Nascar Race Today

Aric Almirola has a fast car.

Turns out, he's a pretty good weather forecaster, too.

Almirola claimed his second career pole Saturday when rain washed out qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway, forcing the field to be set based on practice speeds.

Almirola and his teammate at Richard Petty Motorsports, Marcos Ambrose, both went out for Friday's first practice thinking there was a decent chance of rain the following day.

So they hooked up in the draft with the idea of putting up a fast time. The strategy worked to perfection -- Almirola posted a blistering lap of exactly 202 mph, Ambrose was third at 201.876, and the rain came on Saturday.

Jeff Burton will start from the outside of the front row based on a speed of 201.987.

"We knew there was a small chance for rain," Almirola said. "We thought it would be a good idea to put up a good lap, just in case it did rain. We had a plan, we stuck to it and it worked out. Anytime you can start up front under any circumstances, that's a good thing."

Almirola's only previous pole was for the 600-miler at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May 2012.

He wound up finishing 16th.

NASCAR sent out its high-powered dryer in an attempt to get qualifying in, but the rain didn't let up in time. A truck race was scheduled for the afternoon and there are no lights at the massive 2.66-mile trioval. Qualifying for the spring race at Talladega also was rained out.

Chase leader Matt Kenseth will start from the 12th spot. His closest challenger, Jimmie Johnson, got the 11th position. Sam Hornish Jr. was the only entry eliminated from the 43-car field.

Even though Almirola lucked into this pole position to some extent, it was still a bittersweet moment for a team still reeling from the loss of crew chief Todd Parrott. He was indefinitely suspended this week by NASCAR for violation of its substance-abuse policy.

"It was not something we expected by any means. It's definitely something that caught us all off guard," Almirola said. "Todd Parrott is a good person, a good crew chief and a good friend of mine. A lot of people are rallying around him to get through this difficult time. But we still have a job to do. We've got to go out and race and do the best we can."

Burton is also looking for a strong performance in his farewell season at Richard Childress Racing.

He won't return to the No. 31 car next year.

"I'm disappointed we couldn't have more success," Burton said. "(Childress) wants to win. I want to win. The next five races are about that. It's not really very complicated. There are only a few chances left. We're putting the same amount of effort into it and trying really hard to finish up strong."

TALLADEGA, Ala. - Rain has delayed Sprint Cup Series qualifying Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway.

A light rain was quickly moving through the area at the 12:10 p.m. ET start time for time trials at Talladega Superspeedway. The National Weather Service predicts a 60 percent chance of rain the remainder of the day for the 2.66-mile track, which typically takes two or more hours to dry if the track gets soaked.

MORE: Talladega upsets | Talladega picks | Most beloved drivers

If qualifying gets rained out, Richard Petty Motorsports' Aric Almirola would start from the pole Sunday in the Camping World RV Sales 500 because he had the fastest speed in the first practice Friday. Richard Childress Racing's Jeff Burton would start beside him on the front row.

Series points leader Matt Kenseth would start 12th, while Jimmie Johnson, second in the standings, would start 11th.

Kevin Harvick, third in the standings, would start 33rd, while Jeff Gordon (fourth in the standings) would start 19th and Kyle Busch (fifth in the standings) would start 27th.

There are 44 cars entered, and Penske Racing's Sam Hornish would not make the field because the Penske No. 12 car has the fewest qualifying attempts (one) this year among the 44 cars.

NASCAR has its new track drying system, called the "air titan" at the track this weekend. The system is designed to cut the time it takes to dry the track, but it could still be difficult to get qualifying in before the Camping World Truck Series race, which is scheduled for a 4:22 p.m. ET green flag Saturday afternoon.

Sunset is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. ET for the track, which does not have lights.

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- David Ragan isn't counting on blasting out of nowhere, catapulted by his teammate in their shoestring operation, for a second astounding win in a row on NASCAR's most tempestuous track.

"The chance of that perfect storm happening two consecutive races is probably not realistic," Ragan acknowledged Friday.

The first storm, in May, blew right past the bigger and richer contenders in Cup. The little Front Row Motorsports tandem hooked up at the end of the race, and Ragan was pushed to victory by teammate David Gilliland.

"We're certainly not counting on any situation like that to just come out of thin air late in the race," Ragan said. "But the chances of us both having a good day are realistic. And you just never know. You have to control the things you can control, and if I can do that and David can do that, we may be in the same situation again."

