The 2024 season has been a year filled with thrilling race finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series. Never before has the line-scan photo-finish camera been put to better use with three of the eight closest points-paying finishes in history occurring this season. With the latest of them all coming in at Talladega this Sunday, let’s break down the three finishes to understand how they played out.
Advertisement
The first photo-finish of the year was in Atlanta in what was only the second race of the season. Daniel Suarez prevailed over Ryan Blaney by 0.003 seconds and won the race. It was a three-way battle between Suarez, Blaney, and Kyle Busch and set the stage for what was to come later in the season. It stands tall as the fourth-closest finish in Cup Series history.
The next race to have a similar finish was in Kansas. The race in May saw Kyle Larson edge Chris Buescher by 0.001 seconds and create what is now the closest finish ever in the sport. NASCAR uses software called FinishLynx along with its high-precision camera to decide the winner in such races. The technology has applications in other racing disciplines such as Formula 1 and IndyCar as well.
Three of the eight closest points-paying finishes in NASCAR Cup Series history have occurred in ’24:
2024 Kansas: 0.001
2003 Darlington: 0.002
2011 Talladega: 0.002
2024 Atlanta: 0.003
1993 Talladega: 0.005
2007 Daytona: 0.005
2001 Atlanta: 0.006
2024 Talladega: 0.006#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/3jGz40yZLY— Joseph Srigley (@joe_srigley) October 6, 2024
The third notable time during which the camera and FinishLynx came to be of great use was at Talladega this Sunday. JTG Daugherty Racing driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. crossed the finish line to win the second race of the Round of 12 with RFK Racing driver Brad Keselowski a mere 0.006 seconds behind him.
With five more races left before the curtains are drawn in 2024, there’s a high probability of seeing more such finishes in the upcoming events, especially as the competition heats up as drivers head deeper into their playoff runs.
The evolution of NASCAR’s photo-finish technology
The first Daytona 500 in 1959 had an extremely close finish. Officials couldn’t decide the race winner between Lee Petty and Johnny Beauchamp. It was only days later the event that Petty was handed the victory after photos from T. Taylor Warren reversed the initial scoring decision.
15 years later, times have changed drastically. A high-speed camera that shot 300 frames per second was used to determine who finished third in the 1974 Firecracker 400. The work that needed to be done before a decision could be made was extensive and the images required nearly an hour to develop.
Even then, the position was only ruled to be a tie between Cale Yarborough and Buddy Baker. Decades later, it is now a matter of seconds in which race winners can be accurately decided. There is no room for error or ties thanks to the minute nature of the current camera and the advanced software usage. 2024 is a landmark season in terms of the usage of this technology to its absolute best capabilities.
