Opinion: It’s time for NASCAR to either commit to overtime cautions, or get rid of overtime entirely

NASCAR’s latest Brickyard 400 was marred by the series’ inconsistent use of caution flags during overtime, leaving some fans wondering if overtime should even continue to exist.

Kyle Larson of the Hendrick team crossed the finish line first in the final 0vertime section after a great race — but the officiating soured that victory.

NASCAR Explained: Overtime and cautions

In order to spice up its racing, several years ago NASCAR introduced a concept called “overtime” or the “green-white checkered.” In effect, this concept is designed to prevent a race from ending under yellow if possible.

So, if a caution flag is thrown near the end of the race and NASCAR determines that there will not be time for a restart, it will instead move into “overtime.” Each overtime period lasts two laps: One green-flag lap, followed by one white-flag or final lap.

If a caution is thrown during the green-flag lap, NASCAR will go into an additional overtime period, and will do this as many times as needed to reach the end of the race.

However, if a caution is thrown after the white flag is displayed, the caution effectively serves as the end of the race.

The end of the Brickyard 400 went into one overtime period, but due to a crash almost immediately upon the restart, a caution was thrown. The series lined the cars back up and went into its second overtime period.

During the first lap of that second period, however, driver Ryan Preece spun out on the back straightaway of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He hit the inside wall and attempted to re-start his car and get back on track — but instead simply drove into the racing surface.

Here lies the problem.

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NASCAR did not immediately throw a caution for Preece’s wreck. Rather, the series allowed the cars to take the white flag and enter Turn 1 — then it threw a caution that effectively ended the race.

What has frustrated many fans, however, is the fact that NASCAR likely would have immediately thrown a caution for Preece’s wreck in almost any other circumstance.

Driver Denny Hamlin reflected on the incident in his podcast Actions Detrimental, saying, “[Preece] was not moving when [the leaders] were coming off Turn 4. He had resigned to sitting there.

“You watched him in the middle of 3 and 4, he’s spinning his wheels, not going anywhere, and then through turns 4 he stops. He just says, ‘Alright, I’m not going to go anywhere.’

“So [NASCAR] had roughly eight seconds to make a call there, and they did.

“Austin Cindric spun through the infield at Nashville, gathered up, kept going, and that was instantly a caution.

“This is what we’re talking about. NASCAR, this is your inconsistencies that people gripe about. They have a right to gripe because it is just so inconsistent. You can’t decide whether you want the caution or don’t want the caution. That’s the agitating part.”

Hamlin’s mindset reflected my own while watching the race. NASCAR officials rarely hesitate to throw a caution during any other wreck, if only for an opportunity to bunch up the cars and restart the race.

However, the late call for the Preece caution felt as if NASCAR were simply trying to get the race over with. Many drivers were low on fuel, and another restart would have likely resulted in more wrecks and more overtime periods as those drivers ran out of gas. NASCAR opted to end the race before that could happen.

But that’s my concern: Either commit to overtime, or get rid of it.

It’s not that I want to see additional wrecks. Rather, I’m one of the many NASCAR viewers who would like to see the rules applied consistently.

If overtime is written into the rulebook, then overtime should be treated like any other aspect of the race. That means NASCAR should have instantly thrown a yellow for the Preece wreck, come what may afterward. Commit to that decision.

However, if NASCAR outright intends to officiate overtime periods with a different kind of scrutiny than the way it officiates the scheduled race distance, then the series needs to make that abundantly clear.

Otherwise, there is simply no point in having overtime — not when NASCAR can simply pick and choose when it would like to throw a caution flag, and not when it feels as if the series has manipulated a finish.

Kyle Larson ran an incredible race at the Brickyard 400, and he certainly deserved a win. However, I think many fans agree that they’d have preferred to see him win without an unintentionally helping hand from NASCAR.

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