What the new qualifying rules and fewer practice runs will do, in my opinion, is make racing more dangerous. Teams won't be able to find mechanical problems and fix them prior to race time.
Here is what is available so far re: the new qualifying rule:
No Quaifying Changes at Martinsville: Martinsville Speedway will not be one of the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup tracks switching to shortened race weekends in the spring of 2005. NASCAR NEXTEL Cup season. Cars will be impounded after time trials, with no major work allowed before the start of the race. The teams would still practice on Fridays. NASCAR is not mandating tracks to make the change. "We understand NASCAR's intent with this move, but at the same time from our standpoint, qualifying day is a big day for us," said Martinsville Speedway president Clay Campbell. "We put a lot of people in the grandstands. Spending Friday afternoon at qualifying has become a tradition in this part of the country."
Watkins Glen to go to new qualifying procedure: The weekend schedule for next year's Sirius at the Glen will have a new look. The track, along with most others in the Nextel Cup Series, has adopted a new Saturday qualifying procedure that has pushed qualifying back a day and eliminated so-called "Happy Hour."
Atlanta's 2005 Schedule NOT effected by new rule; Atlanta Motor Speedway will not be one of the tracks affected by NASCAR's new altered race weekend schedules, speedway officials confirmed Tuesday. Both of Atlanta Motor Speedway's NASCAR race weekend qualifying rounds are sponsored - in the spring by Georgia Power, in the fall by Georgia-Pacific - and have strong crowd draws. "We have commitments to our sponsors and our fans for three full days of great racing, and that's what we'll deliver."
Bristol's 2005 Schedule NOT effected by new rule: Because more than 50,000 fans attend Charter Communications Pole Day at Bristol Motor Speedway each spring, BMS and NASCAR officials today announced that NASCAR's new qualifying procedure will not change the 2005 qualifying schedules for its NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series events.
Talladega NOT Planning on Going to 2-day format: Count Talladega Superspeedway among the tracks holding out on NASCAR's new plan to shorten race weekend schedules during the 2005 Nextel Cup season. Several tracks are not buying into the plan, which would move qualifying from Fridays to Saturdays at most tracks. Most of the holdouts are tracks that have sponsored qualifying days or typically draw large crowds for the runs for the pole. "Right now, we have no plans to change anything," Kristi King, director of public relations at Talladega Superspeedway, said. "We're sticking to what we have scheduled. We'll continue to look at it and talk with NASCAR as we go forward." The Friday qualifying days for both Talladega race weekends are sponsored, in the spring by The Birmingham News and in the fall by Discount Food Mart.(Alabama Live)(11-17-2004)
NASCAR'S new qualifying procedure will NOT apply to LVMS in 2005: Las Vegas Motor Speedway's traditional NASCAR Weekend schedule will be unchanged in 2005. Speedway officials said LVMS will not be among the venues that will be moving NASCAR Nextel Cup qualifying to Saturday.