NASCAR and Sprint
confirmed today that fans will have a direct impact on several competition
elements of the newly titled The
Sprint Unlimited At Daytona, the 75-lap non-points race that opens the NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series season.
Fans will play an
integral part in how the fan-favorite race unfolds on Saturday, February 16 (8
p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Deportes, Motor Racing Network Radio and SiriusXM Satellite
Radio) at Daytona International Speedway. By casting their vote, fans are
invited to design several competition aspects of the preseason event, including
the number of laps in each segment, the type of pit stop teams make after the
first segment and how many cars will be eliminated after the second segment. Votes
can be cast on NASCAR’s new official mobile app – NASCAR Mobile ’13 – or at NASCAR.com/SprintUnlimited.
All votes made through the NASCAR Mobile ’13 app will count twice.
“We are excited to
provide our fan base this first-of-its-kind opportunity to directly be involved
in determining the race’s format and in-race decisions,” said Robin Pemberton,
NASCAR vice president of competition. “By allowing our fans this type of
interaction, it is our hope that more fans will be tuned in to the event than
ever before.”
The voting window for
the race format will close on Wednesday, February 13 at 11:59 p.m. ET. The
voting windows for the pit stop and elimination will close at various times
throughout the race broadcast. Vote results will be relayed to teams during
each segment and announced live on the FOX race broadcast.
“Giving fans such a strong
voice in the design of the race is a fitting way to launch our 10th season in
the sport,” said Steve Gaffney, Sprint vice president of corporate marketing.
“We are giving them the ultimate access to the sport, the decision-making power
to sculpt the type of race they want to see. With today’s technology, they can
make these decisions in real time as the race is happening.”
“Sprint has been a
great partner for the sport and I applaud them for developing new and
innovative ways to give the race fans an unprecedented role in The Sprint
Unlimited,” said Joie Chitwood III, Daytona International Speedway president.
“We have some of the most passionate and knowledgeable fans in sports and I’m
looking forward to seeing the choices they make and how it will impact this
exciting star-studded event.”
Fan voting categories,
include:
Length of each of the
three race segments:
Choice
A: 40 laps, 20 laps, 15 lapsChoice B: 35 laps, 30 laps, 10 laps
Choice C: 30 laps, 25 laps, 20 laps
Race format voting ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on Wednesday, February 13.
Team pit stop after
the first segment:
Choice
A: No pit stopChoice B: Two (2) tire change
Choice C: Four (4) tire change
Pit stop voting concludes at the green flag of the first segment.
How many cars will be
eliminated after the second segment:
Choice
A: None (0)Choice B: Two (2) cars eliminated
Choice C: Four (4) cars eliminated
Choice D: Six (6) cars eliminated
Elimination voting concludes at the green flag of the first segment.
Fans are encouraged to
follow @NASCAR and @MissSprintCup on Twitter to engage in the #SprintUnlimited
conversation throughout the voting window.
not excited about "gimick" racing, just give us a format and race.....
ReplyDeleteI have a question, if we choose to eliminate cars, what is the point of it if some wrecked cars are already in the garage? We saw just how unstable these cars are in the draft, it wouldn't surprise me if there was a wreck in the first 20 laps. In order for this possible eliminator format to spice things up, it would have to eliminate cars that are NOT in the garage.
ReplyDelete