Post by JSPorts on Dec 27, 2018 15:27:33 GMT -5
We NASCAR fans like good racing. Often, there are complaints about the racing in certain seasons, and at certain tracks. These complaints almost always revolve around the inability of drivers to pass one another. With that in mind, I set out to make a list of the best (and worst) tracks currently on the schedule. I devised a formula to do this: total passes at that track in 2018 divided by miles run at the track in 2018. That gave me a statistic, passes per mile, with which I ranked all 24 Cup tracks (a higher number is better). Here are the 2018 rankings (note: tracks with identical ratings are due to rounding; each track was different than the others, there were no ties):
1st: Talladega Superspeedway, 13.1 passes per mile
2nd: Daytona International Speedway, 11.5
3rd: Sonoma Raceway, 10.5
4th: Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course, 9.7
5th: Auto Club Speedway, 8.5
6th: Bristol Motor Speedway, 7.0
7th: New Hampshire Motor Speedway, 6.7
8th: Chicagoland Speedway, 6.7
9th: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 6.3
10th: Pocono Raceway, 6.3
11th: Homestead-Miami Speedway, 6.1
12th: Richmond Raceway, 5.8
13th: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 5.5
14th: Kansas Speedway, 5.5
15th: Charlotte Motor Speedway, 5.1
16th: Michigan International Speedway, 4.9
17th: ISM Raceway, 4.9
18th: Atlanta Motor Speedway, 4.6
19th: Darlington Raceway, 4.5
20th: Kentucky Speedway, 4.3
21st: Martinsville Speedway, 4.3
22nd: Watkins Glen International, 4.3
23rd: Texas Motor Speedway, 3.7
24th: Dover International Speedway, 3.3
The median score was a 5.6. Anything above a 5.6 would be considered above-average, while anything below a 5.6 is below-average. Some of these tracks surprised me in 2018, like Chicagoland and Las Vegas. Some of the lower-rated tracks are still considered "good tracks" for other reasons; Indianapolis, Charlotte and Darlington are considered "crown jewels" by many, while Martinsville and Watkins Glen are known more for physical racing than passing. Another interesting note is that the passing went up in nearly every 2nd race at a track; the 2nd half of 2018 had more passing than the 1st.
1st: Talladega Superspeedway, 13.1 passes per mile
2nd: Daytona International Speedway, 11.5
3rd: Sonoma Raceway, 10.5
4th: Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course, 9.7
5th: Auto Club Speedway, 8.5
6th: Bristol Motor Speedway, 7.0
7th: New Hampshire Motor Speedway, 6.7
8th: Chicagoland Speedway, 6.7
9th: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 6.3
10th: Pocono Raceway, 6.3
11th: Homestead-Miami Speedway, 6.1
12th: Richmond Raceway, 5.8
13th: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 5.5
14th: Kansas Speedway, 5.5
15th: Charlotte Motor Speedway, 5.1
16th: Michigan International Speedway, 4.9
17th: ISM Raceway, 4.9
18th: Atlanta Motor Speedway, 4.6
19th: Darlington Raceway, 4.5
20th: Kentucky Speedway, 4.3
21st: Martinsville Speedway, 4.3
22nd: Watkins Glen International, 4.3
23rd: Texas Motor Speedway, 3.7
24th: Dover International Speedway, 3.3
The median score was a 5.6. Anything above a 5.6 would be considered above-average, while anything below a 5.6 is below-average. Some of these tracks surprised me in 2018, like Chicagoland and Las Vegas. Some of the lower-rated tracks are still considered "good tracks" for other reasons; Indianapolis, Charlotte and Darlington are considered "crown jewels" by many, while Martinsville and Watkins Glen are known more for physical racing than passing. Another interesting note is that the passing went up in nearly every 2nd race at a track; the 2nd half of 2018 had more passing than the 1st.