The odds for Sunday's Camping World RV Series 500 (2 p.m. ET, ESPN) are no longer than they were going into the May race. In fact, they might be slightly better.

The underdog win drew some sponsorship attention. "It certainly jump-started a few conversations and made some of our current partnerships stronger," Ragan said.

For Sunday he has safercar.gov, a website of the U.S. Department of Transportation, on his Ford. His sponsor from the spring race, Farm Rich, sponsored one more race this year and has "tentatively agreed for some races next year," Ragan said.

For a shoestring team without massive full-season sponsorships, "small deals like that go a long way," Ragan said.

The team puts more emphasis on, and resources into, restrictor-plate races than the more engineering-intensive intermediate-track events.

"We feel that we have more of a level playing field when the draft is considered and everyone is in that same pack," Ragan said.

Oh, and one other thing, other than a little more money than last time: "I think," he said, "I'm a little smarter coming into this race versus the spring race."

And this is, after all, Talladega. If two straight perfect storms could strike, this is the place.

.@DavidRagan: "I'm smarter coming N2 this race, compared to the spring race, & we feel like it's a big more-level playing field w/ r-plates"

Jimmie Johnson was fastest in the second practice Friday for Sunday's Camping World RV Series 500, as drivers settled into one-car runs. Johnson, second in the Chase standings, ran a lap at 195.936 mph, easily bettering playoff leader Matt Kenseth's 191.252, which was 17th-fastest.

But this is, after all, Talladega, so it's always hard to tell who is running hard and who is just tiptoeing around, trying not to wreck in practice.

The first practice, when drivers ran in big drafting packs, may have been more indicative of race speeds Sunday, over 200 mph. In that session, 11 drivers cracked the 200 mark, with Aric Almirola fastest at 202.000 and Jeff Burton second at 201.987.

Kenseth was the fastest driver under 200 in the first practice, 12th, at 199.492.

Just as you'd expect, the media mob was hammering on Matt Kenseth Friday along the themes of (a) how much Talladega can scramble the Chase standings and (b) how he, as the leader, has the most to lose of all the Chasers on Sunday.

The heat at the top, nowhere to go but down, and all that ...

He shrugged and said, "Well, I don't know what good it's going to do me to get freaked out about it right now." This was before practice began. Toyota Racing Development "has been working on engines, so hopefully we've got some speed when we get out there and draft a little bit today.

"If we don't, there's not really a lot I can do about it. And if we do, there's not really a lot I had to do with it."

Translation: Talladega is all horsepower (that is, as much as you can get out of a stifled restrictor-plate engine), almost no handling, and drivers often feel like passengers.

If he's bad, it's not his fault. If he's good, it's not to his credit.

No reason to get freaked out yet. Even from the top of the standings, whence he could topple Sunday -- again, through no fault or credit of his own -- by the luck of the draft and the almost inevitable multicar crashes.

He was 12th-fastest, at 199.492 mph, in the first practice, with another session to go on Friday.

So far, so-so. So what?

Nationwide Series schedule for 2014 announced by NASCAR http://t.co/X0RE2yhaWk

I'm a little lost around here. I've never been through a Talladega weekend without "Boss Hogg." That goes back to 1974, when he and I first set foot inside this mammoth racetrack.

Richard Braden, whom all the NASCAR insiders called Boss Hogg because of the no-nonsense, gruff way he ran the media facilities here, died Tuesday. He was 75.

He looked nothing like the Boss Hogg character of the old "Dukes of Hazzard" TV series. The TV version was fat and jowly. Our Boss had a rugged, hewn face and a salt-and-pepper mustache.

He suffered no fools. That's why he got the nickname, from longtime NASCAR writer Steve Waid, who first called him "Boss" and then "Boss Hogg" and we all picked it up, and it stuck for the rest of Braden's life.

He was from nearby Anniston, Ala. He was brought in by then-Talladega publicist Jim Hunter as a volunteer. He took command and kept order, just by his demeanor and his growl. He was here, every race, through last May. We could tell he wasn't well last spring. He was the first manager I met when I walked into the old Talladega press box in '74 -- and that was three Talladega press boxes and two infield media centers ago.

All day I've been somehow waiting to feel a clap on my shoulder from behind. It hasn't happened. Boss is gone.

