Obi_Uno t1_j9c0wey wrote on February 20, 2023 at 8:39 PM

Reply to comment by lessermeister in Ricky Stenhouse Jr. wins longest Daytona 500 in history by gamedemon24

Didn’t they previously race to the checkered flag (and more widely raced back to the caution flag) but it led to really dangerous situations?

Ex: cars going full speed near disabled vehicles with a driver still on board

jwk90 t1_j9cjy6m wrote on February 20, 2023 at 10:46 PM

Correct, they changed the rule in 2003. They used to do that until a car was stopped right next to the start finish line and nearly got hit at full speed while racing back to the line.

Also track workers were out on hold until the track was clear, or put in danger if they entered the track while racing back to the yellow.

lessermeister t1_j9cv415 wrote on February 21, 2023 at 12:06 AM

I don’t remember how it used to be but if the crash is behind and the white flag has flown then there shouldn’t be any wrecked cars to the checkered.

EddieGrant t1_j9d30tc wrote on February 21, 2023 at 1:05 AM

But the issue then have is the cars behind the wrecked cars would have to slow down, and unlike F1 or other race series, there's no sector flags, just full course cautions, so it's either slow the whole field down, or none at all.