NASCAR Amends Rule Book After Busch Suspension

In the world of NASCAR, changes and amendments to the rule book are something that are common. Aside from some people feeling that ‘all NASCAR does is change the rules,’ NASCAR is a sport where tweaks and such are simply the nature of the beast. On any given weekend there are many factors that might cause NASCAR to tweak or change something for a certain circumstance. NASCAR also makes changes based on major things that happen in the sport and that appears to be what has happened when it comes to Kurt Busch.

More from NASCAR

In the wake of Busch being suspended from NASCAR it would seem that there has been an amendment added to the NASCAR rule book.

The amendment in the rule book is listed as “Section 2.11 Required Notice.” Under the new rule NASCAR says that “Any NASCAR Member charged with any violation of the law (misdemeanor and/or felony) shall notify NASCAR … prior to the next scheduled Event or within 72 hours of being so charged, whichever is earlier.” Previously drivers were not required to inform NASCAR if they got into any sort of trouble with the law. This new rule will not only impact the Sprint Cup Series as it will be enforced in all three of NASCAR’s major tour series. The rule will also apply to those who drive in NASCAR’s weekly racing series.

Tom Bryant, director, racing operations communications for NASCAR spoke with Fox Sports recently about the change in the rule book.

"We expect our NASCAR members to maintain a certain standard of professional behavior and this is another mechanism to ensure we’re doing that. We didn’t have a mechanism to get a better situational awareness when our membership makes poor judgment and gets in trouble and we kind of felt exposed in that way.This was a recognition that there was a knowledge gap there that we needed to address and put a mechanism in place to hopefully improve our awareness of those things and ensure that we are helping our membership maintain those standards of conduct that are expected of everyone."

Last week Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer took a clear stance on abuse.

"NASCAR has made it very clear to our entire membership and the broader industry that any actions of abuse will not be tolerated in the industry. I want to make it clear that any inference that there is a culture or a tolerance for this type of behavior is patently false."

NASCAR also made it clear that the change in the rules and the link to Busch was not the “sole reason” that the decision was made. While NASCAR might be willing to take that stance I would say that Busch was the motivating factor behind it. Sure, you can argue that there are plenty of positives to having the rule but if it were not for the Busch suspension this rule would not be in place now.

What is your take on the new rule? Does it better help the sport or is it another way for NASCAR to control their drivers? Be sure to share your thoughts by commenting below or reaching out to us via social media.

Christopher Olmstead is the Editor of BeyondTheFlag.com on the FanSided Network. Follow us on Twitter @Beyond_The_Flag and “Like” us on Facebook.

Home/NASCAR