Looking calm and focused, 5-time @TalladegaSuperS winner #DaleJr gets ready for #ChaseGreatness! -BW pic.twitter.com/dji6XYegyI

Aric Almirola paces the 1st Cup practice with a lap of 202.000 mph, followed by Burton, Ambrose, Truex and Edwards. #NASCAR

Talk about throwing your kid into deep water to see if he can swim naturally. Listen to this story from Dale Earnhardt Jr. that just popped out of nowhere Friday while he was reminiscing about Talladega.

"This was only the second track I ever drove on," he said. "I was racing street stocks at Concord [N.C., on a tiny 3/8-mile track.] They were testing down here ... Dad was driving.

"Dad called me at the dealership" at a maintenance department in North Carolina where Junior had been put to work. "I was changing oil.

"He told me to get my helmet and my [racing] suit and be at the airport [where Dale Sr.'s private jet was kept] the next morning. He said not to ask any questions or tell anybody where I was going. I knew I was going to Talladega but I didn't know why."

Because he'd been told to bring his gear, "I assumed I was going to drive a race car somewhere."

But then, Talladega Short Track, a 1/3-mile dirt oval, lies almost directly across the street from the mammoth, 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway. So who knew?

"We got here [inside the big track], and he told me to get my stuff on and get in the car and go out and run.

"And to hold it wide open -- that it was going to stick. And I remember going down the back straightaway and wondering if it was really gonna stick when I got into that corner, because it just didn't seem like it was possible."

It stuck. And Dale Earnhardt Jr. has felt at home on the biggest NASCAR track of all, ever since.

"This is a special place," he said.

"I just want to have a shot at it," #DaleJr says of the last laps at 'dega; says he's as confident/determined as ever here. #NASCAR

Cool pic! MT @RCR29KHarvick: The 29 @jimmyjohns team watches @KevinHarvick @TalladegaSuperS atop the hauler #nascar pic.twitter.com/zfII46Kyxi

Car chief @ronmalec wipes down the #lowes48 car before it heads out onto the track! pic.twitter.com/PQKeM7DK8O

Rental Cars for the Rich is expanding its business. RCR, doing business as Richard Childress Racing, announced Friday that Brendan Gaughan will move up to a full-time Nationwide ride next year, with Gaughan's family casino business as primary sponsor.

Gaughan's Truck ride with RCR is currently sponsored by his father's South Point Hotel and Casino, but the investment will grow with the move up to more races in a more costly series.

Gaughan isn't the only family-sponsored driver at RCR, of course. Paul Menard's Cup car is sponsored by his billionaire father's home-improvement chain.

Gaughan, 38, never has been at a loss for words -- for example, at the opening of Friday's announcement, he said, "You mean I'm not driving the 3 Cup car? Damn! Missed out again."

And he has never minded mixing it up with the media. So I asked him if he might be in position to advise Menard on how to deal with criticism about being sponsored by family money.

"I don't know if Paul needs any lessons on that," Gaughan said. "He's been dealing with that just as long as I have. ... I've dealt with that since I was 15 years old. I've dealt with that since I was a child.

"So I do not care what people want to say about that. I know how hard my father worked to earn that money. I know how hard I've worked to earn the money that I get. I appreciate it and respect it. And if people want to dislike you for the success of others, then I feel bad for them."

Arguably the freest-flowing optimist among all NASCAR drivers, Gaughan is winless in 17 starts for RCR in Trucks this year -- and hasn't won since 2003 -- yet projected the remainder of this season this way:

"We still have five shots at it and I plan on going out with at least a couple of wins this year."

Wow.

No doubt the fun meter on the @NASCAR_NNS will go up next season with @Brendan62 running full schedule for @RCRracing.

Proud to have another great partner in @aspendental along with @godaddy! Made the announcement today! pic.twitter.com/dClXBxD0tE

Oh yeah, @KurtBusch wants to go FAST! #ShakeAndBake #DEGANights (h/t @bobpockrass) pic.twitter.com/9V7TNYifG6

They were on the threshold of becoming an elite team in NASCAR, joining the sport's ruling class alongside Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush-Fenway Racing. Only five weeks ago, on the eve of the regular season finale at Richmond (Va.) International Speedway, Michael Waltrip Racing appeared to have the talent, the resources, and the pure speed to contend for a championship in 2013.

