NASCAR has introduced a major rule change aimed at reducing long caution periods and increasing green-flag racing. The new NASCAR rule change begins this weekend at Iowa Speedway and will apply to all three national series for the rest of the 2026 season. The decision follows growing complaints from fans, teams, drivers, and broadcasters about repeated caution laps late in stages of races.
NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell said the sanctioning body listened to those concerns and acted quickly. NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. has also backed the move, calling it a change many people in the sport have wanted for years. The updated procedure changes how late-stage cautions are handled while keeping the current stage racing format and points system in place.
NASCAR Rule Change Ends Double Cautions During Stage Racing
The recent NASCAR rule change impacts both Stage 1 and Stage 2. If a caution comes out within the final 10 laps of either stage, that caution will immediately end the stage. The race leader will receive the green-and-white checkered flag together with the yellow flag when the field reaches the start-finish line.
The same caution period will also serve as the stage break. NASCAR will award stage points based on positions at the time of the caution using scoring loops, video, and other available data. Pit road will open as soon as it is safe, helping teams return to green-flag racing faster.
The update removes the need for a short restart before another scheduled stage caution. NASCAR hopes this will reduce long stretches of racing under yellow and improve the flow of races.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Supports NASCAR Rule Change
Dale Earnhardt Jr. said the NASCAR rule change is something many people across the sport have wanted.
“Fans have asked for a change. I think teams, drivers, broadcasters, everybody’s wanted something to change there.”
“I’ve never really known why they wouldn’t make a change, but we’re finally gonna do it… They’re still working on how they can shorten up standard traditional cautions, so we’re not done yet.”
Earnhardt Jr. said the previous system often created unnecessary yellow-flag laps that slowed races. He noted that people throughout the garage and television broadcast teams had been looking for a solution for several years.
His support adds weight to NASCAR’s decision because he remains one of the sport’s most respected voices after his driving career.
NASCAR Says Fans Drove the Rule Change
Steve O’Donnell said the NASCAR rule change came directly from fan feedback after the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“What happened at Indy, where we have seen far too often, a caution comes out before the stage break and we run a number of caution laps and we try and get back green, and the stage break comes and we’re back to caution, long period of caution laps and not enough green flag racing,. We heard you. We want to make a change.”
“We heard you, we want to make a change. So starting this weekend in Iowa, if a caution comes out 10 laps prior to a stage break, that is going to count as the stage break. No more back-to-back cautions, no more elongated caution laps. More green flag racing. More action for you, the fans.”
Stage racing has been part of NASCAR since 2017. While it has created more competition throughout races, late natural cautions often led to back-to-back yellow periods. The NASCAR rule change keeps stage racing in place but removes one of its biggest complaints by combining late cautions with the stage break. Officials will begin using the new procedure immediately at Iowa Speedway and continue it through the rest of the 2026 season.
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