap qualifying at each track except superspeedways, which will always feature a final series of time trials for the 10 fastest cars.
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Starting position based solely on qualifying results, rather than line-by-line designations according to qualifying group.
Cup Series director Brad Moran said the adoption of the new procedures was the result of collaboration within the NASCAR industry, including the involvement of new broadcast partners who will begin their first season of a seven-year media rights deal in 2025.
The slight increase in pre-race track time, Moran says, is a small step toward what track schedules used to be before the COVID-19 pandemic prompted industry-wide streamlining for race weekends.
“I think this is going to be well received by the industry,” Moran said in the press release. “We got a lot of feedback throughout the year, and we made some adjustments throughout the year, and we really wanted to take a whole new look at it. A lot of that came into play during COVID when we tightened things up, so we’re kind of going back to what we were doing before. We’re going to have a little more practice, which is obviously better for the fans and partners.
Here are the procedures for the different track types in the 2025 NASCAR season.
NASCAR standard testing and qualifying, including Nashville Superspeedway
For races at intermediate tracks, including Darlington Raceway and Nashville Superspeedway, the procedure is significantly different than in 2024.
There will be practice sessions of 25 minutes each for two groups of cars. Groups will be determined by measurements (70% based on the owner’s previous race finish; 30% based on the owner’s points position. The highest scoring cars in terms of measurements will be placed in group 2).
Qualifying will be simple, with one lap and one qualifying heat, the same way qualifying was done in the past.
Standard races include Las Vegas, Phoenix (spring), Miami, Darlington, Texas, Kansas, Charlotte Oval, Nashville, Michigan, Pocono, Gateway and New Hampshire.
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NASCAR short track testing and qualifying
At short tracks, including Martinsville Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway, there will be practice sessions of 25 minutes each for two groups of cars.
Qualifying will consist of two laps per car and one qualifying heat.
Short track procedures will take place at Martinsville, Bristol, Dover, Iowa, Richmond, North Wilkesboro (trucks) and Lucas Oil IRP (trucks).
NASCAR Superspeedway qualifying, including Daytona 500
There is no standalone practice, but there will be a 50-minute pre-qualifying session for the NASCAR Cup Series at the Daytona 500.
Qualifying consists of one lap per car and two heats. The 10 fastest cars from the first heat advance to the final heat. Starting spots for 1-10 will be based on the final round and the rest of the field will be determined by the first round. This qualifying format is closest to the 2024 season.
This format will take place over three race weekends: Atlanta, the Daytona summer race and Talladega.
Road training and qualifying, including Mexico City
The road races will feature practice runs of 25 minutes each for two groups and a single 20-minute qualifying round for two groups of cars, with multiple cars on track. The eligible order will be determined in time, regardless of the group.
These tracks include Chicago, Sonoma, Watkins Glen, Charlotte ROVAL, Portland (Xfinity) and COTA (Xfinity, Trucks; Cup Series will have expanded practice procedures).
NASCAR Expanded Practice Weekends
Here are the scheduled NASCAR race weekends with separate practice and qualifying sessions:
NASCAR Cup Series: The Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, Daytona 500, COTA, All-Star Race, Mexico, Indianapolis and Phoenix Championship Weekend.
NASCAR Xfinity Series: Championship weekends from Daytona, Rockingham, Mexico, Indianapolis, Gateway and Phoenix.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series: Daytona, Rockingham, Michigan, Lime Rock, Watkins Glen, New Hampshire, Charlotte ROVAL and Phoenix Championship Weekend.
NOTE: The NASCAR Cup Series weekend at Circuit of The Americas will feature expanded road qualifying, with cars split into two groups. Two 20-minute practices will take place for each group (40 minutes total per car), with these sessions leading into qualifying.
How to watch NASCAR practice and qualifying for the 2025 season
The new media rights agreement will see race weekends broadcast across various channels and networks, including streaming services.
NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying sessions will air on Prime Video during the first half of the season. TNT Sports on streaming service Max and TruTV in the second half.
FOX Sports will have exclusive broadcast rights to practice and qualifying for The Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, the Daytona 500 and the NASCAR All-Star Race.
All Xfinity Series practices and qualifying will air on The CW, and FOX Sports will broadcast all Truck Series sessions.
Follow sports writer Austin Chastain on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ChastainAJ or contact him by email at [email protected].
This article was originally published on Nashville Tennessean: NASCAR announces new testing and qualifying procedures for 2025 season