As the drivers climbed into their cars on that warm September Saturday night, Clint Bowyer was second in the points standings. Martin Truex, Jr. was 13th and had still had a shot at qualifying for the Chase. What's more, the team seemed well positioned for long-term success. MWR had deep-pocketed sponsors such as NAPA and Aaron's locked into long-term contracts and the organization was adding a third fulltime driver, Brian Vickers, a former Nationwide champion, to its stable for 2014.

But since that night in Richmond, it's fair to say hat no team in NASCAR during the last decade has had a worse run than MWR. First, at Richmond, Bowyer spun himself out to try to help Truex make the Chase. Then Vickers, who was piloting the No. 55 Toyota, was ordered onto pit road late by the team's general manager, Ty Norris, in another blatant attempt to try to manipulate the race so that Truex would advance to the playoffs.

After a NASCAR investigation, MWR was fined $300,000 -- the biggest fine in the sport's history -- and then NAPA pulled the plug on its sponsorship agreement two years early. Unable to find a new major sponsor, MWR announced on Monday that it would only run two cars in 2014 with Bowyer and Vickers (who will miss the rest of the season with a blood clot, but he says he'll be ready for Daytona in February). Truex will be let go after the final race of 2013 at Homestead-Miami Speedway -- as will 15 percent of the team's workforce.

All of this turmoil has clearly had an impact on Bowyer and his quest for his first championship. After compiling eight top-five finishes during the regular season, he has been an afterthought in the Chase. In five playoff races, he hasn't finished higher than ninth and is currently eighth in the standings. He appears tentative behind the wheel and doesn't seem to have the power under the hood that he possessed earlier in the season. After displaying so much promise for seven months, Bowyer essentially has already been eliminated from title contention.

So now the question becomes: Where does Michael Waltrip Racing go from here? An old saw in motorsports holds that money equals speed. With the departure of NAPA and its reported $18 million annual commitment to MWR, Waltrip lost about a third of its income. NAPA's decision to leave was a stunning one, given that Michael Waltrip had become the face of their company over the last few years through its commercials. But clearly NAPA didn't believe it was good business to be in bed with a perceived cheater, and so it cut ties with MWR.

And it's this perception of cheating that will haunt this team for the foreseeable future. Waltrip's organization has long been known in the garage for its creative manipulations of the rules, dating back to Toyota's debut in NASCAR in the 2007 Daytona 500. Before qualifying, NASCAR found that an illegal fuel additive -- it was incorrectly described by some as "rocket fuel" -- had been put into Waltrip's tank. NASCAR hit him with such a big fine ($100,000, which now seems small compared to the recent levy) that it left Waltrip on the brink of bankruptcy before millionaire Rob Kauffman joined the team as a co-owner.

Once the scent of a scandal has enveloped a team, it's a hard thing to fumigate. Waltrip has done it before -- he survived in '07 to build what was an emerging racing empire in his headquarters in Cornelius, N.C. -- but this time is different.

GALLERY: Notorious NASCAR cheating scandals

Will Michael Waltrip Racing ever be the same? No. Will it ever seriously contend for a Sprint Cup championship? It's possible. A two-car team, Penske Racing, did win the title in 2012, but it is highly unlikely that MWR will have the resources that Penske enjoys any time soon.

Yes, in motorsports money equals speed. And without an abundance of cash, do you know what you are in NASCAR? A mid-pack team.

Halfway through the 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup, the dominant storyline still might be the tainted event that set the field for the 10-race playoff.

NASCAR heads to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend for a 500-mile race in which teammates have played critical roles in delivering drafting pushes and sandbagging has been employed as a successful strategy. That likely will prompt comparisons with the Sept. 7 race at Richmond International Raceway in which team orders discovered in an investigation of radio transmissions resulted in a reconfiguration of the Chase that added Jeff Gordon as an unprecedented 13th driver in the playoff format's 10th year.

Though the maelstrom has faded from the scandal, there is a lingering stain that NASCAR might find hard to shake this season.

"What bothered me more than anything is the perception of it being just rampant through the garage," Richard Childress Racing veteran Jeff Burton said. "I thought NASCAR had to do something, but then it seemed to keep snowballing, snowballing and snowballing. I know it's coming this week, 'Oh, he rode around in the back, he wasn't giving 100%.' "

The reverberations from Richmond have brought fresh news each week, the latest that Michael Waltrip Racing would contract from three full-time cars to two next year in the wake of losing primary sponsor NAPA because of its unprecedented punishment for manipulating the Richmond results. MWR was fined $300,000 and lost Martin Truex Jr.'s spot in the Chase because of 50-point penalties to each of its three drivers, and the team's face seems to have borne the most negative brunt of the fallout.

