Author: nascar_geek

“Where is Jeff?”

“Is Gut’s writing his Fantasy NASCAR Preview this year?”

“I miss Gutowski!”

It’s long overdue. Any of y’all that correspond with me know that it may take 3 days, 3 weeks or 3 months for me to reply. (And yes, don’t worry it does weigh heavy on me the whole time.) But that’s another story.

What’s the story with Guts?

Jeff has decided that he needed a break from the long NASCAR season. He wants to step back and be a fan. And, probably do more fishing.

One of the most reliable I’ve ever met

I looked back through my Gmail and found a steady stream of emails from Jeff saying, “I’ve posted my article”, that date back to June 6, 2008. I’m pretty sure that Jeff started writing his Cup Series Preview on my sites in sometime in 2007 from the emails content. That’s one of the longest relationships I’ve ever had. The key to our success?

We’ve only talked on the phone once. We seldom email each other all year.

Jeff Gutowski is on my short-list of being one of the most reliable persons that I’ve ever met. 36+ times a year for about 15 years he’s had his NASCAR Fantasy Preview posted here before the haulers had left the track or you’ve yet turned off the post-race show.

Thanks Guts!

If Jeff had a number I’d retire it. So, second best thing is I’ll retire the name Guts on my sites. If any other Gutowski’s come along that want to write, they’ll have to spell out their whole name.

Feel free to mushy, mushy up the comments section here and let Jeff know what you think.

Darlington Raceway

May 17, 2020 (NASCAR Cup Series)

This race replaces the race originally scheduled to be held on June 21, 2020 at Chicagoland Speedway.

Pit Selection: Order based on charter team owner points followed by open team owner points. Pit stalls will be picked in advance and the pit boxes will be in the stalls when the teams arrive.

Starting Lineup:

• Positions 1-12: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
• Positions 13-24: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
• Positions 25-36: Random draw from charter teams in those positions in owner points
• Positions 37-40: Open teams in order of owners points in owner points

Competition Caution* will occur at or around lap 30.

Stage Lengths: 90 / 185 / 293 laps

May 20, 2020 (NASCAR Cup Series)

This race replaces the race originally scheduled to be held on April 19, 2020 at Richmond Raceway.

Pit Selection: Order based on finishing position from the May 17th race at Darlington, followed by new entries in order of points. Pit stalls will be picked in advance and the pit boxes will be in the stalls when the teams arrive.

Starting Lineup:

• Positions 1-20: Invert the top 20 from the May 17th race at Darlington
• Positions 21-40: In finishing order from the May 17th race at Darlington, followed by new entries

Competition Caution* will occur at or around lap TBD.

Stage Lengths: 60 / 125 / 228 laps

Charlotte Motor Speedway

May 24, 2020 (NASCAR Cup Series)

Coca-Cola 600

Pit Selection: Order based on finishing position from the May 20th race at Darlington, followed by new entries in order of points. Pit stalls will be picked in advance and the pit boxes will be in the stalls when the teams arrive.

Starting Lineup: based on qualifying

Competition Caution* will occur at or around TBD.

Stage Lengths: 100 / 200 / 300 / 400 laps

May 27 (NASCAR Cup Series)

This race replaces the race originally scheduled to be held on June 14, 2020 at Sonoma Raceway.

Pit Selection: Order based on qualifying for the May 24th race at Charlotte, followed by new entries in order of points. If qualifying is rained out, pit selection will be determined by finishing order on May 24. Pit stalls will be picked in advance and the pit boxes will be in the stalls when the teams arrive.

Starting Lineup:

• Positions 1-20: Invert the top 20 from the May 24th race at Charlotte
• Positions 21-40: In finishing order from the May 24th race at Charlotte, followed by new entries

Competition Caution* will occur at or around TBD.

Stage Lengths: 55 / 115 / 208 laps

*Modified Competition Caution Procedures: With the absence of practice, NASCAR will be modifying its Competition Caution procedures to allow teams additional time for adjustments.

• Field will be frozen at the time of the competition caution
• Field will be assembled behind the pace car
• The running order lead lap / lap down will be established and the free pass sent
• Wave around rule is not in effect
• Pit road will open to the top 20 – car must beat the pace car off pit road to retain freeze position
• Pit road will open to the next 20 – car must beat the pace car off pit road to retain freeze position
• Above pit cycle repeats – each team allowed to pit two times
• Re-establish line-up per freeze and restart race

Infractions Under Modified Competition Caution:

• Not beating the pace car off pit road results in loss of lap and restarting at tail of the field
• Pitting more than twice or out of sequence results in restarting at the tail of the field
• All current pit road rules are in effect

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 30, 2020) – NASCAR today announced it will return to racing on May 17, which will kick off a slate of races that includes seven events in three series at two race tracks – Darlington Raceway and Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series will each host its first on-track event since mid-March.

NASCAR will return in an environment that will ensure the safety of our competitors, officials and all those in the local community. We thank local, state and federal officials and medical experts, as well as everyone in the industry, for the unprecedented support in our return to racing, and we look forward to joining our passionate fans in watching cars return to the track.

Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer

The NASCAR Cup Series will return to Darlington Raceway on Sunday, May 17, with a 400-mile event scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET, live on FOX, FOX Deportes, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

What follows is a unique schedule that includes midweek races in primetime and a NASCAR crown jewel – the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway – in its traditional Memorial Day Weekend home for the 60th consecutive season.

DATE	TRACK	SERIES	DIST	NET	START
Sun, May 17	Darlington	Cup	400 mi	FOX	3:30 PM
Tue, May 19	Darlington	Xfinity	200 mi	FS1	8:00 PM
Wed, May 20	Darlington	Cup	500 km	FS1	7:30 PM
Sun, May 24	Charlotte	Cup	600 mi	FOX	6:00 PM
Mon, May 25	Charlotte	Xfinity	300 mi	FS1	7:30 PM
Tue. May 26	Charlotte	Gander Trucks	200 mi	FS1	8:00 PM
Wed, May 27	Charlotte	Cup	500 km	FS1	8:00 PM

Each

“NASCAR and its teams are eager and excited to return to racing, and have great respect for the responsibility that comes with a return to competition,” said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer. “NASCAR will return in an environment that will ensure the safety of our competitors, officials and all those in the local community. We thank local, state and federal officials and medical experts, as well as everyone in the industry, for the unprecedented support in our return to racing, and we look forward to joining our passionate fans in watching cars return to the track.”

“We are excited to welcome back the FOX NASCAR season to our airwaves to provide a return to live sports, a move toward normalcy and a much-needed distraction during these unprecedented times,” said Mark Silverman, President, National Networks, FOX Sports. “While we are thrilled to return to the race track, the health and safety of our employees and all race participants is our top priority. We will continue working in lockstep with our partners at NASCAR and the race tracks to follow all national and local health guidelines.”

Following thorough collaboration with public health officials, medical experts and state and federal officials, NASCAR has implemented a comprehensive health and safety plan. In accordance with CDC, OSHA and state and local government recommendations, nearly every aspect of how the event is conducted will be significantly modified, including:

• One-day shows;
• Mandated use of personal protective equipment throughout the event;
• Health screenings for all individuals prior to entering the facility, while inside the facility and exiting the facility;
• Social distancing protocols throughout the event;
• Strict limits on the number of individuals who are granted access into each facility

As NASCAR works towards the execution of these events, the sanctioning body will continue to work with state and local authorities based on trends and local restrictions.

In-race competition procedures remain largely unchanged, though NASCAR will eliminate practice for all events during this opening return slate, as well as qualifying for all events except the Coca-Cola 600.