mobile app bar

NASCAR Day vs Night Racing: How Racing on NASCAR Tracks Differs Depending on Time of the Race

Srijan Mandal
Published

William Byron and Alex Bowman Join Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson in Elite HMS NASCAR List

Track temperatures are often a major factor during NASCAR races and determine how much traction or grip a racecar would have while driving around the racetrack. Speaking about this phenomenon, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell explained recently if there was any major difference between racing in the day or night ahead of  the Richmond race.

The JGR driver said, “There is not (any difference). There’s a lot of tracks that we go to… Kansas, Vegas, Charlotte that are like I’d call them medium to high grip race tracks, that really change from day to night. The low grip racetracks which Richmond, Homestead, Darlington they are pretty much… You’re going to be slipping and sliding whether it’s 90 degrees or 50 degrees.”

As per Bell’s answer track temperature changes certainly don’t affect the tires too much at tracks like Richmond. But it is the longer tracks where teams have to keep the surface temperatures in mind to align their strategy for optimal racing conditions.

View on Website

Heading to Dover can Christopher Bell get himself to victory lane?

This weekend NASCAR will head to Dover for the next Cup Series race. Now Bell’s best finish at the race track was a fourth place finish in the 2022 season. But aside from that and the 2023 race where he finished sixth, most of his finishes at the Monster Mile were at the back of the pack.

Considering his previous stats and his inconsistent season so far this year, a Bell victory wouldn’t be the first thing on everyone’s mind. But considering how JGR and Hendrick drivers have dominated the season so far, a Bell win would not come as a surprise. So if things go well, maybe he might be able to seal his second win of the 2024 season.

About the author

Srijan Mandal

Srijan Mandal

x-iconlinkedin-icon

Srijan Mandal is a Senior NASCAR Analyst and Editor at The Sportsrush with a wealth of experience and expertise in the world of motorsports. With several thousand articles under his belt over the years, he has established himself as a leading authority on all things racing. His passion for motorsports started at a young age, and he has dedicated his career to covering the sport in all its forms. He is an expert in various disciplines, including stock car racing, American motorsports, Formula 1, IndyCar, NHRA, MotoGP, WRC, WEC, and several more. But Srijan's love for racing goes beyond his writing. He actively competes in professional open-wheel simulation racing, using the number 88 as his racing number. While he mostly participates in GT Endurance classes, he also ventures into Stock Car racing from time to time. In case, you wish to contact Srijan, kindly send an email to him at srijan.mandal@sportsrush.com or just DM him on Twitter.

Read more from Srijan Mandal

Share this article