Repucom, a global company that tracks the impact and valuation of sponsorships across several sports and follows nearly 1,700 NASCAR brands, found a hit to the reputation of team owner Michael Waltrip in recent polling. In its Davie-Brown Index that measures celebrities' influence and marketability, Waltrip suffered significant drops in aspiration (falling 24% from a top 20 ranking), endorsement (a 17% decline) and trust (22%) in a Sept. 29 survey.

But the two-time Daytona 500 winner, who will race the No. 55 Toyota at Talladega, said he still feels the love from fans when he ventures into the infield or grandstands (as he did at a short-track race in Sacramento, Calif., last weekend).

"It's very heart-warming to see all the support I get," Waltrip told USA TODAY Sports. "It's been a rough couple of weeks, but I think people believe in our team and me, and we're certainly going to get through this."

Repucom executive vice president Peter Laatz said the impact was negligible for drivers involved in the scandal. There was no precipitous decline in the DBI for MWR's Truex and Clint Bowyer (whose suspicious spin was part of NASCAR's investigation), and both drivers now have surpassed their car owner in the most recent ranking. Brian Vickers, the third driver involved, wasn't in the polling because he wasn't a full-time Cup driver when the season began.

"It was surprising from the standpoint that everyone expected drivers to witness some sort of fallout, and we ended up finding a team owner suffered the greatest dip," Laatz said. "I think Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex will be fine. Overall this was truly perceived as an institutional issue, and like a giant chess game, Bowyer and Truex were pawns that got caught.

"Everyone was more aware of those drivers because they were in the stream of consciousness, and 'SportsCenter' dedicated so much time to it after Richmond."

Laatz said there wasn't as much widespread PR damage for NASCAR. Polling showed an increased awareness that might be reflected in TV ratings during the Chase. Since the rain-delayed opener at Chicagoland Speedway, ratings and viewership have grown during the past four races with last Saturday's Bank of America 500 on ABC posting a 3.4 rating and average of 5.5 million viewers over the course of the broadcast that was the largest audience of the Chase.

NASCAR chief communications officer Brett Jewkes said the sanctioning body believes the heated discussions about Richmond have dissipated among its fans despite the continuing ramifications and noted that teams have continued to announce new sponsorships (as Roush Fenway Racing did last week with a full Nationwide deal next year).

Unfortunately, that doesn't help Truex Jr., whose future remains uncertain with the loss of NAPA and no full-time ride left at MWR.

"The situation at Richmond was unfortunate, and there has been some very significant fallout from the proceedings there," Jewkes told USA TODAY Sports. "Our fans are passionate about everything in NASCAR, and we love that about them. They know NASCAR is filled with highly competitive people.

"It's our job to keep the playing field as level as possible and to take action when needed. We monitor sentiment in a number of ways, and we feel very comfortable that a strong majority of the fans realize that we handled this situation decisively and with the best interests of the entire sport in mind."

But there were some negatives in the Repucom data. When asked how Richmond had changed their perceptions of NASCAR, its teams and its drivers, 28% of fans said their views of teams had worsened (vs. 18% for NASCAR and 21% for drivers)

In the polling, 76% of NASCAR fans agreed with the penalties and the addition of Gordon to the Chase.

"That's all Jeff Gordon driven," Laatz said. "He has such a massive fan base, so it was mostly positive that 'my guy is in, and all is right in the world.' "

Repucom calculated more than 100,000 Twitter posts and 271 million impressions (factoring in retweets, replies and follower counts) from the night of the Richmond race through the addition of Gordon to the Chase six days later. The day after the MWR penalties, 73% of the tweets were positive, and it spiked to 93% on the day Gordon was added.

"I think that if social media didn't exist, Jeff Gordon wouldn't be in the Chase," Laatz said. "I'd take it a step further that if social media didn't exist, NAPA would still be in the sport.

"I think social media is becoming so responsive to what's happening on the track and the business side. This is already a very aware fan base. With social media, it's even more amplified."

