NASCAR grants its fans another wish -- standardized start times

NASCAR fans have had to endure their share of change in the sport over the last decade.

Since 2001, a new television network lineup, a brand new Sprint Cup car and a radically different championship format in the Chase were all thrust upon NASCAR Nation in a relatively short period of time.

With steady start times, NASCAR should get more eyeballs for the tube. (US Presswire)

And the reality is not everyone has embraced the myriad of changes.

More recently NASCAR implemented two additional modifications that were in direct response to fans' demands.

Double-file restarts were added back in June and quickly provided spice and excitement to the sport. The side-by-side racing now guaranteed when the green flag flies after caution periods has been one of the best decisions in NASCAR history.

Even races at typically mundane tracks like Michigan, Chicagoland, Kansas, New Hampshire and even Pocono have been instantly tuned into edge-of-your-seat affairs, more reminiscent of a Saturday night visit to a local short track.

The new policy has played a part in the outcome of the championship season with drivers now forced to race a lot harder than in the past when a single-file parade on restarts helped protect positions and gain additional points.

The new rule has been wildly popular with fans across the country.

Those same fans are no doubt cheering for NASCAR's latest move and the standardization of start times for the 2010 Sprint Cup Series season.

After enduring a hodgepodge of green flags the last several seasons, as television networks pushed race starts further and further into the late afternoon, next season will see a consistent schedule of times across the board.

•  2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule

Twenty-eight races will begin at 1 p.m. ET with West Coast races taking a 3 p.m. ET green flag and prime time events all beginning at 7:30 ET.

It's a model similar to the NFL's successful 1, 4 and 8 kick-off policy every Sunday and should make a considerable difference in the sagging ratings problem NASCAR has faced the last couple of seasons.

While the intent of the later start times was to include the West Coast audience while also dovetailing a race into prime time network programming, it backfired in a big way.

Rather than growing the audience the networks shrank the numbers, running many core fans off who had grown accustomed to the 1 o'clock starts that had been a tradition in the sport for nearly 50 years.

It also didn't help when networks advertised a start time that in reality was the beginning of pre-race programming, forcing viewers to sit through one hour or 90 minutes of build-up before actual racing began, most times at nearly 2:30 Eastern.

The new standard start time announcement will go a long way in demonstrating to fans NASCAR's willingness to listen and adapt to what the paying customers are asking for. Like the double-file restart rule, consistent and earlier green flags are no doubt in direct response to fans who have the ultimate voice in the sport and can demonstrate it with their wallets, and in the case of television, their eyeballs.

This season has shown NASCAR does listen, and like any smart business, responds to keep the customer as satisfied as possible.

Garage chatter

• Despite the announcement this week of Dodge's continued commitment to NASCAR in the wake of a managerial shake-up, don't look for any additional Chrysler teams in the 2010 Sprint Cup lineup. New president and CEO Ralph Gilles intends to continue the manufacturer's support in the sport but only Penske Racing's three Dodge entries are expected to be on the grid next year.

• Dale Earnhardt Jr. and crew chief Lance McGrew are expected to remain together next season after being teamed earlier this year. Earnhardt stated his support of working with McGrew again in 2010 and team owner Rick Hendrick seems inclined to allow the duo more time in hopes of righting the fortunes of the No. 88 team.

• Earnhardt may have a new teammate and employee at his JR Motorsports team next year. Danica Patrick, who hasn't officially confirmed her three-year deal to remain at Andretti Green Racing in the Indy Racing League, is reportedly leaning toward a limited Nationwide Series program with Earnhardt's team beginning next season. Both Earnhardt and Patrick are sponsored by GoDaddy.com, which makes this potential new relationship even more viable.

• Richard Petty Motorsports co-owner George Gillett raised some eyebrows last week in Kansas when he stated the team was set with three cars for 2010 with the hopes of adding a fourth. The statement was counter to an announcement last month in the wake of the planned RPM-Yates Racing merger when four drivers –- Kasey Kahne, A.J. Allmendinger, Elliott Sadler and Paul Menard -– were named. There is speculation Menard, who carries his father's lucrative home improvement store sponsorship, is still in play and may wind up at Richard Childress Racing, which will lose Jack Daniels sponsorship on its No. 07 entry next year, which could mean bad news for current driver Casey Mears.