NASCAR Making Big Changes To Policy After Bristol Races

As NASCAR continues to adjust to the issues and problems posed by the Next Gen race car, it has made another change to its policy on damaged vehicles.

“NASCAR updated its Cup DVP policy where it used to not allow teams to replace the diffuser flaps but now they can replace the diffuser flaps (extensions) when making their repairs,” said FOX Sports' Bob Pockrass.

Diffuser flaps allow cars to remain on the ground, and replacing them will allow cars to operate in a safer way after repairs. It's the most significant change to the damaged vehicle policy since the start of the season.

Previously, damaged cars that were taken to the garage were considered out of the race. With the start of this season, those cars are now able to return to the track if they're repaired in a satisfactory manner.

“Our goal is never to put good cars out of the race,” said Elton Sawyer, NASCAR's vice president of competition.

“When we developed DVP (damaged vehicle policy) five or 10 years ago, that’s never been the goal. Based on our experiences...we felt like we probably could have made a different call there."

Sawyer also noted that NASCAR "wanted to err on the side of the competitor."

Cars that return to the track now have one lap to make minimum speed when the driver leaves the garage following repairs. If the car is unable to make minimum speed, NASCAR deems the car to be unsafe or the team forfeits, that driver will be out of the race.

If a car does go back to the garage for repairs, teams are not allowed to alter the vehicle in any way aside from the mandatory safety parts that allow the car to be fit to drive.