Martin Truex Jr. is searching for a Cup ride in 2014 after Michael Waltrip Racing announced it is downsizing to two cars.(Photo: Rob Grabowski, USA TODAY Sports)

So as the cyberspace discussion has quieted, do drivers feel as if the scandal is behind them?

"That's a great question," said Kevin Harvick, who trails Matt Kenseth by 29 points, in third place in the Chase standings. "There are just a lot of things that happened that everybody I'm sure looks back on and says, 'I would have done this, this or this different.' I'm sure that you could say that about the NFL too, on the concussion (topic) and the way that it's been handled.

"I think that the repercussions that the team has seen from it are obviously pretty big. I think if they look back on it they would probably say that they would have done things a little bit differently. ... If everybody had it to do over again, I'm sure that they would do things differently, but those were the decisions that were made. Everybody is trying to move on and it will definitely be something that is talked about for a long time."

Said Gordon: "It certainly wasn't a highlight. ... I think time heals all wounds. I don't know if we can fully put it in perspective, but each race we run in the Chase that everyone is pushing hard to win a championship is another step closer to putting that incident behind us."

Sunday's Camping World RV Sales 500, though, should put scrutiny on the so-called "100% rule" that was implemented by NASCAR chairman Brian France after Richmond and directed drivers "to race at 100% of their ability with the goal of achieving their best possible finishing position in an event." Though "drafting" was singled out by president Mike Helton as an example of an acceptable practice, some strategies at Talladega have involved drivers taking that to the extreme of running at half-throttle at the back of the lead draft in an attempt to avoid trouble at a track known for its big crashes.

Drafting at restrictor-plate tracks also often involves drivers pushing teammates to winsvictories, which could raise debates about giving an honest effort.

Burton said he has heard people say he helped Tony Stewart win the 2011 title because Burton didn't put up much of a fight in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway when Stewart passed him for second on his way to the championship.

"It's always been like that," Burton said. "He was going to knock my (butt) out of the way. That spot was way more important to him (than) to me. It was in my best interests. You could say 'well, he wasn't giving 100%,' but you've got to manage the race the way you think is best. We can't have the perception of manipulation (and) of cheating. On the other hand, this sport has always been about cutting a guy some slack if he would cut you some slack.

"The problem with all that is you can look at isolated incidents and build cases that somebody is trying to manipulate the race. That's my fear. We're going to hear it this week."

PHOTOS: Chase for the Sprint Cup points standings

2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule released

With minimal change, NASCAR released the 2014 Sprint Cup Series schedule on Tuesday.

NASCAR has released its 2014 Sprint Cup schedule and with slight variations, it's not all that different from the 2013 version.

The most notable change is an already announced swap of the Darlington and Kansas dates: Darlington will move to April 12 with Kansas now a Saturday night race held May 10 (Mother's Day weekend). This change was made to accommodate Kansas, which recently installed lights and has long sought a night race.

The only other change to the 2014 schedule sees Texas shift its annual April race from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon to avoid a conflict with the NCAA men's basketball Final Four held the same weekend in nearby Arlington, Texas.

Prior to Tuesday's announcement, there were rumblings that NASCAR was looking to shake up a schedule which some felt had become monotonous. There has long been a clamoring among fans and drivers alike for a road course to be added to the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup or to see different tracks rotated in.

Although those changes did not occur for 2014, Steve O' Donnell, NASCAR senior vice president of racing operations, hinted that an overhaul could happen next year when the '15 schedule is unveiled. This would coincide with NASCAR beginning its new television contract with NBC Sports, which replaces ESPN and TNT, to broadcast the second half of the Cup schedule.

"We're certainly going to take a look at it," O'Donnell said. "I think the timing with the new TV partners makes sense. One thing to keep in mind, though, is with each of the tracks, if we constantly are shifting dates, it becomes more and more of a challenge for each track. Our fans like some of the familiarity. We want to balance that.

"But it's certainly something to look at as we head into that year for sure."

As for those who would like to see the inclusion of more short tracks and road courses within the 36-race schedule, O'Donnell stressed NASCAR is currently happy with the diversity of its schedule for its premier series.

"I know fans have talked about a road course in the Chase," he said. "We'd never rule that out, (but) under our current schedule, that's very challenging for us to do. If you asked both of those road courses, I think they have a pretty successful thing going on right now. We're very happy with where those dates fall as well.

