NASCAR expands practice sessions to 50 minutes for all non‑superspeedway races

NASCAR announced that, beginning with the New Hampshire Motor Speedway event on August 23, the Cup Series will replace split practice groups with a single 50‑minute open session for all non‑superspeedway races. Teams will also receive a second set of tires for the extended session, while existing impound rules remain.

The change, supported by a majority of teams, aims to give mid‑size teams and young drivers more track time after practice was sharply reduced during the COVID‑19 pandemic. It is expected to benefit drivers such as Shane van Gisbergen, who has highlighted limited practice as a hurdle, and rookies like Connor Zilisch, Todd Gilliland and Noah Gragson, offering them additional real‑world laps in the Next Gen car.

Superspeedway events and the Homestead‑Miami finale are exempt, retaining their current formats.