"It's something that we're taking a bigger look at every year. I think that we're more open than we've ever been to looking at those things."

NASCAR also announced it will make Air Titan, its track-drying system which reduces the time it takes to dry a track in case of rain, available to use at all races in 2014.

Previously, tracks had the option of paying to use the apparatus, but the expense deterred many from doing so. This year's opening Chase event at Chicagoland Speedway endured a five-hour delay because of rain, and Air Titan was not present to speed up the drying process.

"We're taking it upon ourselves to have it at every race," O'Donnell said. "In 2014, NASCAR is going to take over that role entirely and have it at every event.

"We think it's the right thing to do for the fans. We feel we're really in a good position in terms of the technology that's been advanced through the R&D center. We look forward to showcasing that, hopefully minimally, because we'd like to see the sun shine for each of our events."

* Complete coverage of the 2013 Sprint Cup Chase

* Mysterious debris caution foils Jimmie Johnson

* Brad Keselowski wins at Charlotte

* Kvapil's arrest another hit for NASCAR's reputation

* The good times, hard life and shocking death of Dick Trickle

NASCAR had few changes on its 2014 schedule, but a new television contract in 2015 could produce a possible shakeup in the order of Sprint Cup Series races. With NBC doing the final 20 Cup races in 2015, it likely would want a marquee event to kick off its schedule. The way it is now, that would be Kentucky, the newest track on the schedule when it was added three years ago and probably one that NBC would prefer not be where it celebrates its return to Cup racing for the first time since 2006.

NASCAR has had eight of the same 10 tracks on its Chase schedule since its inception, and rumblings of a change just to spice up NASCAR's version of the playoffs appear to be louder. With Ford's 10-year deal to sponsor the season-ending event at Homestead-Miami Speedway expiring after 2014, NASCAR (or track owner International Speedway Corp., which is controlled by NASCAR's France family) could more easily move that race. ISC also controls the opening Chase for the Sprint Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway, where NASCAR fights significant competition in the market in mid-September.

"We're certainly going to take a look at (changing the schedule)," NASCAR senior vice president of operations Steve O'Donnell said. "I think the timing with the new TV partners makes sense.

"One thing to keep in mind, though, is with each of the tracks, if we constantly are shifting dates, it becomes more and more of a challenge for each track. Our fans like some of the familiarity. We want to balance that." NASCAR changed only two race weekends for 2014 as Darlington and Kansas swapped spring dates, giving Kansas the Mother's Day weekend in order to have optimal weather for a Saturday night race May 10. Darlington will have its Saturday night race April 12 to avoid a conflict with the final round of golf's Masters. The only other change was NASCAR moving the Texas date from Saturday night to Sunday (April 6) to avoid conflict with the NCAA men's basketball Final Four in Dallas that weekend. The move was proposed by ISC for Kansas to get the night race. O'Donnell said NASCAR did not receive any requests for realignment. ISC and rival track operator Speedway Motorsports Inc. (controlled by Sonic Automotive's Bruton Smith) can request realignment. No realignment has occurred since 2011, when ISC moved one of its California races to Kansas and SMI moved an Atlanta race to Kentucky. Smith has publicly lobbied for a second Vegas race and even threatened to move a Charlotte race to Vegas but did not make the request. NASCAR is happy with the variety of tracks where it races, O'Donnell said. With the consolidation of track ownership over the last 15 years, NASCAR is in a little bit of bind even if O'Donnell wanted to change the schedule. If NASCAR takes a race away from the publicly-traded ISC or SMI, the impact on those companies' stock prices could be significant. And while NASCAR stresses each yet in its sanction agreements that they are 1-year deals, any move of a date could result in legal challenges either from the tracks or the communities involved. "We're fairly happy with the balance on the Cup side of where we race," O'Donnell said. "Our job really is to put on the best product that we can at each of those racetracks. "That's where we're concentrating, is working on that." NASCAR also is happy with the number of races. O'Donnell didn't rule out NASCAR attempting a Cup race on a weekday rather than the weekend. "We've got a number of sponsors that are involved in our sport," O'Donnell said. "We've got millions of fans that want to have that chance to see us.

"By having 36 events, it gives them an opportunity in certain markets they might not have in other sports that we're proud of. ... There's been talks of could you ever race a Monday night or midweek-that's something that we've had dialogue about."

2014 SPRINT CUP SCHEDULE